White, Worthy moving on after solid Coast careers
COSTA MESA -- Orange Coast College sophomore running back Kyle White and freshman defensive back Brandon Worthy announced on Wednesday they were moving on to continue their athletic and academic careers at two quality four-year schools.
White (Macon East Academy HS), who played two years for the Pirates, will be playing football next year at Oregon State University, while Worthy (Vista Murrieta HS), will move on and play at Northern Arizona University.
"Every year you grow as a player and these two players really excelled for us, both on the football field and in the classroom," OCC head coach Kevin Emerson said. "They both have a tremendous work ethic and they proved that if you put the work in, both as an athlete and as a student, you can succeed. You have to be a stand-up guy to stand out at this level and they both really stood out for us."
White, who led the Pirates with 627 rushing yards as a freshman in 2014, shared the backfield with teammate Daniel Rodriguez this year and still ran for 699 yards (third-best in the Southern League) with six touchdowns on 135 carries. He also finished his OCC career with 38 receptions for 206 yards and a pair of TDs.
After ending his freshman season with an incredible 36-carry, 240-yard, three-touchdown performance against Grossmont, White received some decent offers, but decided on returning to Coast for his sophomore year. "Coach Emerson told me that if I continued to improve and run the ball like I did in that last game, I could go anywhere I wanted, so I decided to come back," White said. "This year, I learned so much from (new running backs coach Wally Grant) and I not only became stronger physically, but mentally as well. I've made lifelong friends here at OCC and we managed to have a successful season because of the work we did together."
White will be the second member of his family to compete on the athletic side at Oregon State. His father, Mark White, was a track and field runner for the Beavers, where he specialized in the 110-meter hurdles and was named the squad's Most Inspirational Runner in 1980 and 1981.
"When Kyle came back to OCC, he gave himself an opportunity to get better and he did just that," Emerson said of White.
Worthy made the most of his year year with the Pirates, racking up 55 tackles (second-best on the team) with a school-best five interceptions and three fumble recoveries. He notched two interceptions against L.A. Pierce on Oct. 10 and became the first player since 2012 (Dylan Afusia) to have to picks in the same game.
"It's been a real blessing to come here to OCC and be a part of this team and school," Worthy said. "I had some opportunities at other places, but it would have been as a red shirt or as a grey shirt. I didn't get a ton of looks out of high school ... I didn't produce Harvard-type grades and I'm not the biggest guy, but I was given the chance to play here and I made the most of it. I love playing at this level -- everyone is so hungry to succeed and everyone is so focused. It was fun to be a part of this team."
Led by Worthy, the Pirates had one of the top defenses in the Southern League and his strong play helped ignite one of the seasons for Coast (7-4) in recent memory. OCC finished 5-1 in the Southern League (with wins over Golden West, Fullerton, Santa Ana, Palomar and Grossomont) and a trip to its first bowl game since 2006.
"It's always great when we can help a player get to the next level in only one season," Emerson said of Worthy. "He will be missed next year for sure, but what he accomplished is the reason why we are here. He took care of his business right away and he will do a great job at Northern Arizona."
