Sports Editor:
Adam Jude
adamjude@dailyemerald.com
Best Bet
NBA playoffs:
San Antonio at Seattle
7:30 p.m., TNT
Wednesday, May 1,2002
Bellotti anticipates ‘pretty good football team’
Adam Amato Emerald
Onterrio Smith, a 1,000-yard rusher last season, is one of the few certainties the Ducks have in their lineup as they head
into a three-month break. The football team will resume workouts on Aug. 10 in preparation for the season.
■With spring practices concluded,
the Oregon football team has three
months to mull over its uncertainties
By Adam Jude
Oregon Daily Emerald
Questions, oh so many questions for
Mike Bellotti. Maybe it’s a good thing the
Oregon football coach has more than
three months to find some answers.
Spring drills came to an end Saturday
at the Spring Game with several key po
sitions still uncertain for the fall, when
the team can again reunite on Aug. 10.
All in all, though, this spring was not
much different than previous years. Ul
timately, time will be the best means of
measuring how good this team will be.
“I think we have the makings of a pret
ty good football team,” Bellotti said af
ter the Spring Game. “Certainly there’s
a lot of work to be done in a lot of places.
I told our kids that what happens now,
from this point on, is the most important
thing. They know what they need to
work on. A lot of it falls on them now. ”
Fife makes his move
On April 1, the big question on of
fense was whether junior Jason Fife was
good enough to replace Joey Harrington
at quarterback. By April 20, all eyes fell
on redshirt freshman Kellen Clemens,
an athletic and slippery quarterback
who made some spectacular plays in the
spring’s first scrimmages.
But after an impressive performance
Saturday in the Spring Game, Fife is clear
ly the front-runner heading into the fall.
“Fife was very, very good,” Clemens
said after this counterpart’s four
touchdown performance Saturday.
“Man. Phew.”
At running back, Onterrio Smith is
the man. To stop Oregon, teams will
have to stop Smith. Allan Amundson
and Ryan Shaw will battle for the No. 2
spot in the fall.
Oregon’s wide receivers are deep —
and good. Even with last year’s starting
wideouts Keenan Howry and Jason
Willis nursing injuries this spring, the
Oregon receivers made names for them
selves. Junior speedster Sarnie Parker
had two touchdown catches Saturday
and will undoubtedly contend for a
starting job come August.
George Wrighster is the easy choice to
replace Justin Peelle at tight end. But
this spring Wrighster experimented at
fullback — or H-back
— a spot that Matt
Floberg may claim in
the fall. If Wrighster
does move to the back
field, watch out for red
shirt freshman Tim Day
at tight end.
Want a quick explanation for Oregon’s
2001 success? The offensive line, which
allowed just 11 sacks last year — best in
the Pacific-10 Conference. Good news
for the decision-makers: Three starters
from that unit return — Dan Weaver,
Corey Chambers and Joey Forster.
Ducks want Moore
in secondary
Defensive back Steven Moore may
have been the biggest surprise of
the spring.
“Stevie Moore has exceeded my ex
pectations,” Bellotti said.
With Moore penciled in as one of the
replacements for NFL draftees Rashad
Bauman and Steve Smith, the Ducks
will begin fall camp searching for the
other. In battling sophomore Charles
Favroth, redshirt freshman Justin
Turn to Football, page 8
Give quarterback Fife a chance to finish his Big Story
Hockaday
Two minutes for
crosschecking
For three years now, Jason Fife has
been the MVP of Oregon’s Spring
Game. Well, maybe not the MVP,
but he’s at least been the Big Story.
Two years ago, the Big Story was that
Fife would contend with Joey Harring
ton and A.J. Feeley for the top two spots
in the Ducks’ quarterback rotation.
But that story fizzled, as Feeley recov
ered from an arm injury and was an able
backup to Harrington, who quickly de
veloped into a bona fide superstar. Fee
ley played in only two games, and Fife
saw nary a snap in the 2000 season.
In the 2001 Spring Game, the Big
Story was that Fife would ably fill Fee
ley’s shoes as Harrington’s second-in
command. After a strong showing in
the scrimmage, it looked like Fife
might even contend with Harrington
for semi-serious playing time.
But that story faded, as the season’s
first few games were too close to yank
Harrington, and even in the blowouts
there was always “Joey Heisman’s” sta
tistics to think about. So Fife threw the
ball only nine times all season.
And on Saturday, Fife was the Big
Story one more time, only now he has a
better chance than ever to finish the tale.
With foin touchdowns and 217 yards
through the air, Fife clearly stated his
case for the job as No. 1 signal-caller.
Now he needs to keep it like a naked
bootleg up the right side.
With Harrington gone, the Ducks
will undoubtedly crave a strong pres
ence in the pocket next fall. They’ll
need a calm, confident signal-caller to
lead like Harrington did.
And Fife is the right man for the job.
Cool and confident on the field, poised
and fun in interviews, Fife could be
just the man to fill Harrington’s 100
foot shoes.
Luckily, Fife will have rocket
launchers with pillow-soft hands at his
wide receiver positions. Sarnie Parker
was stunningly fast in the spring
scrimmage just as he was all last year,
big-play guy Keenan Howry will be
back in the fall and able-handed Jason
Willis will join him.
If Saturday’s big plays are any indi
cation, whoever plays quarterback next
year could practically set up a lawn
chair, toss some wobblers down the
field and watch the stats pile up as the
receivers go to the proverbial town.
Fife also will be aided by an intangi
ble that has benefited many Oregon
quarterbacks in the past: a running
game. Onterrio Smith and Maurice
Morris kept opposing defenses as hon
est as Abe last year, and this season
Smith looks ready to take over the
spotlight for himself. Defenses will
Turn to Hockaday, page 8
Junior
Janell Bergstrom
shows her
frustration
after a potential
game-winning
home run fell just
short in Game 1
of Oregon’s
doubleheader
Tuesday against
Hawaii. She
redeemed herself
by clearing the
fence in Game 2
with the
game-winning
homer.
I
UO softball defeats Hawaii
with Bergstrom’s homer
■ Left fielder Janell Bergstrom s
game-winning hit helps Oregon
split its doubleheader with Hawaii
By Chris Cabot
Oregon Daily Emerald
The second time is a charm for Janell
Bergstrom and the Oregon softball team.
After losing Game 1 of a doublehead
er, 5-4, to Hawaii (33-23 overall, 13-7
Western Athletic Conference) on Tues
day, Oregon (23-25 overall, 1-14 Pacif
ic-10 Conference) came back for a 5-4
victory of its own, thanks to a walk-off
home run from Bergstrom, the Ducks
left fielder. First baseman Andrea Vid
lund scored on Bergstrom’s hit, which
was officially ruled a single because
Bergstrom and Erin Goodell, who was
on first, celebrated before rounding
the bases.
“It’s nice to win the second game in
the fashion that we won it, but we would
have liked to have won both,” Oregon
head coach Brent Rincon said.
Bergstrom had a chance to win Game
1 of the doubleheader in the same
Turn to Softball, page 6