■ Game of the week
OSU hopes history repeats itself against USC
Oregon State hopes to blemish USC's record once again
in a repeat of the teams' memorable 1967 meeting
BYALEXIAM
FREELANCE REPORTER
Longtime USC football fans remem
ber what happened in 1967.
Behind the rushing attack of O.J.
Simpson nearly 37 years ago, the
Tfojans won their sixth national
I
championship, despite losing one
game that season.
That one game was to Oregon State
in a mud-and-rain-filled 3-0 loss in
Corvallis. And now, the Beavers look
to repeat one of the program’s most
memorable moments when No. 1 USC
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(8-0 overall, 5-0 Pacific-10 Conference)
travels to play Oregon State (4-4, 3-2)
in Corvallis at 7 p.m. Saturday.
Oregon State head coach Mike Riley
was asked whether he would break
out that video of the game as inspira
tion for his squad.
“I don’t know where that is, I don’t
have a copy of it,” Riley said. “But
we’ll make reference to that. That was
a great moment in Oregon State histo
ry, for sure.”
Riley, who grew up in Corvallis, was
a ball boy at that game and his father,
Bud, was an assistant coach for the
Beavers. Riley was 14 years old and
vividly remembers that Oregon State
team, which had a 7-2-1 record and
finished No. 7 in the country.
“That was a very good Oregon State
team and they ended up having a very
good year,” Riley said. “It was fun as a
kid being around the team and it
makes it fun for me now because I can
relay those memories to the team.”
The Beavers get another shot at tak
ing down a co-defending national
champion after losing to the other co
national champions, Louisiana State,
22-21 in the opening game this season.
Riley said the chance to play the Tto
jans at home this weekend is one they
need to take advantage of after having
won three straight games.
“It’s a big challenge and also a great
opportunity for our football team,”
said Riley. “We are at a point now that
we have probably played our best,
most consistent football throughout
the year in the last three ballgames.”
USC head coach Pete Carroll, how
ever, enters the contest after having
never lost a game in November during
his four-years in Los Angeles. He is 10
0 in the month dating back to 2001.
Carroll will also make his first-ever
trip to Corvallis, but said it should not
be a problem since they faced similar
circumstances last weekend. The Tro
jans defeated Washington State in Pull
man, Wash., for the first time under
Carroll in a 42-12 victory last Saturday.
“It does present new challenges just
because we have not been there be
fore,” Carroll said. “We had not won at
Washington State so it was important
for us to go there last week and suc
ceed in that environment.
“I know it will be a good crowd and
a different kind of turf this week. ”
In last week’s victory, quarterback
Matt Leinart completed 23 of 28 passes
for 235 yards and passed for two
touchdowns. Leinart, a redshirt junior,
was replaced by backup Matt Cassell
in the third quarter as his team built a
42-0 lead.
“He looked so comfortable in the
game,” Carroll said. “The touch that
he put on all of the throwing opportu
nities that we gave him was right on. ”
L
Emerald
Oregon State quarterback Derek Anderson needs three touchdown passes to move into sixth
place all-time in the Pac-10. The Scappoose native has 66 career scoring tosses.
For the season, Leinart has passed
for 1,863 yards and 18 touchdowns
and ranks 12th in the nation and sec
ond in the Pac-10 in passing efficiency.
When Leinart starts at quarterback,
the Trojans have a record of 20-1.
Leinart’s counterpart, Derek Ander
son, is also considered one of the top
quarterbacks in the Pac-10. Anderson,
a senior, is Oregon State’s all-time
passing yardage leader (9,876) and
needs just 124 more yards to become
the fifth quarterback in Pac-10 history
to throw for at least 10,000 yards.
Carroll said he has taken notice of
Anderson’s success throughout his
“fantastic college career.”
“He’s a big-time quarterback, there’s
no question,” Carroll said. “Seems like
he has been doing it forever. ”
Riley said his quarterback’s confi
dence is “at an all-time high for the
season” through the current three
game winning streak. During the
streak, Anderson has passed for 705
yards and six touchdowns and also
has run for one touchdown.
“He has just played efficient and he
has played well,” Riley said. “As far as
where we are offensively, we are doing
better and he is a big part of that. ”
And what would it mean for Ander
son if he were to pull off an upset over
the No. 1 team in the nation?
“He’ll have a tremendous legacy as
one of the most productive and one
of the winningest quarterbacks in a
long time at this school,” Riley said.
“He’ll have a positive image no mat
ter what happens.”
Riley said his team will be ready to
play the Trojans and if not for three
missed extra points by kicker Alexis
Serna against LSU earlier this season,
the Beavers could have had two victo
ries over both of last year’s co-national
champions.
“Our team has risen to the occasion
previously in what was perceived as
an overmatched football game and we
came up short,” Riley said. “I think
this team is better than that team, but
the game will be played, and we have
our opportunity and we will have to
play very well.”
Alex Tam is a freelance reporter
for the Daily Emerald
Roetman: Final countdown to a Duck win
Continued from page 9B
Oregon head coach Mike Bellotti
said Oregon is thrilled to get another
chance to play a top-tier team, espe
cially with many Duck players having
grown up in the Golden State.
“I’m excited, our players are excit
ed,” Bellotti said. “We have a lot of
players from California going home
and I hope I get the same response
from those players as I did from our
kids with Washington ties this past
week against (the Huskies).”
3. Terrence Whitehead — Oregon’s
featured tailback continues to be one
of the most productive offensive
weapons in the Pacific-10 Conference.
The junior is one of only three backs in
the Pac-10 to average more than 100
yards per game (102.4) and is also a le
gitimate pass-catching threat out of the
backfield. Whitehead leads all confer
ence running backs with 34 receptions
for 310 yards.
If the Ducks are to have any chance
against Cal, Whitehead must have a
big day running and receiving against
one of the best defenses in the country.
2. Kellen Clemens — Oregon’s quar
terback is the total yardage leader in
the Pac-10, producing more than 271
yards per game. After starting the sea
son with a three-interception perform
ance against Indiana, Clemens has
played outstanding football. He’s
made smart throws and has been
picked off only twice during the last
seven games, both of which came on
passes tipped by an Oregon receiver.
For some reason, however, the
Oregon offense seems to hit a bump
in the road each game, where execu
tion starts to falter. If Clemens and
the Oregon offense can put together
four solid quarters of football, the
Ducks have a chance.
1. Defense — The Oregon defense
has carried the team during the last
three weeks, allowing only 33 points
during three wins. The Ducks’ success
starts up front. Tackles Haloti Ngata
and Robby Valenzuela have been stuff
ing the run and getting backfield pene
tration, while ends Devan Long and
Chris Solomona have pressured quar
terbacks and created turnovers.
The dominance of the front four
have opened things up for linebackers
Jerry Matson, Anthony Thicks and Ra
mone Reed to roam free and make
tackles cleanly without having to sift
through blockers.
Defensive backs Justin Phinisee,
J.D. Nelson, Jackie Bates and Gipson
have been successful in eliminating
the big play and making teams try to
grind out long drives.
While Cal’s offense is loaded, the
Oregon defense has a shut-down men
tality and is capable of doing the job.
jonroetman@dailyemerald.com