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About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (April 1, 2005)
Oregon Daily Emerald Friday, April 1, 2005 “Like I told the guys earlier, once he turns 21 and is able to drink, it’s over. ’’ Toronto guard Jalen Rose after Cleveland’s LeBron James scored 56 points against the Raptors ■ Duck football Moving on: Oregon kicks off spring practices Coming off last year's losing season, their first since 1993, the Ducks should he eager to get spring drills underway BY JON ROETMAN SENIOR SPORTS REPORTER April 2 can’t arrive fast enough for the Oregon football team. The Ducks open spring practice Saturday at 11 a.m. It’s Oregon’s first on-field chance to erase the memories of last season’s 5-6 record — its first losing mark since 1993. The team will hold workouts every Tuesday and Thursday throughout April, as well as alter nating Mondays, Fridays and Satur days. The Spring Game will take place at 12:30 p.m. April 30 in Autzen Stadium. Oregon is expected to have 93 players participate in spring drills, including 43 returning letter men and 14 returning starters. Offense New offensive coordinator Gary Crowton will have plenty of weapons at his disposal as the Ducks return nearly all of their im pact position players. Rising senior quarterback Kellen Clemens matured as a leader during his first full season as a starter dur ing the 2004 campaign. The Burns native passed for 2,548 yards and 22 touchdowns last season, moving into sixth place (5,149) and fifth place (42), respectively, on Oregon’s all-time lists. The Ducks also return Clemens’ top two targets: wide receiver Demetrius Williams and tight end Tim Day. Williams is coming off an injury-plagued season in which he was limited to 47 catches, 593 yards and only two touchdowns. When healthy, the senior has the ability to be a game-breaker. At 6-foot-4, 267 pounds, Day is a massive pass-catching threat as well as a devastating blocker. The senior’s participation in spring drills will be limited, howev er, as he recovers from offseason foot surgery. Along with Williams and Day, big things will be expected from sopho more wide receiver Cameron Colvin, who came to Oregon last year as a five-star recruit from Cali fornia’s De La Salle High School. Senior tailback Terrence White head became Oregon’s 10th 1,000-yard rusher last season (1,144) and is also a threat to catch the ball out of the backfield. The Los Angeles native will be pushed for playing time when top freshman running back recruit Jonathan Stewart arrives at Oregon. There will be plenty of competition along the offensive line after the de parture of Adam Snyder, Nick Steitz, Michael DeLaGrange and Robin Knebel. Geoff Schwartz, Jacob Hucko and junior college addition Palauni Ma Sun are a few potential suitors to fill vacancies up front. Other returning starters include junior center Enoka Lucas, senior guard Ian Reynoso and junior fullback Dante Rosario. Defense Defensively, Oregon will have several big holes to fill. Gone are middle linebacker Jerry Matson, outside linebacker Ramone Reed and defensive linemen Chris Solomona and Robby Valenzuela. While there will be several new starters in the middle of the Duck defense, those who are left give reason for hope. Junior defensive tackle Haloti Ngata amassed 46 tackles last season and will surely attract plenty of attention from pro scouts. Senior defensive end Devan Erik R. Bishoff | Photographer Sophomore wide receiver Cameron Colvin is one of many offensive weapons Oregon will have on display during spring practices. The Ducks kick off their spring drills Saturday at 11 a.m. Long is a relentless pass rusher who will be looked to as a leader next season. The secondary returns four starters and should be much improved. Cornerbacks Aaron Gipson (senior) and Jackie Bates (sophomore) will be pushed by true freshman Willie Glasper. Senior Rodney Woods, recovering from last fall’s knee surgery, will be limited in his spring participation. Other returning starters include safeties J.D. Nelson (junior) and Justin Phinisee (senior) and senior outside linebacker Anthony TVucks. Coaching changes In addition to Crowton, who was named offensive coordinator after four seasons as head coach at Brigham Young, there were several other coaching changes for Oregon. Former Oregon defensive lineman Michael Gray is now the defensive line coach for the Ducks. Former defensive line coach Steve Greatwood will now coach the offen sive line, and assistant coach Neal Zoumboukos, who used to coach the offensive line, will coach the tight ends. jonroetman@dailyemerald. com Erik R. Bishoff | Photographer Left to right: Oregon outfielders Lovena Chaput, Suzie Barnes and Kayleen Hudson, along with the rest of the Ducks, start Pac-10 play at 3 p.m. today against Washington at Howe Field. ■ Duck softball Ducks open Pac-10 play against No. 17 Huskies Nearly two months after being shutout by Washington, Oregon hosts the Huskies in hopes of keeping its seven-game winning streak alive BY CLAYTON JONES SPORTS EDITOR After a non-conference schedule plagued with rained-out games and early disappoint ments, the surging Oregon softball team starts Pacific-10 Conference play at 3 p.m. today against 17th-ranked Washington at Howe Field. Oregon will then host defending national champion UCLA at 1 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. The Ducks (20-9 overall), who have won seven games in a row and 11 of their last 12, hope to keep the momentum going versus their purple and gold rival to the north. Senior second baseman Erin Goodell said the team’s recent roll should help, especially after losing to the Huskies 6-0 earlier this sea son at the Hawaii Paradise Classic. “It gives us more confidence and lets us know that we can play with any team right now,” Goodell said. “When we lost to Wash ington earlier in the season, we hadn’t really found ourselves yet. We’ve found ourselves now and know where we are at.” The Huskies (16-9) are coming off a loss to No. 21 Fresno State and are looking to start the Pac-10 season on a positive note. Wash ington is paced offensively by power-hitting senior catcher Kristen Rivera. The 2005 USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year nominee is hitting .439 (4th in the conference) with a 1.035 slugging percentage (1st), a .644 on base percentage (1st), and 10 home runs (tied for 1st). She also leads the conference in walks (31) and is fourth in RBIs (28). Also hitting well for the Huskies is Ashley Charters, who is third in the conference in hitting (.455). Washington also has two other SOFTBALL, page 10
