Sports
Oregon Daily Emerald
Monday, November 7, 2005
"It's about making plays against a top-20 team in
their home.... Oregon is a good football team
with lots of talent, and iVs a great place to play. ”
California head coach Jeff Tedford after the Ducks
defeated the Bears 27-20 in overtime Saturday
■ In my opinion
SHAWN MILLER
FULL-COURT PRESS
Pressure
pushes two
quarterbacks
to the top
Pressure causes funny reactions.
Take, for instance, a tire. Too much pressure
and it will explode, just like former NFL coach
Jim Mora at each and every press conference.
There is immense pressure on Oregon
athletes and coaches, especially the ones who
play at Autzen Stadium or McArthur Court. If
they win, they were supposed to. If they don’t
win, they were overrated. So what happened
when arguably one of the best quarterbacks
to ever play at Oregon was lost for the
remainder of one of the most promising
football seasons in the program’s history?
pressure:
This time the pressure was on backup
Dennis Dixon, who started his first game
behind center Saturday against then-No. 23
California. Dixon probably didn’t live up to
expectations. I’m sure most 20-year-old
athletes shoved into the limelight wouldn’t
accomplish perfection, but he did keep the
Ducks in the game offensively.
And then there was a fired-up defense.
There were Ducks swarming from the first
series of the game until overtime, when Cal
gained only 2 yards on four plays. Take away
three breakout runs, 26,31 and 52 yards, from
Cal running back Marshawn Lynch and his
189 rushing yards doesn’t look so great.
What about Brady Leaf? TWo weeks ago the
third-string quarterback probably couldn’t
imagine playing more than third-string
minutes the rest of the season, but Saturday
he was the quarterback who threw the
game-winning touchdown in overtime.
Senior Terrence Whitehead averaged just
more than 55 rushing yards per game this
season before his 119-yard performance
Saturday. Whitehead looked like a puppy at
Christmas, squirting all over Autzen.
Saturday’s monumental victory over the
Bears was accomplished by the team. Dixon
didn’t have to carry his teammates, they
carried themselves. And that is the outcome
the Ducks wanted to have going into the final
two games of the regular season.
A Bowl Championship Series game isn’t
out of the question, although it isn’t really part
of an answer either. However, should the
Ducks escape a potentially snowy Pullman
with a win this Saturday and defeat in-state
rival Oregon State at home the following
weekend, it would tie a school-record 10-win
regular season, and the Ducks would have
that shot at the BCS.
Most likely Oregon would be shut out even
with two more wins, leaving San Diego the
desired spot for a holiday bowl. Which is
exactly that, the Holiday Bowl against the
third-place team from the Big XII Conference.
Oregon holds its destiny in its hands and
winning as a team against a top-25 opponent
Saturday proved that no matter how big of a
loss hits the depth chart, the Ducks fight as a
collective unit bound for another check mark
in the win column each weekend.
smiUer@dailyemerald. com
■ Women's basketball
M_Jt
Nicole Barker | Senior photographer
Six-foot-6 forward Jessica Shetters rises above the rest for a rebound Sunday night during an exhibition game against Northwest Sports. The Ducks outscored
Northwest Sports by 19 in the first half before running away with an 87-56 victory.
Ducks easily down exhibition foe
Senior guard Chelsea Wagner had to leave the game after injuring
her knee in the first half hut she does not believe it to be serious
BY JEFFREY DRANSFELDT
SPORTS REPORTER
The Oregon women’s basketball team
received a scare Sunday when Chelsea
Wagner limped off the court during a game
against Northwest Sports.
Oregon warmed up after a slow start and
won the exhibition game easily 87-56 in front
of 2,850 at McArthur Court.
Toward the end of the first half, Wagner
twisted her knee and limped off the court.
Afterward concern centered on Wagner, who
is returning to the court after her junior
season ended in the 15th game with an injury
to the same knee.
She said she felt a pop, but doesn’t believe
it is serious.
“I don’t have any fears whatsoever,”
Wagner said. "My knee is strong. I didn’t tear my
ACL or anything. It’s nothing horrible.”
Wagner will undergo a precautionary MRI
today, head coach Bev Smith said.
“Any time (an injury) happens it’s a
concern,” Smith said. “We’ve been through it.
She’s a warrior and I know she’ll bounce back
as quickly as she can. ”
Two other players returning this season,
Carolyn Ganes and Kedzie Gunderson, made
their presence felt offensively and defensively.
Ganes answered several Northwest Sports
runs in the second half with mid-range
jumpers around the three-point line. She also
spread the defense as Oregon outscored
Northwest Sports 38-18 inside the paint.
She finished with 18 points on 64
percent shooting.
“Carolyn is one of the purest shooters I’ve
ever seen, not only in this country, but in the
world,” Smith said.
The redshirt forward entered this season
needing to work on defense and rebounding,
Smith said. Ganes had four defensive
rebounds Sunday.
Complementing Ganes, Gunderson —
known as a standout defender — had several
opportunities within Oregon’s offense. She
tipped a rebound to herself and made a layup.
Gunderson also showed a jump shot when
she dribbled past a defender and swished a
mid-range jumper.
“Kedzie is a slasher,” Smith said. “She’s got
a great little dribble jumper that she pulled
out (Sunday).”
Defense is her main focus.
“I’m definitely, now, working more on
crashing the boards, getting some offensive
rebounds and doing the little dirty work,”
Gunderson said.
BASKETBALL page 10
■ Football recap
Ducks emerge victorious against Cal
Quarterback Dennis Dixon (10) and running back Terrence Whitehead execute a play-action pass Saturday.
Whitehead rushed for 119 yards and one touchdown, while Dixon threw tor 139 yards and one touchdown.
Reserve quarterback Brady Leaf
found James Finley in overtime
for the game-winning touchdown
BY LUKE ANDREWS
SPORTS REPORTER
An unlikely hero was bom on a soggy, windy
afternoon at Autzen Stadium Saturday.
Reserve quarterback Brady Leaf came off the bench
and tossed his first career touchdown pass — a four
yard strike to wideout James Finley — in overtime to
give then-No. 15 Oregon (8-1, 5-1 conference) a 27-20
win over No. 23 California (6-3, 3-3).
After third-year starting quarterback Kellen Clemens
went down with a season-ending ankle injury two
weeks ago, much of the focus Saturday was on
quarterback Dennis Dixon making his first career start.
However, after a 20-20 tie at the end of regulation,
RECAP, page 9