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 Schedule/Results | Roster | Stats | News | Archives WEEKLY RELEASE: Improving Vikings travel to Western Oregon
Sept. 29, 2008
Complete Release in PDF Format
BELLINGHAM, Wash. - THIS WEEK'S GAME: Western Washington University Vikings (2-2, 2-1) vs. Western Oregon University Wolves (3-2, 3-1) in a Great Northwest Athletic Conference contest Saturday, Oct. 4 (2 p.m.) at McArthur Field (3,640 cap., Natural Grass) in Monmouth, Ore. The Vikings got back into the GNAC title race last week with a dramatic home field 29-27 victory over Dixie State that was decided on a 27-yard field goal with four seconds remaining. Western Washington opened its season by splitting two league contests, losing its home opener to Western Oregon, 36-27, on Sept. 6 and winning 30-14 at Humboldt State on Sept. 13. Two weeks ago, the Vikings fell 52-31 at NCAA I-Football Championship Subdivision No.14-ranked Eastern Washington after being tied 31-all with 13 minutes remaining. Western Oregon has won three of its last four games, all league counters, since a 31-14 season-opening loss at NCAA I-FCS Portland State on Aug. 30. Just one of those first five contests was at home. The Wolves began that stretch with a win over Western Washington. Following a 31-24 loss at home to then NCAA Division II No.8-ranked Central Washington on Sept. 13, they responded with wins at Dixie State, 34-27, on Sept. 20 and at Humboldt State, 44-28, last Saturday. Central Washington leads the GNAC standings with a perfect 3-0 record, followed by Western Oregon (3-1) and Western Washington (2-1). SERIES HISTORY: 48th meeting. WWU leads 27-20-0, losing 36-27 earlier this season at Bellingham. The Vikings' last win was 17-14 at Bellingham in 2006. In 2004, the two teams played the longest game in Northwest small college history, WOU prevailing 52-49 in four overtimes at Monmouth, Ore. Eight of the last 14 meetings have been decided by five points or less. The Vikings have a 15-10-0 series advantage at Bellingham and a 12-10-0 edge at Monmouth. The series began in 1930. RADIO: KBAI (930 AM-Bellingham) is broadcasting all Western football games live this season with sports director Doug Lange handling the play-by-play duties for the 13th consecutive season. The pre-game show with host and color commentator Mark Scholten begins at 5:30 p.m. The KBAI broadcast can also be heard on the Internet at wwuvikings.com. The game also will be broadcast live on the Wolves Radio Network. On the internet, link to the game from the Wolves website at www.wouwolves.com, or go directly to MidValleySports.Net. Four radio stations will also broadcast the on the Wolves Radio Network: KPJC 1220 AM (Salem), KLOO 1340 AM (Albany), KOHI 1600 AM (St. Helens) and KMVS 1610 AM (Monmouth). Russ Blunck and "The Coach" Bear Blunck will provide the call for the 12th consecutive season. AUDIO WEBCAST: Viking football is again on the Internet for 2008. To listen to the live broadcast via the web, go to www.wwuvikings.com and follow the links. The web provides streaming audio of the KBAI 930 AM radio broadcast. The audio stream is only available during event broadcast times. 2007 RESULTS: Western Washington finished 2-8 and placed ninth in the North Central Conference at 1-7. Western Oregon, competing as an independent, compiled a 9-2 record. The Wolves won their last five games and finished with a 26-12 Rotary Bowl victory over Colorado School of Mines on Dec. 1 at St. George, Utah. NEW LEAGUE (KIND OF), NEW REGION: The Vikings spent the last two years as a football-only member of the North Central Conference, but when that league folded after an eight-decade history, WWU returned to the GNAC, which took a two-year hiatus from football. The top team in the conference not reaching the NCAA II playoffs earns a berth in the Rotary Bowl at St. George, Utah. The five GNAC schools will play each other home-and-home this season. The five current GNAC football teams competed in the Northwest Region last season, but have been moved to the Southwest Region this fall. That region, which earlier this season was officially renamed Super Regional Four, also includes the Lone Star Conference and the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association. WESTERN WASHINGTON REPORT: Sitting at .500 after a dramatic triumph last week, the Vikings get their first rematch of the season with a GNAC opponent, visiting Western Oregon, which toppled the Vikings 36-27 in the season opener. The WWU offense has been remarkably consistent in its production, averaging 29.2 points a game with a high of 31 and a low of 27, and putting up a GNAC-leading average of 443.8 yards a game, surpassing the 500-yard mark in each of the last two contests. Senior quarterback Adam Perry has completed 88-of-140 passes for 1,238 yards with 10 touchdowns and four interceptions, and has added 102 yards and a score on the ground. He ranks eighth nationally in total offense (335.0). Perry threw for 423 yards in last week's victory over Dixie State, the third-highest single-game total in school history. His top target has been senior wide receiver Pat McCann, who has 23 receptions for 415 yards and four touchdowns. McCann had a monster day against DSC with eight grabs for 232 yards and three touchdowns. The three touchdown receptions tied a school record, and the yardage total was the second-best mark in school history. Senior wide receiver Travis McKee has 20 catches for 310 yards. The tight ends have also been a key part of the offense, as senior Logan Cullen and junior Zach Hekker have combined for 15 catches for 232 yards and four touchdowns. Junior running back Randall Eldridge, who missed the Dixie State contest with a hamstring injury, has rushed for 262 yards on 70 carries, and has 10 receptions for 103 yards and a touchdown. He leads the GNAC in rushing at 87.3 yards a game. With Eldridge out last week, redshirt freshman Kevin Sampson filled in with 85 yards on 25 attempts. The offense is anchored by an experienced line that returned four starters, led by senior center Dan Trask, an honorable mention all-North Central Conference pick last season. On defense, junior linebacker Caleb Jessup has 48 tackles, including 3.5 for loss, and leads the GNAC and ranks sixth nationally in tackles per game (12.0 avg.). Sophomore linebacker Nick Cragin has 30 stops. Sophomore tackle Don Thomas anchors the line. He has a team-high four tackles for loss among his nine stops, including 2.5 sacks, also a team-best. Sophomore end Casey Hamlett has 12 tackles, including two for loss. In the secondary, sophomore safety Zach Schrader has 28 tackles and WWU's lone interception, and sophomore cornerback Anthony Zackery has a team-high three passes defensed. On special teams, junior Josh Lider is 12-of-13 on extra points and 5-of-6 on field goals, including a game-winning 27-yarder with four seconds left last week, the second game-winner of his career. The Vikings have blocked three punts this season, with Sampson getting two of them and returning a block against Western Oregon for a touchdown. The week's team co-captains are Rick Copsey, C.J. Green, Pat McCann and Dan Trask. VIKING NOTES: WWU ranks eighth nationally in passing offense (317.5) ... McCann's 96-yard touchdown grab against Dixie State was a GNAC record and the second-longest in school history. His yardage total was the second most in league history, and was the most ever for a GNAC contest ... In its two losses, WWU held a third-quarter lead in the season opener against Western Oregon, and lentered the fourth quarter against NCAA I-FCS Eastern Washington tied at 31-all ... In 2007, Perry threw for 1,587 yards with seven touchdowns and four interceptions ... Eldridge redshirted last year after being the Golden Gate Conference Offensive Player of the Year at Chabot JC in 2006, rushing for 1,277 yards and 12 touchdowns in 10 games ... Senior wide receiver Travis McKee had 43 catches and was an honorable mention all-NCC pick a year ago. He has been the Vikings' leading receiver in each of the last two seasons ... Jessup earned all-NCC honorable mention in 2007 ... WWU's offensive line has 65 starts between them. SCOUTING WESTERN OREGON: WOU is coming off a 9-2 season, only the fourth nine-win campaign in school history, and defeated Colorado School of Mines in the Rotary Bowl. The Wolves have the best rushing attack in the league, averaging 152.6 yards per game. Junior Ben Kuenzi, who ran for 132 yards in the first meeting with WWU, and sophomore D.J. Jackson rank 2-3 among conference leaders. Kuenzi, a second-team D2football.com all-independent choice, has run for 375 yards (6.8 apc) and four touchdowns, and sophomore D.J. Jackson has netted 302 yards (5.6 apc) and scored one touchdown. Opening holes for them are center Cory Perkins (280) and tight end Cory Dickson, the lone returnees in the offensive line. At quarterback is Mississippi State junior transfer Josh Riddle, who has thrown for 1,081 yards and 11 touchdowns, completing 58.5 percent of his passes, 69-of-118, with eight interceptions. The Wolves' top receivers are junior Demario Ballard with 15 catches for 212 yards and five touchdowns, senior Isaiah Smith with 13 grabs for 248 yards and one touchdown and junior Sean Kauleinamoku, who was the Rotary Bowl MVP, with 11 receptions for 205 yards and three touchdowns. Junior Juan Rodriguez has booted 4-of-8 field goals with a long of 36 yards and converted 18-of-19 point after kicks. Anchoring the WOU defense is senior linebacker J.T. Gilmore, who leads the team in tackles with 51, and senior tackle Matt Cox, who has 25 stops and paces the conference in both tackles for loss with 8.0 for minus-48 yards and quarterback sacks with 5.5 for minus-39 yards. Cox was a first-team D2football.com all-independent pick last fall and Gilmore received second-team recognition. Another defensive stalwart is junior Gavin Romanick, who has 44 tackles, including 4.0 tackles for losses for minus-17 yards, and two pass interceptions. WWU INJURY REPORT: Two starters, running back Randall Eldridge (hamstring) and strong safety Danny Cumming (knee), missed the Dixie State game. Eldridge is expected to return to action this week, while Cumming's status is indefinite. WWU lost two top reserves during the first three weeks, strong safety Jordan Carey and cornerback Reggie Christor both suffering season-ending shoulder injuries. BATTLE IN SEATTLE: The sixth annual Wells Fargo Battle in Seattle for the Cascade Cup between arch-rivals Western and Central Washington takes place Oct. 11 (6 p.m.) at Qwest Field. The attendance at the contest has surpassed 11,000 all five years with the 2003 meeting being played before 16,392, a record for a non-NCAA I collegiate football game in the state of Washington. GNAC PRESEASON POLL: WWU was picked to finish third among five teams in the 2008 Great Northwest Athletic Conference preseason coaches poll. Arch-rival Central Washington was the first-place pick with Western Oregon second. Dixie State was fourth and Humboldt State fifth. HEAD COACHES: Robin Ross (Washington State, 1977) is in his third year (9-16) as head coach at WWU and has three decades of coaching experience. He was the defensive coordinator for two of the finest Viking teams in school history in the mid-1990s. Ross spent most of his career as an assistant at the NCAA Division I-A level. He also coached in the National Football League, being the linebackers coach with Oakland for two seasons, helping the Raiders have the ninth-ranked defense in the NFL in 2000, when they were 12-4 and reached the AFC Championship Game. In 2005, Ross was linebackers coach at Oregon State, where the Beavers led the PAC-10 in run defense, allowing 108.0 yards per game. He spent the previous four seasons as special teams coordinator and tight ends coach at Oregon. The Ducks won the 2001 PAC-10 championship, finishing second in the ESPN Coaches Poll after defeating Colorado in the 2002 Fiesta Bowl. He was also at Oregon as an assistant during the 1997 and 1998 seasons. Ross initially came to Western in 1994 and in his first season the Vikings led the NAIA Division II in scoring defense, allowing just 11.5 points a game and five times holding opponents without a touchdown. Western, which posted its first national playoff victory that season with a 21-2 triumph at No.1-ranked Linfield, ranked third nationally in rushing defense at 76.0 yards a contest and fifth in total defense (260.3) with 42 takeaways. In 1995, Western finished 9-1, going 9-0 for the school's first undefeated regular-season in 57 years and being ranked No.1 nationally in NAIA II for five weeks. The defense allowed 13.7 points a game, ranking seventh nationally in that category. Ross, 53, is a graduate of Washington State, where he was a second-team all-PAC-8 pick as an offensive lineman. He was a 10th round draft pick of the San Francisco 49ers in 1976, and spent one preseason with the Seattle Seahawks. Arne Ferguson (Western Oregon, 1991) is in his fourth season (23-14) as head coach at WOU. He has also spent nearly a lifetime at the school as a player and as an assistant coach. The Vale, Oregon native was a three-time All-CFA defensive back for the Wolves from 1986-88, and began his coaching career at WOU in 1989. He has been the Wolves' defensive coordinator since 1997. In Ferguson's first season at the helm in 2005, he took over a program that finished 1-9 the previous year and was 5-6. In 2006 WOU finished 6-4, all four losses coming by a total of 21 points, and the Wolves were 9-2 last season. LAST MEETING: Running back Ben Kuenzi scored a pair of second-half touchdowns, leading Western Oregon to a 36-27 victory over Western Washington in a GNAC contest on Sept. 6 at Bellingham's Civic Stadium. The game was the season opener for WWU. Quarterback Adam Perry completed 23-of-38 passes for 278 yards and three touchdowns for the Vikings. The Vikings took a 27-23 lead with 4:38 left in the third quarter on a 10-yard pass from Perry to tight end Zach Hekker, a play set up by a 4th-and-1 completion for 24 yards to Logan Cullen. But an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty for excessive celebration forced WWU to kick off from its own 15, and following the kickoff, WOU took the ball at the Viking 40. Five plays later, Kuenzi scored on a 6-yard run, giving the Wolves a 30-27 lead. The Vikings had a chance to take the lead early in the fourth quarter. A Perry scramble on third-and-goal from the eight put the ball inside the one, but on fourth down, running back Randall Eldridge was stopped inches short of the goal line by WOU linebacker J.T. Gilmore. The Wolves then went on an 11-play, 99-yard drive that chewed up six minutes of the clock. Kuenzi capped the march with a 16-yard touchdown run, putting WOU up 36-27 with just 3:49 to go and essentially putting the game out of reach. Western Oregon had a 462-386 edge in total offense, rushing for 252 yards on 38 attempts. D.J. Jackson had 132 yards on 13 carries, and Kuenzi added 81 yards on 13 attempts. Quarterback Josh Riddell completed 15-of-24 passes for 210 yards with two touchdowns and one interception. Eldridge rushed for 80 yards on 24 carries for WWU, and also had six receptions for 68 yards, including an 18-yard touchdown catch in the second quarter. Travis McKee had five receptions for 96 yards, and Cullen had four grabs for 68 yards, including an 18-yard grab for the first Viking score. WOU opened the scoring just four minutes into a game, as a bad snap on a WWU punt attempt gave the Wolves the ball on the Viking 16, setting up a 33-yard field goal by Juan Rodriguez. That was just the start of a wild first half that saw the teams exchange the lead five times. The Vikings eventually grabbed a 20-17 halftime advantage as Kevin Sampson blocked a punt and returned it 13 yards for a touchdown with 2:40 left in the second quarter. The extra point failed because of a bad snap. WOU regained the lead midway through the third quarter, as a 45-yard run by Jackson set up a 2-yard pass from Riddell to wide receiver Demario Ballard. Linebacker Caleb Jessup had a game-high 11 tackles for the Vikings, and safety Zach Schrader had eight stops and an interception. LAST WEEK'S GAME: Josh Lider kicked three field goals, including a game-winning 27-yarder with four seconds left, lifting Western Washington to a 29-27 victory over Dixie State in a GNAC contest at Civic Stadium. It was the first meeting between the two schools. Wide receiver Pat McCann had eight receptions for 232 yards, the second-most receiving yards in school history, and tied a Western single-game record with three touchdown receptions as the Vikings improved to 2-2 overall and 2-1 in the GNAC. Dixie State fell to 1-4 overall and 0-3 in conference play. Trailing 23-14 to start the second half, Dixie State narrowed the margin to 23-21 on a 24-yard pass from Dexter Hill to Kyler Christensen with 2:19 left in the third quarter, then took the lead with 11:47 left as Hill connected with Judd Thompson on an 8-yard scoring toss. The extra-point was missed, leaving Dixie State with a 27-23 lead. The Vikings appeared to regain the lead on a 9-yard run by running back Kevin Sampson with seven minutes left, but a penalty negated the score and pushed the ball back to the 23, leading to a 34-yard field goal by Lider with 5:15 to play, narrowing the margin to 27-26. Dixie State picked up two first downs on the following drive, giving Western the ball on its own 32 with 1:47 left and no time outs. Quarterback Adam Perry then led the Vikings 69 yards in seven plays, the last 15 yards coming on a roughing-the-passer penalty with 15 seconds left that put the ball on the Dixie State 10. Following two incompletions, Lider kicked the game winner. McCann had touchdown receptions of 11, 40, and 96 yards, all in the first half, and also had two catches in the final drive. Perry completed 24-of-38 passes for 423 yards with three touchdowns and an interception. His 423 yards are the third-most in a game in Western history. Hill completed 22-of-35 passes for 238 yards with four touchdowns for Dixie State. Christensen had seven grabs for 78 yards and two scores. McCann had two touchdown catches in first 10 minutes to stake Western to a 14-0 lead. Perry was 7-of-10 for 122 yards in the first two drives. Dixie State then used 26-yard kickoff return by Dominque Moe and a late hit penalty to take the ball at the Western 37 and scored seven plays later as Hill connected with Christensen for a 7-yard touchdown. Dixie State got the ball back quickly as Western fumbled on its first play from scrimmage, and moved to the Viking 4, but on fourth-and-1, Western defensive end Casey Hamlett stopped Sione Tapuosi. On the next play, Perry hit McCann on an out-and-up for a 96-yard touchdown, giving Western a 20-7 lead. The Vikings had a 541-375 advantage in total offense, surpassing the 500-yard mark for the second straight game. McCann and Lider were named the respective GNAC offensive and special teams Player of the Week. WWU PLAYERS OF THE WEEK:
TICKET INFORMATION: Tickets for Viking football cost $12 for reserved seating, $10 for general admission adults, $6 for students and seniors and $3 for Western students. For ticket information, contact the WWU Athletic Department at 360-650-2583 (BLUE). Season tickets are available for $33. CIVIC STADIUM: Western is in its 47th year of playing home games at Bellingham's Civic Stadium. The Vikings have a 123-90-7 (.575) record at that facility which was built in 1961. Last year, Western finished 1-3 at home, the second time in three years after not having a losing record at Civic Stadium since 1990. NEXT GAME: Western faces arch-rival and nationally No.9-ranked Central Washington in the sixth annual Battle in Seattle for the Cascade Cup on Saturday, Oct. 11 (6 p.m.), at Qwest Field. The Wildcats, who host Dixie State on Saturday, are 4-1 overall and lead the GNAC standings at 3-0. Last week, they suffered their only loss, 38-35 at NCAA I-FCS Montana on a last-second field goal of 47 yards. WEBSITE: For the latest results, statistics and updates, including reports on all WWU athletic events, visit the Vikings website at wwuvikings.com. PROBABLE TWO DEEPS WESTERN WASHINGTON
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