Bye week leaves Cardinal to stew game with I-AA provisional UC-Davis

PACIFIC-10 CONFERENCE NOTEBOOK

By Brooks Hatch
Corvallis Gazette-Times

Stanford's Walt Harris didn't make any excuses, pull a disappearing act or — unlike the coach at a certain Idaho university — skip his conference's weekly media conference call after a difficult loss.

No, the new Cardinal mentor faced the music following an improbable, unfathomable 20-17 home setback to provisional I-AA team UC Davis this past Saturday at Stanford Stadium.

On Monday, he apologized to former Cardinal players and to whatever football boosters have remained on the bandwagon following the miserable three-year Buddy Teevens era. He pulled no punches with Bay Area media on Monday, or with a conference-wide audience on Tuesday.

"I'm sure (the team) is embarrassed. We're all embarrassed," he said. "We allowed a team we were better than to stay in the game," and eventually prevail in its first game against a Pac-10 team in the modern era.

"They got stronger and stronger, and the pressure of us having to execute got stronger and stronger. We're still a young team in this program and we didn't get it done."

Stanford blew a 17-0 lead, didn't score an offensive touchdown, and lost starting quarterback Trent Edwards with an undetermined right-hand injury. Backup T.C. Ostrander took his place and was awful, going 7-for-17 for 104 yards. Stanford was also without its best receiver, Evan Moore, who was hurt on Sept. 10 in a 41-38 win at Navy that briefly raised hopes that the Cardinal could have their first winning season since 2001.

"Our offense was a completely different group of players than it was the week before" at Annapolis, Harris said. "It's more mental than anything else.

"We had many chances in the game and didn't do it. We have to suffer the consequences."

There is some precedent for Harris, who entered a similar situation at Pittsburgh in 1997 to clean up the mess left by predecessor Johnny Majors. At 3-1 and fresh off a victory over Miami that year, the Panthers lost 17-13 at perennial doormat Temple.

Pittsburgh finished 6-6 that year and had two more losing seasons before Harris ultimately righted the ship in 2000. The Panthers played in bowls in each of his final five years there, a string that included a 38-13 Insight Bowl romp over Oregon State in 2002. It culminated with a Big East championship and an appearance in the 2005 Fiesta Bowl, Pittsburgh's first BCS-bowl berth.

Harris said he'll stick with his long-range approach now, just as he did then.

"I don't think we can change what we're trying to do," Harris said. "Obviously we're here for a reason. (Saturday) was a downpoint; hopefully we'll never have a lower point than that one, but who knows.

"They're young kids and it takes time to instill how you're supposed to play every week. Obviously that's going to take a little more time than we had hoped."

Stanford didn't return to practice until Tuesday and the assistants were out recruiting because the Cardinal have a bye until their Oct. 1 Pac-10 opener against Oregon. Harris said he didn't know what was better, getting back to work immediately or taking some time off to let the loss sink in and act as a motivator.

"In some ways it would be great to practice, to start banging heads and to put that last one behind us," he said. "In some other ways it might be good to let that thing linger so we understand the devastation and the embarrassment that it is, and we pledge to each that it's never going to happen again.

"We'll see what happens."

Bruins on a roll

UCLA is as high as Stanford is low following its 41-24 rout of Oklahoma, a victory that pushed the Bruins (3-0) into the Top 25 for the first time since the 2002 season under predecessor Bob Toledo.

The Bruins were stronger, faster and more physical in manhandling the Sooners and exacting some revenge for a 59-24 debacle at Norman in 2003 in Karl Dorrell's third game in Westwood. They held Oklahoma star Adrian Peterson to 58 yards on 23 carries and outscored the Sooners 21-7 in the fourth quarter.

Dorrell said it was a major step forward for his defensive line and linebackers, who have worked hard to shed their reputation as one of the league's most porous units. UCLA ranked last in the Pac-10 in rushing defense in 2004 (210.1 ypg); they've reduced that to 168 yards this year and those statistics are somewhat inflated because they played Rice, an option team that never passes.

"It was a great game for them to challenge themselves to make that next step against a quality offense and a back like Peterson," he said. "Some big steps were made. We definitely wanted to prove we could keep (Peterson) under wraps and we were fortunate enough to do so," Dorrell said.

UCLA is averaging 49.3 points, has a 27-point average margin of victory, is second to USC in scoring, and is averaging 441 yards a game.

"We still feel we can be much better," Dorrell said. "There's a lot of confidence on the offense and it starts with our triggerman," senior quarterback Drew Olson. "We're excited about the potential of what we can be and we know we can get better.

"We've got to keep going, there's still the skeptics out there who feel we're not a good team. There's still some work to do. We're not where we're out of the woods yet."

UCLA did suffer a big blow when receiver Junior Taylor suffered a season-ending injury while making a 16-yard catch. He was their second-leading receiver in 2004 (32-463, 2 TD) and had six catches for 109 yards and two scores before being hurt.

A senior who hasn't redshirted, he can apply for a medical hardship and get another year of eligibility.

This play not under review

The Pac-10's decision to adopt instant replay this year didn't benefit Stanford at all this past Saturday because it wasn't available for the UC-Davis game.

The league has six replay crews, but there were nine home games. So it didn't send replay crews to Stanford or to Seattle, where Washington State played Division I-AA Grambling (one crew worked a UCLA/USC doubleheader).

So, officials were unable to get a second opinion on a possible interception by Stanford's Nick Sanchez in the final minute of the 20-17 loss to the Aggies. One play later, Davis scored with eight seconds left to win the game.

Harris told the San Jose Mercury News that he hadn't yet seen a replay. But he said defensive coordinator Tom Hayes had, and Hayes told him it was an interception that would have enabled Stanford to stave off the embarrassing upset.

"But the bottom line, though, is we shouldn't have been in that situation," Harris said. "The team that played the hardest won the game."

Olson remade, reborn

Bruins' quarterback Drew Olson, average at best in his first three years as a starter, has emerged as one of the league's best through three weeks of his senior year.

"He's come a great distance," Dorrell said. "He's playing better than he's ever played."

He's completed 71 percent of his passes (56-78) for 762 yards and six touchdowns, without an interception. He's second to USC's Matt Leinart in pass efficiency (179.2) and he's far exceeded virtually everyone's expectations, especially considering that nine months ago he was facing major rehab from a serious left-knee injury.

Olson tore his anterior cruciate and medial collateral ligaments in the Bruins' 24-20 loss to Wyoming in the 2004 Las Vegas Bowl and had reconstructive surgery on Jan. 7, 2005. There was some concern whether he'd work enough to get back to 100 percent, or if he could hold off challenger Ben Olson, a former BYU commit who instead enrolled at UCLA after his two-year church mission.

"He rehabbed into the best condition in his life. Going through that process was a great, great benefit for him," Dorrell said of Drew Olson, "And it was Ben Olson and the other quarterbacks, who were chomping at the bit to replace him as the starter.

"Mentally and physically he's had to overcome some issues" to remain the starter. "Those things have made him into a better player," who is significantly better than before he was hurt, or when he didn't have any serious competition for the starting job after current Oregon State starter Matt Moore left the program in 2003.

Early week off for four

Arizona, Stanford, UCLA and Washington State have byes this Saturday, giving them an additional week to prepare for their Pac-10 openers. Arizona visits California on Oct. 1; Stanford is home with Oregon, UCLA is home with Washington, and WSU visits Oregon State.

Power poll

1. USC (@ Oregon): Trojans averaging a staggering 66.5 points

2. UCLA (bye): Fast start quiets Dorrell's many detractors

3. California (@ New Mexico State): Different back has gained 100 yards in each victory

4. ASU (@ Oregon State): Sun Devils 6-15 in road games under Koetter

5. Oregon (USC): First game with Trojans since 2002

6. WSU (bye): Fat & sassy after devouring three non-league creampuffs

7. Oregon State (Arizona State): Beavers reeling or resilient after rout at Louisville?

8. Arizona (bye): Wildcats (1-2) woulda, coulda, shoulda be 3-0

9. Washington (Notre Dame): Grudge match for Willingham? He'll never admit it

10. Stanford (bye): No longer considering Cal Lutheran for 2006 slate after UC-Davis fiasco