Gazette-Times Reporter

SAN FRANCISCO — Playing in Friday’s Emerald Bowl is the perfect situation for three seniors on the Oregon State football team, other than being in a Bowl Championship Series game.

Linebacker Alan Darlin, center Kyle DeVan and defensive end Jeff Kruskamp live in the Bay Area. Being here allows them to end their careers in their backyards.

And that keeps them busy. With a week of bowl activities they have seen more family and friends than in two-day trips to play Stanford or California in the regular season.

“I’m as excited as can be,” said Darlin, who is from Elk Grove near Sacramento. “You can’t play forever. I’ve loved my time with Oregon State, and I can’t think of anything better than ending it in San Francisco with a win in a bowl game.”

This is also an opportunity to show their teammates a good time with their inside knowledge of the area.

“It’s a homecoming type of a deal,” said Kruskamp, who is from Milpitas in the South Bay. “It’s a lot of fun to take my friends from Oregon back here and show them where I’m from and what it’s all about, since I’ve been to all their houses.”

DeVan is from Vacaville, just to the east. He expects to see more than 100 family, friends and old coaches throughout the week and at the game.

He frequently pauses throughout each day to take a picture with somebody to commemorate the week.

“It means so much to me to be here,” DeVan said. “It’s a special game. I’m going to enjoy the moment, but at the same time we need to get a victory. That’s what we came here to do.”

Injury update

Staring flanker Anthony Brown and left guard Jeremy Perry didn’t practice much all week. Brown is very doubtful for the game, coach Mike Riley said after Thursday’s practice. Perry will try to play.

Brown has a lingering quad injury and the Beavers try to rest Perry as much as possible between games after an Aug. 30 broken lower leg.

“It’s a continual thing with Jeremy,” Riley said. “We just hope the good day is on the cycle of playing the game.”

Brown is a four-year starter and the team’s leading receiverwith 39 receptions for 550 yards and a touchdown.

Freshman James Rodgers will start in his place, and walk-on sophomore Taylor Kavanaugh is the backup, Riley said.

Junior defensive tackle Pernnell Booth injured a knee and an ankle on the same leg in practice. Riley doesn’t think it’s major

Sack guys

OSU defensive ends Victor Butler and Slade Norris rank in the top 10 in the Pacific-10 Conference for quarterback sacks.

Butler is third with 9.5 sacks and Norris is sixth with 9.0. Butler is second in the Pac-10 for yardage lost with 96 and is tied for fourth nationally.

That may be an area OSU can exploit against Maryland. The Terrapins are 107th in the nation in sacks allowed with 3.2 a game.

Fast starters?b>

The Beavers have outscored opponents 127-16 in the first quarter this season. During the last 21 games, the margin is 207-40.

No team at the Division I level allowed fewer first-quarter points.

Oregon is the only team to score a touchdown. The rest of the points have come on field goals by Arizona, Cincinnati and Southern California.

Turnover story

Heading into the Oct. 6 game against Arizona, the Beavers committed the most turnovers in the nation with 21 and minus-10 in turnover margin. They ranked 116th of 119 teams.

Since then the Beavers are plus-14 in seven games, tied for seventh in the nation, and are first in the Pac-10 for forced turnovers with 32.