Oregon Magazine

Cover

Pigskin Pete
Pigskin Goes 7-2
In Second Go-round

By Fred Delkin

Last week we correctly picked the Ducks to rebound, Oregon State won as expected, but we erred on a pair of Pac10 predictions as USC survived a clash at Ohio State and UCLA upended
Tennessee. This week, we foresee another Duck disaster and the Beavers face a team that
destroyed them in 2007.

Oregon's Ducks managed to recover from their opening week at Boise State, but narrowly edging Purdue at Autzen wasa not impressive. This week the Ducks host a Utah team which went 13-0 in 2008 and beat Alabama in the Sugar bowl. Ute coach Kyle Whittingham has engineered four straight bowl wins, including BCS victories vs. Pitt in the Fiesta bowl and the Alabama win. He's
replacing a QB, but had no trouble dumping Utah State and San Jose State the past two weeks.
We think Chip Kelly on the Duck sideline is a work in progress and not yet capable of upending a major foe. UTAH BY 7.

Oregon State is 2-0, but the opposition has not been formidable, to say the least. Saturday they host a Cincinnati squad that has buried Rutgers and SE Missouri St. (Who?). OSU will seek revenge for their '07 embarassment at Cincy and we think they have enough to triumph in a close one. OREGON STATE by 3.

Washington had its way with a struggling Idaho program last week and gave LSU a real scare in the '09 opener. SC is a different matter, however. Yet we realize that new Husky head coach Steve Sarkisian ran the offense at SC and talked his defensive counterpart at SC, Nick Holt to join him in Seattle. This pair know the Trojans' playbook and will have their new squad primed to restore their dignity after a 56-0 disaster at SC in '08. SOUTHERN CAL by 7.

California has opened 2-0 againsst woeful opposition, now faces a worthy opponent. We believe the Bears will continue to justify our preseason belief they are a Pac10 title threat, though this test is ther first away game of '09. CALIFORNIA by 10.

Stanford has traditionally had trouble with San Jose State, whose underdog status is incentive to upset the rich private school team across the Bay. The Cardinal return from being humbled at Wake Forest and should be awake for this match. STANFORD by 14.

Arizona State took last week off after an opening cakewalk over Idaho State. Sun Devil mentor Dennis Erickson is breaking in a new QB, who will gain another level of confidence against a visiting Louisiana Monroe team that is 0-2 and no threat. ARIZONA STATE by 28.

Arizona can be expected to fold before host Iowa, which is undefeated to date. IOWA by 10.

UCLA surprised us last week by winning at Tennessee. This week they host Kansas State and our prediction of a UCLA win is tempered by the fact that the Bruins' starting QB is doubtful for this
one after taking a beating down South. UCLA by 10.

Washington State has shown nothing to date to doubt our lowly opinion of a team that has no proven offensive talent and no depth on either side of the ball. The Cougars host a Southern Methodist team whose coach June Jones has revived a program trashed by NCAA penalties prior to his arrival. Jones is a 'Run and Shoot' disciple who has piloted his '09 charges to a 2-0 start. SOUTHERN METHODIST by 14.
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Portland State Travels
To Fatal Montana Match

Hope of a Portland State return to past glory will likely fade with a trip to Missoula this week.
The Montana Grizzlies are the USC of the Big Sky. They have won 11 Big Sky titles in a row, played in the Divsion 1AA championship last year and have qualified for the national playoffs a record 16 years straight, won the national title in 1995 and 2001 and were national title runners-up in 2008, 2004, 2000 and 1996. Grizzly coach Bobby Hauck has a 66-16 record and this Montana alum was a defensive coach at Division 1 University of Washington before being hired as head man by his alma mater.

This season Hauck has gone 2-0 against mediocre opposition. His starting signal caller is transfer Justin Roper, who quarterbacked the University of Oregon's Holiday bowl upset of Oklahoma State. The Grizzly squad is dominated by Montana natives that include halfback Chase Reynolds and receiver Marc Mariani who led their respective categories in 2008. MONTANA by 10.