Did Someone Say Playoffs?

Interest in the Linfield football program is picking up added momentum after the Wildcats beat Puget Sound on Saturday to clinch at least a share of the Northwest Conference title and the team’s first NCAA playoff invitation since 2005.

Naturally, fans, students and parents are excited about the possibilities of the Wildcats playing in postseason. The inclination is to make some plans in advance.

Here’s a sample email I received Monday:

Hello Mr. Bird,

I am trying to get a handle on the playoff schedule for football.  I understand November 21st most likely will be at Linfield.  Do you have any “guestimate” where the November 28th game might likely be played?

We are from California and trying to make travel plans…Thank you so much.

Best Regards,
Linfield Parent

Dear Linfield Parent,

Linfield has submitted bids to host the first four rounds of the playoffs. That said, there is no way to speculate where the NCAA might choose to place games. Linfield does stand a better-than-most chance of hosting in the first round. Beyond that, I can’t offer a prediction what the NCAA might be inclined to do.

In addition to the relative strength of teams in the playoff field, financial and geographic considerations come into play when choosing home sites.

The best advice is to sit back and let it play out. Do not hedge your bets by booking airline tickets. Some of our baseball parents were burned in the past when they felt sure the Wildcats would be sent to Abilene, Texas, for a NCAA baseball regional, but instead the team was shipped to Moline, Illinois.

Kelly

So, Linfield fans, experience has taught me not to try and guess what the NCAA is going to do. Everything time I thought I had their playoff patterns figured out, they went 180 degrees the other way.

Go ‘Cats!

20 Years On

A good time was had by all visitors to Linfield last weekend during the annual Homecoming gathering.

I wanted to share a story with you about a Homecoming experience I enjoyed. One of my very first work-study student assistants came up to the pressbox after the football game to say hello. I immediately recognized  Charlana (Saniatan) as if I had just seen her last week. Hard to believe that she graduated in 1991.

During my first two falls at Linfield, Charlana worked with me on the football statistics crew and helped out in the office during the week. Her surprise visit sent us both flashing back to the “old” methods we once used to compile stats and how dramatically they differ from today thanks mostly to new technology.

Back then, we worked out of a crude pressbox that was nothing more than some plywood tables pounded into the last two rows of the stands. The “pressbox” was dirty, hard to get in and out of, and difficult to work in because of the crowd noise. Charlana typed the play-by-play on an actual typewriter (anyone remember those?) while other work-study students (Scott Nelson and Debbie Sowell) compiled offensive and defensive stats on worksheets. At the end of games, we would spend about 30-45 minutes totaling all the stats up by hand, then would hang around another hour or two calling or faxing in the stats to the local newspapers and the conference office.

One of the tasks I hated most was hauling all our gear, including a hefty portable copier, up the Memorial Stadium steps each home game. What a pain that was!

Wow, talk about the stage coach era of sports information. But that’s what we had to work in the late 1980s. The 1990s ushered in the age of compterized statistical software programs but the early versions were only marginally better at totaling game stats up and compiling the season totals. I think those early programs were created by some stat geek in Excel in their basement. They were clunky at best.

That seems light years ago. Now, we have a bonafide professional level StatCrew software program that is common among all the schools we compete against. A keyboarder enters the data in for each play, such as “Run 42, tackle 21 and 44, new spot Linfield 32″ and the computer does the rest, including generating a detailed play-by-play.

During the game, running cumulative totals are displayed on monitors throughout our enclosed, heated and secure press box for all the media members to see. Each quarter, we print out a “Quickie” stats report, which is then photocopied on a machine that never leaves the press box! After the game, it takes only a few minutes to finalize the game stats, update the season stats, and export them to the Linfield Web site. One email to all the media outlets that includes links to the story and stats gets the news distributed quickly.

In 20 years, we’ve come a long way.

Live from Southern California

Waiting for what seems like an eternity for tonight’s 7 p.m. kickoff of the Linfield at Occidental football game. I’ve always favored day games over night contests, simply because when game day finally does roll around, you want to get to the field and get the game going, not sit around.

This is the second time in as many weeks that Linfield is taking on a nationally ranked opponent. This should be another enlightening opportunity to see just how good this Wildcats club really is.

The team is spending the day in meetings and “step-its,” their term for walking through each alignment, formation and play they intend to see or use.

Dave Hansen and Tyler Matthews will bring you the Linfield-centric play-by-play on KLYC and our internet stream. Last week’s audio streaming hiccups should be resolved.

A TV station here in LA is intending on streaming live video of the game. You’ll need Microsoft Silverlight software installed on your computer to make it run properly.

I’ll be on the field snapping photos and shooting some video, so there won’t be a live in-game blog going on. We are able to do that for home games only.

Heading over to the pregame barbeque on the Oxy campus, hosted by the College Relations office. About 80 people are signed up to attend, plus there should be some walkups, which means the Wildcats will have some fans in the stands rooting for them tonight.

Lots of college football going on in close proximity today, with Lewis & Clark playing at Pomona-Pitzer, Puget Sound visiting Claremont-Mudd-Scripps, Pacific Lutheran heading to Cal Lutheran, and UCLA hosting Kansas State tonight in the Rose Bowl. And just down the road, the Dodgers and Giants are selling out Dodger Stadium.

Video in his Veins

Aaron Heston is a natural in front of the camera

Aaron Heston towers above the rest

This is as close to the bench as Jaymin Jackson will ever come

Getting up close and personal

Big man on campus

Carlson knows all the angles

Sign of the Times

Aaron Boehme likes all that hardware

Can you tell how much Ryan enjoys his hobby?

Sunday was H-O-T in McMinnville but that didn’t prevent the sports information office from doing some behind-the-scenes work on campus.

At 4:30, I met up with former Wildcats All-American Ryan Carlson to collaborate with him on his latest electronic masterpiece – the introduction video for the Maxwell Field display board. Ryan’s work in the video realm is well known among the Wildcat faithful. The 2008 intro piece, which Ryan edited and co-produced, recently won a Bronze award from the National Association of Collegiate Marketing Administrators.

Never ones to rest on our laurels, we met up with four upperclass football players Sunday to shoot some scenes for the 2009 video that will make its grand debut Sept. 12 at the Catdome. (Insider Tip: It’s going to be VERY good.)

Alex Tkachuk, Aaron Boehme, Aaron Heston and Jaymin Jackson were our hand-picked spokespersons. You’ll have to wait until the 12th to see just how comfortable they are in front of the camera.

The photo gallery above shows Carlson in action.

As a humorous side note, we videotaped the players in full uniform at various locales around campus. We guided Aaron Heston to the historic steps of Pioneer Hall, where Wildcat football teams from the 1800s once took their team photos. When we arrived at the bottom of the steps, we interrupted some sort of romantic encounter taking place on a couch perched atop the steps. I don’t know who was more surprised – our group or the frisky couple.

From The Pressbox: Western Oregon Edition

Posted by Eric Evenson

We have an intriguing matchup today pitting the Linfield Wildcats and the visiting Western Oregon Wolves. One thing we can expect from Western Oregon is a big, physical and talented team. The Wolves may be first team in 2008 that could overmatch the Wildcats with their athleticism. Linfield is coming off a less than impressive win last weekend at Puget Sound but a win is a win nonetheless, espcially with a few injuries and coming off a dissapointing loss to Willamette the week prior.

One storyline to look for today is the Linfield quarterback play. Both Cole Franklin and Cole Bixenmann saw time last weekend, with Franklin getting the start before being relieved Bixenmann. Expect both to see time again today, with Frankling expected to get the start again this Saturday. As is the case always, turnovers will be the factor to decide Linfield’s sucess today. Joe Smith thinks this is the stoutest of tests today and giving the Wolves extra possessions will be especially costly this afternoon.

Turnovers and quarterback play will be the deciding factors today.

20 minutes before the annual Hall of Fame game, the crowd is ushering into the stadium and we can expect a hotly contested matchup.

13:20 – Linfield holds WOU at midfield, forcing a punt to P.J Sequeira…the kick is fair caught at the Linfield 23

12:42 – Reggie Ford gets things going with an 11-yard run
10:44 – Ford with a huge second effort get the first down on third down and five. Ford is getting the bulk of the action early, it looks early that the ‘Cats are going to ride him.

9:28 – Trick-eration! Franklin goes 53 yards on a double reverse. Franklin hands it Ford…who flips it to Torsey… who flips it back to Franklin who goes the distance. A very unique play in the sense that a reverse or pitch back to the quarterback usually means pass… but when you have a guy like Franklin….might as well take it the distance!

8:35 – Josh Riddell shows he is fleet of foot as well, scrambling down to the Linfield 37 yard line

6:18 – 33-yard field goal missed… Linfield still leads 6-0… I previously did not mention that WOU blocked the Linfield extra point.

4:51 – The Wolves take over at the Linfield 43 yard line. Return converage has been a litle sloppy here early for the Wildcats.

3:38 – Riddell again makes something out of nothing. Scrambling to the Linfield 45 on a third and ten.

1:37 – Bubba Lemon breaks up the pass but was unable to come down with the interception.

END OF THE FIRST QUARTER: 6-0 LINFIELD

12:33 Linfield shanks a punt and once again the Wildcats have given the Wolves great field position at their own 45. You have to tip your cat to the Linfield defense thus far, they have played outstanding even when the special teams have not aided the cause.

11:00 – Linfield hold, Gus Morrisson on the stop, forcing another WOU punt.

10:32 – P.J. Sequeira takes a fair catch at the Linfield 2-yard line. The ‘Cats have a big field in front of them. You just have to get positive yards here and get your punter some space to get a quality punt off.

8:10 – First and 10 Wolves at the Linfield 41 after a short kick from the endzone.

6:26 – And the Wolves are on the scoreboard. Riddell finds Demario Ballard for a 35-yard strike. Ballard has about six inches on any Linfield member of the secondary. I think we just saw a glimpse of what the Wolves will do in future red zone opportunities… just huck it up to D.B.

6:00 – Bixenmann enters the game but is faced with brutal field position, now facing a second down and 12 from the Linfield 12

3:56 – Shaun Kauleinamoku takes a punt back to the Linfield 21 to start the drive.

2:54 – 36-yard field goal is good

WOU 10, LIN 6

2:49 – Linfield takes over at its own 23 yard-line. Screen to Ford out to the 41.

2:24 – Buddy Saxson down to the WOU 44.
1:50 – Ford can’t find space on a screen pass and the drive stalls. WOU calls a timeout.

1:18 – Personal foul keeps the drive clicking for the Wolves. WOU is now set up with a first and ten from the Linfield 41.

53 seconds – Linfield holds with a Tyler McCann interception. Linfield still have 75 yards to go for a score.

26 seconds – Buddy Saxon over the middle down to the WOU 41 yard line.

14 seconds – Frankling takes a sack and now Linfield is out of field-goal range back to the 48.

10-6 Wolves lead it at half.

First-half thoughts
You have to like where the Wildcats are right now. They were dominated in the field possession battle the entire half and come away righ there in the ballgame. It looked early on that Linfield was going to simply pound the rock with Ford, but went away from him consistantly after the first few drives. Look to see the same. You have to get Ford going a little more on the ground Franklin has run wild with 71 yards of rushing but has only completed six passes. Western Oregon needs to force Linfield into passing situations and keep Franklin in the pocket. This game is slowly shaping into quite a dandy with two teams really competing.

9:32 – Linfield has really put together a nice drive to start the half, all the way down to the Western Oregon 15 yard-line. A lot of balance in terms of passes and runs. Franklin is getting into a better rhythm through the air and Ford is providing a little more lightning.

7:32 – Linfield takes its second timeout of the drive. There seems to be a little confusion on what they are trying to do on this third and 14.

6:46 – Birkhofer’s field goal is block for 29 field goal… recovered by Russell Sells at the WOU 3-yard-line.

The play was reversed to WOU… now the officials are talking the play over. And WOU will take over at its own 20 yard line. This was really a break Linfield needed. This has a been a very clean game in terms of the fact that neither team has turned the ball over. In a contest like that, one turnover can really turn the tide.

1:11 Ford goes down with an injury, he is helped off the field. I assume Lamson will be getting the carries the rest of the way.

4:03 Linfield takes over at its own 27.

15 seconds: Birkhofer hits from 35 yards out. 10-9 WOU leads.

FOURTH QUARTER

12:55 – Linfield forces Western to punt. The crowd has really gotten going. It has been a groggy day througout but with the lights coming on and the rain coming down… this place is turning into an action-packed finish.

9:17 – And Western breaks off a huge play. A misdirection pass to Kuenzi. From the Linfield 44 down to the three yard line. Western scores on the next play. 17-9 Western leads.

6:16 : Masters with the catch on third and 10 for a huge first down.

5:12 – Lamson fumbles the football on a screen pass…WOU takes over on the Linfield 29.

4:19 – Tyler McCann with the pick! The senior comes up with a huge play on what seemed to be a broken play.

3:09 – Franklin on a keeper out to the 31 for a first down.

1:57 – ‘Cats are really driving now inside WOU territory to the WOU 45.

30 seconds – Franklin’s pass on third and three falls short and the ‘Cats fall as well 17-9.

Win ugly or lose pretty?

A turnover on special teams produced first Linfield TD

Is it better to win ugly than lose pretty?

Silly question, I know.

When football places such a vital importance upon Linfield’s college psyche, we’ll always take a less-than-perfect win over a loss of any sort.

Saturday’s 32-24 Northwest Conference victory over Puget Sound was maybe as discombobulated as I’ve seen a Linfield football team play and still win.

To UPS’s credit, they kept the pressure on Linfield for the entire 60 minutes. Of the 3,742 actual patrons, at least 3,000 of those did a terrific job of spurring the home team on. It might have been the most spirited I’ve seen Baker Stadium in many years of covering the Wildcats. Loggers quarterback Kavin Williams picked up some all-league votes Saturday by riddling the Wildcats for over 200 yards rushing, plus another 145 passing.

Were the Wildcats simply dreadful on both sides of the ball?

Well, no, not completely. Truth be told, they did leave a lot to be desired on offense and defense. They were, however, much improved on special teams from a week ago, when certain plays foreshadowed the pending outcome of a lopsided loss to Willamette.

Woulda, Coulda, Shoulda: Interception at the goal line

Sure, you could discount the lackluster performance by saying that Linfield was playing without starters Bryce Comfort and Alex Tkachuk, plus key reserve Joe Seifert – all sidelined with injuries. But those guys are defensive starters. How do we account for the lackluster offensive performance?

208 yards against UPS?

Toss the stats aside for the moment.

Linfield did find ways to win the game when the chips were on the table: An are-you-kidding-me circus catch by John Torsey. Key sacks by Taylor Summers. And solid punting by freshman Erik Koczian, who averaged 39.6 yards on seven punts in his first career start, four of which landed inside the UPS 20.

That’s the sign of a great program, when you can play your worst game of the season and still win. Afterward, quarterbacks coach Brett Elliott asked me what the final yardage numbers were. When I told him the Loggers outgained the Wildcats by a more than 2-to-1 ratio (434-208), his eyes got really big.

“Really?” was all he could say in disbelief.

Finding a way to win on special teams

Elliott, remember, is the most prolific quarterback in Wildcats history. Yet even he was part of a so-so 35-16 victory over the Loggers in Tacoma during that magical 2004 season that saw Linfield clinch its fourth national title.

Yes, Elliott threw for under 200 yards against the Loggers at Baker Stadium.

Stuff happens.

Let’s not forget for one moment that Linfield clinched its 53rd consecutive winning season on Saturday. The Oregon Ducks, the Oregon State Beavers, heck, the Mount Union Raiders wish they could claim as much.

Keeping it all in perspective, a lot of schools we’re familiar with would be happy to be able to say they have just two straight winning seasons, namely Willamette, Menlo, Puget Sound, Pacific Lutheran, Southern Oregon and Lewis & Clark.

I’ll take an “ugly” win any day.

From the Pressbox: Willamette Edition

Eric Evenson:

We are about 45 minutes away from one of the most anticipated matchups in this storied rivalry. Both teams enter into today’s contest with undefeated records in Northwest Conference play. While nothing can be taken for granted in the weeks ahead, the winner of today’s game has the fast track to an NWC crown. Here are a few key story lines to today’s ballgame.

- Can the Wildcats contain Willamette’s sweep offense? The Bearcats bring in one of the most dynamic and unconventional offenses that is based around the “fly sweep” A wide reciever will come in motion on nearly every play, setting up a fly sweep or a decoy for a handoff. The matchup pits the conference’s top defense and the conference’s top scoring offense.

- Turnovers anybody? As often does, whoever hangs onto the ball will most likely come away with the W. The Bearcats are first in the NWC in turnover margin at +10 while the Wildacts are at -4 on the year.

Pregame- We have a fevered pitch here before kickoff. There is a different feeling in the air today. Linfield will reciever in front of the South endzone.

1st Quarter

14:50- Linfield takes over at their own 33 yard-line. Linfield gives the rock to Reggie Ford on the first two plays of the game setting up a third and five.

12:41- Blocked punt! Willamette’s Grant Piros picks up the blocked punt and runs it in for the first score of the game.

10:27 – Masters breaks a big gain of 27 yards down to the Willamette 38.

8:11 – Ford on a draw for 12 yards down to the 12 yard line.

6:11 – Ford stumbles ahead for a first down all the way to the Willamette one yard line.

5:50 – Cole Franklin sneaks it ahead for a score… 7-7

3:39 – After taking a shot down field Willamette is faced with 3rd and nine from the Linfield 45

3:06 – Touchdown Willamette. After Linfield is called for a face mask on third down to keep the drive alive, Deon Horne runs it in from 30 yards for the score. 14-7 Bearcats.

2:02 – After a short punt Willamette takes over in great field position at its own 48.

1:47 Merben Woo goes to the house. Touchdown Willamtte 52 yards out. A huge play with a missed tackle.

39 seconds- three and out for Linfield. Egan punts. Bad snap and Egan falls on it. Willamette takes over at the Linfield 11

27 sec – Horne scores from 11 yards out. 28-7 Willamette leads.

2nd Quarter -

21-1 Willamette

13:51 – Bearcats force a three and out and take over at their own 36 at the13:51 mark

11:51 Linfield holds on a key third down and will need to drive 81 yards on this next possession.

8:31 Linfield is putting together a nice drive. Franklin finds Masters for a long pass play down to the Willamette 23 yard line.

6:55 Franklin makes something out of nothing. He is down to the 14 yard line after a 17 yard game. Third down and two for the ‘Cats at the 14.

5:48 Linfield is stopped on a third and two. Birkhofer then misses a 32 yard field goal.

1:18 Fraklin goes for a 26 yard run to the Willamette 18

Touchdown John Torsey!

FIRST HALF REVIEW

This half has really come down to one thing. Special teams. You have to give Willmette a lot of credit today. They have been physical up front and the block punt less than three minutes in has set the tone for the day. Linfield has 100 yards more in total yardage and have held the ball for twice as long as the Bearcats, the great field position have led to two easy scores for Willamette, ultimately the difference in the ballgame thus far. In looking forward the score at the end of the half is huge for Linfield. On a day where things have not gone as planned, the crowd seems to be trying to push the Wildcats back into the game. There was a loud ovation as the Wildcats went into the locker room. Willamette will get the ball to start the first half so expect the noise level to be high. If the ‘Cats can throw up a three and out on Willamette, this might as well be 0-0. The first 8 mintues will tell the story of the day.

3 quarter

13:22 Well you couldn’t have scripted this any better for the Wildcats. Linfield holds Willamette to a three and out and after a fortunate bounce on the punt, take over at the Willamette 39

12:13 Reggie Ford… 11 yard touchdown run! 28-21 ….and….Game On!

9:50 Third down and goal from the Linfield six yard line.

9:12 Willamette settles for a field goal…. 31-21.

1:00 Linfield is stopped and will punt at the end of the quarter. Willamette leads 31-21 and will have possession at its own 35 yard line.

4th Quarter.

11:54 Reggie Ford picks up a first down on third a two down to the Willamette 37. A huge play, Ford keeps the drive going.

8:50 Ford touchdown run from the five.

31-28 Willamette

8:02 Willamette strikes again, Woo with a 31-yard touchdown reception.

38-28′

8:50 Ford touchdown run from the five.

31-28 Willamette

8:02 Willamette strikes again, Woo with a 31-yard touchdown reception.

38-28

6:26 ‘Cats punt and Willamette takes over

6:12 50 yard Touchdown Willamette.

44-28

Late pick with 3:23 seals the deal.

The Best and Worst of Times

Carl Haberberger:
Scores key TD in 1998 Streak Clincher

It’s Linfield versus Willamette in football this week with the winner having the path of least resistance to the Northwest Conference championship.

As this is the 80th meeting between the teams – the longest-running series for any Wildcats opponent – it got me to thinking back on some of the great Linfield-Willamette clashes I’ve witnessed personally, plus some of the memorable battles of all-time.

First, my Top Five (for better or worse):

1998: Maxwell Field was buzzing three hours before the game even kicked off. The fans’ intensity level never subsided until hours after Linfield had completed an amazing fourth-quarter comeback. Brian Higgins passes to Nick Forsey from three yards out, putting the Wildcats ahead by one point with 44 seconds left. Willamette’s 50-yard field goal attempt with two seconds on the clock is short and Linfield clinches its collegiate record 43rd consecutive winning season with an emotional 20-19 victory. The place goes berzerk and the south field goal post is enveloped by celebrating students, torn apart and paraded around various parts of campus. Linfield receives major ink in newspapers across the country with Willamette as the foil, a payback of sorts for the 1997 debacle (see below).

1993: WU quarterback John Horner (now a Bearcats assistant coach) connects with Justin Pate for the pair’s fourth touchdown hookup of the day with 28 seconds left to beat the Wildcats 31-28 in Salem. The loss snapped Linfield’s 12-game conference winning streak. Jim Good rushes for 188 yards, Andy Jamison has 154 receiving yards and Joey Rector scores three TDs for the Wildcats, but it’s not enough to overcome the Horner-to-Pate Show at McCulloch Stadium.

2007: Salem-native Trevor Scharer throws three scoring strikes in the opening 16 minutes and Linfield jumps in front 19-0 and appears on its way to a big win over the B-Cats. Then, in the span of four minutes of the second quarter, Willamette recovers with three TDs of its own to take a 20-19 lead. The teams battle tooth-and-nail into the fourth quarter and Linfield looks to have victory in hand again after Scott Birkhofer’s field goal makes it 32-30 Wildcats with 2:32 left. But Willamette moves into field goal range, aided by a busted coverage play on fourth down, and stuns the Wildcats with a field goal to win it 33-32 in the final seconds.

1997: The Bearcats make national headlines at the expense of the Wildcats when they insert women’s soccer player Liz Heaston into the game to kick two extra points. To hear former WU Dan Hawkins tell the story, supposedly the Bearcats’ regular kicker was injured. But somehow, he manages to kick two field goals and an extra point in the game. Go figure. With one of its best teams in program history, Willamette and its new-fangled Fly offense pounds Linfield 27-0 in Salem. Linfield has just 120 yards of offense. Heaston becomes the first woman to play in a college football game and is a guest on Good Morning America come Monday. The College Football Hall of Fame is calling Willamette asking for her jersey. Truly, a dark day in Linfield lore.

David Russell: A one-man wrecking crew

2002:
Before the days of sanitized FieldTurf at the Catdome, bulldozer David Russell carries the ball 43 times in rain and mud, scoring four touchdowns to help the Wildcats send the Bearcats home with a 32-20 defeat. The Linfield defense comes up with crucial plays at just the right moments to help Linfield set a then-school record with its 15th straight victory. Two Bearcats fumbles inside their own 20 results in a pair of Linfield TDs and the Wildcats stop three drives deep in their own territory to hold the Bearcats at bay.

Now, some other games of noted significance in series history:

1903: Linfield wins the teams’ first meeting, just barely, 7-6.

1949: With Paul Durham as coach, Linfield was in position to win just its second NWC championship. Many players predicted that the Wildcats would beat the Bearcats for the title. But because Linfield had not defeated WU since 1925, most people thought the players who would make such a statement were crazy. The players’ remarks prompted college president Harry Dillin to offer some inspiration to the football team, which had either tied or lost to Willamette in 17 previous meetings. Dillin said that if Linfield were to beat WU during his term, he would stand on his head at the 50-yard line of Maxwell Field. In the aftermath of a shocking 20-0 Linfield victory, Dillin kept his word and packed Memorial Stadium crowd witnessed the president standing on his head in the mud.

1961: The Wildcats beat the Bearcats 34-12 in the final game to cap off a 9-0 regular season, earning a berth in the (then) four-team NAIA national playoffs.

1985: Another improbable comeback at Maxwell Field. Willamette leads 33-7 with 1:09 to play in the third quarter when Linfield quarterback David Lindley heats up. Lindley passes to Ron Popiel for touchdown plays three minutes apart, then finds Popiel again (his ninth reception of the game) for 33 yards to set up a one-yard TD run by Mike Sigman that cuts the Willamette lead to 33-28. Finally, with 1:47 to play, Lindley tosses his fourth TD pass of the day to Scott Stapleton, putting Linfield ahead 34-33. Damon Liles’ pass interception deep in Wildcat territory wraps up a 36-33 win.

Any else one care to offer their favorite/least favorite Linfield-Willamette game memory?

Monday Morning Quarterback

Where were you, Oregonian?

Well, I just returned to the office from a guest appearance at the weekly Quarterback Club breakfast.

It was good to see so many longtime supporters of the college’s athletic programs still attending. For those who don’t know what the Quarterback Club is all about, it is a group of McMinnville-area residents who gather Mondays at 7 a.m. at Jake’s Deli to talk Linfield and McMinnville High School sports. The format is more interactive Q&A rather than lecture, which provides a great give-and-take opportunity to share ideas, questions and comments.

My presentation centered around the “New Media” and the path that media coverage of small-college athletics, particularly in the realm of newspapers, has taken in the 21st century.

Where once the state’s newspaper of record (The Oregonian, a former employer of mine) kept very close tabs on the small colleges, today it seems the Linfields, Pacifics and Willamettes are simply an afterthought. Even during the peak of football season, when Linfield and Whitworth, combined winners of the past seven Northwest Conference football titles, met in McMinnville on Saturday, The O couldn’t be bothered to cover the game in person. Their “coverage” consisted grabbing the first four paragraphs of the news release we sent them following the game.

Jim Beseda, who covers Portland State football on a regular basis, was asked this summer by the sports editor to assume the small colleges beat when Norm Maves Jr. retired. Well, PSU football played a night game at Northern Arizona last Saturday and the newspaper hired a stringer in Flagstaff.

Where was Jim? Did the paper, in these tough economic times, simply want to save the gas money out to McMinnville? Or is space in Sunday’s edition that tight that they couldn’t forsee giving Beseda any more than six inches for a full game story? [Suggestion: Perhaps one fewer sidebar or oversized photo from the Ducks or Beavers game might have sprung the necessary space.]

Small college coverage has dwindled to the point that the paper can’t even find room to print the inch-and-a-half long scoring summary on the scoreboard page.

And I’m talking about football, LINFIELD FOOTBALL, as in 52 consecutive winning seasons, four national titles and the launching pad for Mike Riley, Danny Langsdorf and Jay Locey. If coverage for football is slim-and-none, our other 18 varsity sports programs can’t hope to ever draw any ink in the state’s largest newspaper.

I would also argue that 71 of Linfield’s 137 football players hail from Oregon and another six are from Vancouver, Wash., right across the river from Portland. These guys all played high school ball in our area. Why does the paper with strong coverage of the area high schools stop caring about those same student-athletes once they reach college?

Oh, well. Our fans know where they can find their Linfield sports news. If they attended the game, they know that by the time they return home, they’ll be able to go to the computer and read the full statistical summary, read our game-day story and blog, and see action photos from the game on the Linfield Athletics Web site. By the time people got around to picking up their Sunday morning newspaper, a short video highlight package was available for viewing.

Has The Oregonian ceased being relevant?

Purple Party!

There is only one Catdome

Heading to the Homecoming Game? If you are and Linfield is your team of choice, be sure and don some purple. A purple T-shirt or sweatshirt, preferably, but purple hat, pants or even shoes will do.

If Thursday night’s Homecoming Song and Banner competition is any indication, the Pirates are going to be hearing lots of noise from all sides. The fraternities and sororities that competed in the annual school spirit competition did a whale of a job, pouring an untold amount of volume, energy and creative juice into the show.

Here’s hoping that tidal wave of emotion carries over to the Maxwell Field playing surface, where the stakes are high for both squads. Whitworth’s conference championship (and playoff hopes) are riding on the outcome while Linfield is on a mission to reclaim the title of kingpin of the NWC. Of course, unbeaten Willamette still looms in the distance for the Wildcats, but “one game at a time,” right?

Linfield vs. Whitworth. The two programs have combined to win or share the last eight Northwest Conference championships. Both teams have had to retool during the offseason, perhaps Whitworth moreso after an outstanding crop of linebackers and secondary stars graduated. Both teams lost their starting quarterbacks early in the season and each has lost games to nationally ranked opponents by single-digit margins.

In addition to a great on-field matchup, there are a few different wrinkles at this game. Before the game, the College Relations office is hosting a tailgater over on Keck Campus in the Vivian A. Bull Music Center parking lot. The Alumni Choir will make its annual appearance to sing the national anthem, the ASLC cabinet will present its Homecoming competition awards at halftime, and the Linfield Dance Team has a halftime performance scheduled.

The grandstand is sold out, but that’s not a big deal since the weather forecast is for sunny and 60 degrees or so. Perfect October football weather.

See you at the game! And if you’re not in town for the big game, check out the live blog being written by my protogé, Eric Evenson.