AMERSON LEARNING EACH DAY.

Byline: Lee Barnathan Staff Writer

Drew Amerson knows how to make the big plays. Witness his 156 receiving yards last week against Montana State, stepping up when CSUN other receivers, such as Aaron Arnold, were hurt.

But sometimes Amerson plays like the redshirt freshman he is. He fumbled three times against Eastern Washington and often drops easy passes.

Cal State Northridge never knows which Amerson will show up. On Saturday in CSUN's 30-28 victory over Weber State, the better of the two appeared. He continued his improvement with a career-high 15 catches for 147 yards and a touchdown. He also made a key block on Northridge's final drive, allowing running back Jaumal Bradley to gain 34 yards.

``I didn't see it. I heard it,'' Bradley said of Amerson's block.

``I'm hoping to learn,'' Amerson said. ``Get better and better. There's a lot more stuff to learn. It takes time. In high school, you go out and play. Here, you've got reads and other stuff.''

San Diego's Morse High was a run-oriented offense, so Amerson found himself improvising whenever the ball came his way. That's not the way Matadors interim coach Jeff Kearin designs an offense.

``He's a young renegade player, kind of a lone ranger type,'' Kearin said. ``He was given freedom to do stuff on his own, and we have a lot of structure. I've asked the kids to raise themselves to a level of sophistication that college football requires. In high school, and often in junior college, there's often not that kind of discipline where we rely on Drew to run a 12-yard route or a slant instead of a 10-yarder.''

So Amerson, who spent last season on the scout team, learns as he goes. He has earned more playing time as other receivers, notably Arnold but also Terrence Jones, were hit with injuries. Arnold returned from a separated shoulder last week. On Saturday, Jones cramped up and suffered a possible concussion.

Amerson knows it will take additional concentration and repetition to stop the drops. Saturday was an improvement - just two drops. But those are two too many, he said.

But two weeks of 100-plus yards of receiving might have earned him his way back into the starting lineup (he lost his spot after the Montana game). Kearin said the receivers always are in a rotation.

Even if he doesn't start, Amerson knows he's getting plenty of playing time.

``Never get crazy, never get lackadaisical,'' he said. ``I've been catching all my life.''