COLLEGE FOOTBALL: LOOKING TO RUN THE TABLE ONE DEFEAT HAUNTS BOTH OCCIDENTAL, CAL LUTHERAN.Byline: IVAN OROZCO Staff Writer The college football season officially started last week for most NCAA NCAA abbr. National Collegiate Athletic Association schools, but for Division III
Division III (or DIII) is a division of the National Collegiate Athletic Association of the United States. Occidental College History The Birth of Occidental College Occidental College (commonly referred to as Oxy) was founded on April 20, 1887, by a group of Presbyterian clergy and laymen. and California Lutheran University Mission statement The University's mission statement is as follows: "California Lutheran University is a diverse, scholarly community dedicated to excellence in the liberal arts and professional studies. , the action starts Saturday. The two-time Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference The Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) is a college athletic conference that operates in the NCAA's Division III. It consists of eleven small private schools which are located in Southern California and organized into eight athletic programs. champion Tigers open at home against Lewis & Clark College Clark College: see Atlanta Univ. Center. and Cal Lutheran travels to Pacific Lutheran. Despite finishing with winning records (Occidental oc·ci·den·tal or Oc·ci·den·tal adj. Of or relating to the countries of the Occident or their peoples or cultures; western. n. A native or inhabitant of an Occidental country; a westerner. Noun 1. 9-1, Cal Lutheran 8-1), each team was haunted by one result. The loss on each team's record ended the season for both teams. The Tigers finished the regular season undefeated (9-0, 6-0) and seemed to have the confidence to advance deep into the Division III playoffs. But a first-round playoff play·off also play-off n. Sports 1. A final game or series of games played to break a tie. 2. A series of games played to determine a championship. Noun 1. loss to Linfield of Oregon spoiled the run at a national championship and a nine-game win streak. With only one defeat -- a 41-9 second week loss to Occidental -- and a second-place conference finish (5-1), the Kingsmen expected to be selected into the playoffs. But the loss to the Tigers proved critical. When the 32 teams selected to the playoff party were announced, the Kingsmen were left out. Cal Lutheran coach Scott Squires, his staff and team gathered to listen to the selection broadcast while a team camera captured the players' discontent. To encourage his team, 10th-year Cal Lutheran coach plans to use the videotape. This season, Squires doesn't want to rest his team's playoff hopes on a selection committee. Squires knows his team will have to beat Occidental to finish undefeated in the regular season and ensure a date in the post season. ``It comes down to winning those six conference games,'' said Dale Widolff, the Tigers' 26th-year coach. ``We know an 8-1 record sometimes doesn't do it for you.'' This year, the Tigers are the favorites to win the conference and three-peat for the second time in school history. The school won three straight titles from 1983 to 1985. Although Occidental returns quarterback Andy Collins Andy Collins may refer to:
Despite missing some practices this summer because of back injuries, Widolff said he hopes his defense will be led by linebackers Anthony Ostland and Tim Tanous. Linebacker Joe Zackary, defensive back Kyle Stowers and defensive lineman Robert Theofanis are expected to make an impact on defense. ``If you won back-to-back championships, it's going to take another one to give the players a good feeling about what they've done,'' Widolff said. ``We're not a dynasty by any means. Just because we were champions last year doesn't mean we're something different from the rest. It's a new season.'' ivan.orozco@dailynews.com (818) 713-3607 CAPTION(S): photo, 2 boxes Photo: Andy Collins, senior quarterback for Occidental College, warms up before practice in Eagle Rock on Wednesday. James Carbone/SXSPORTS Box: (1) OCCIDENTAL COLLEGE (2) CALIFORNIA LUTHERAN UNIVERSITY |
|
||||||||||||||||
Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion