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SOU can't survive six fumbles, gets stung by Linfield By KRIS HENRY Tidings Correspondent Fifth-ranked Southern Oregon put up big numbers Saturday night, but the NAIA Raiders learned a hard lesson that it's the little things that mean the most. Southern Oregon University wideout Heykel Aouriri blocks Linfield cornerback Eric Hillison as Raider running back Dusty McGrorty fights through a hole during the Wildcats' win Saturday at Raider Stadium. Ashland Daily Tidings/SATSUKI DOI Linfield, ranked No. 5 among NCAA Division III colleges, took advantage of myriad misplays by SOU to post a wild 47-42 victory in front of 3,000 at Raider Stadium. SOU senior tailback Dusty McGrorty rushed 26 times for 228 yards and three touchdowns while senior transfer Andrae Thurman made a big splash in his debut with 130 yards receiving and a 92-yard kickoff return for a score as the Raiders rolled up 506 yards of total offense. But with a season opener also comes some rust, and SOU certainly showed it in the near four-hour contest as the Raiders suffered through three lost fumbles, two interceptions, an errant point- after attempt, one muffed punt and a missed 20-yard field goal. "You can't do that and expect to win against anybody, let alone the No. 5 team in the nation," said eighth-year SOU coach Jeff Olson. "We've got the potential to score in a hurry, it's just little things are going to get you beat or win for you, and tonight they got us beat." After trailing for much of the second half, McGrorty sparked SOU with touchdown runs of 23 and 53 yards to pull the Raiders ahead 42-41 with 5:15 to play. But as was the case all night, Linfield (2-0) marched down field on the strong arm of senior quarterback Tyler Matthews to reclaim the advantage at 47-42 on a 25-yard pump-and-go touchdown pass from Matthews to junior George Carter with 1:28 to play. "That's what you live for," Matthews said of the rallying score. "You love to have the ball in your hands, and we've just got incredible weapons. Those (SOU) guys are a great team and have great players all around, we just knew we had the weapons that could go get them." Matthews completed 29 of 46 passes for 347 yards and five TDs against a charred SOU secondary. Carter was the recipient of 12 of the aerials for 193 yards and three scores as Linfield showed big- play capability of its own with 428 yards of total offense. The Raiders' last-ditch effort fell into the waiting arms of Linfield free safety Ty Smith as SOU quarterback Dan Woodward's soaring 50-yard pass failed to find a scrambling Thurman. "When you've got 30 seconds to go in the game, you've got to get down field to put yourself in position to make a big play," Woodward said. "That kind of thing happens. I tried to give Andrae another chance to make a play, it just didn't happen." No one wanted to make the play more than Thurman, who couldn't help but be impressed by his new teammates. "The defensive back made a great play," said the former University of Arizona standout. "I felt like we played hard, but a team's got to lose and tonight it was us. The effort of this football team was tremendous. We never gave up. This is a great football team and I'm happy to be here." And while a loss is never pleasing, McGrorty said the Raiders stand to grow from Saturday's experience. "We're still trying to find out what kind of team we are," said the All-American from Warrenton. "Linfield's a tough program, we've just got to work a couple things out. I guarantee we'll get the loose screws outta there and we'll be ready to roll next week." If all goes according to plan, McGrorty will break former SOU star Griff Yates' Northwest small-college record for touchdowns next week at Humboldt State. McGrorty trails his good friend by one score in that category, and is 620 yards behind Yates' record for career rushing yards. Still, McGrorty would trade it all in for a better ending to Saturday's barn-burner. "I'd take 20 yards rushing if we could've just won that football game," said the senior leader. "A loss for us is just huge. We want to win it all so a loss isn't good." LINKS: DAILY TIDINGS: Main | News | Sports | Obituaries | Opinion | Columnists | AP News | Subscribe | Archives | Weather | Classifieds | Contact Us | Privacy REVELS: Main | Calendar | Dining | Movies | T.V. OTHER: Road Cams Copyright 2003 Ashland Daily Tidings 541.482.3456. 1661 Siskiyou Blvd., Ashland, OR 97520. Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. - Advertisers -