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COLLEGE FOOTBALL Balancing act Pass-happy Raiders prove they can run, too By Joe Zavala Ashland Daily Tidings DailyTidings.com By Joe Zavala Ashland Daily Tidings Posted Oct. 23, 2015 @ 2:00 am By Joe Zavala Ashland Daily Tidings Posted Oct. 23, 2015 @ 2:00 am » Social News p bs:newslist StartDate="20121121" EndDate="p bs:datecalc Months="3"" DateSort="1" UseObjects="1" ObjectClass="81" Taxonomywords="2324,665" ExactTaxonomyMatch="1" Image="1" Count="4" --> When the Southern Oregon Raiders joined the Frontier Conference in 2012, they did so with all the subtlety of a glitzy movie star moving into a quiet neighborhood, revving up their high-powered Ferrari offense and burning cookies in every small-college end zone in Montana. Head coach Craig Howard promised big numbers and preached a balanced offense, but on the field Southern Oregon and quarterback Austin Dodge turned out to be so dynamic through the air, true balance was hardly necessary. In their first three seasons in the Frontier Conference, the Raiders gained more than twice as many yards passing than they did rushing. This season, however, Southern Oregon has turned its previous run-pass split upside down and heads into Saturday’s home game against College of Idaho equipped with easily the most balanced offensive unit in the Craig Howard era. The second-ranked Raiders (5-1), who’ve run the table since their season-opening loss at Carroll, are averaging 229 yards rushing and 275 yards passing per game, and averaging 41.2 points despite a rash of injuries that have forced them to dip into their bench. Offensive coordinator Ken Fasnacht says adaptation has been the key. “Generally speaking, balance is a myth in football,” he said. “We’re going to take what the defense gives us. Right now, teams are – regardless of whether we have Austin dodge or Tanner Trosin or Kam Smith in (at quarterback) – still trying to take away the vertical threat in our offense. So it helps us hand the ball off and run it and makes it easier to run the football. We get the right kind of boxes. If somebody went the other way and loaded the box and let us throw it, we’d chuck it down the field like we did in the past.” So far that hasn’t happened yet, but that may change soon if the Raiders continue to chisel through opposing defenses five bruising yards at a time (they’re averaging 5.6 per carry). Junior running back Melvin Mason is SOU’s leading rusher with 449 yards and four touchdowns, and Trosin, the starting quarterback, ranks second with 322 yards and five TDs. Three more Raiders have rushed for 148 yards or more, giving the Raiders one of the most versatile rushing attacks in the nation and one that ranks 17th in the NAIA in terms of yards per game. Numbers like those look flipped over next to previous SOU box scores. In 2013, the Raiders averaged 405 yards passing and 185 rushing; last season, those averages were 383 and 176. Now, with a quarterback who’s as dangerous with his feet as he is with his arm and a stable of dynamic backs, SOU is in some ways tougher to defend than ever. The Raiders showed off some of that versatility against rival Carroll College last Saturday in overtime. After fumbling away opportunities to take charge in the second half and surviving two late field goal attempts by the Saints, the Raiders marched right down the field on their first overtime possession. With the game on the line, they passed twice and rushed six times, including Sean Tow’s 2-yard touchdown run. Drives like that may look ultra-conservative to SOU fans accustomed to seeing the Raiders bound down the field in 15-yard chunks, but to Fasnacht it’s a no-brainer so long as opponents continue to prepare for the Raiders as though Dodge has another year of eligibility. “It’s funny,” he said, “because with our success running the football you would think somebody would say, ‘Hey, we’re going to stop them from running.’ And they’re still playing us the way they’ve played us for three years.” Senior offensive guard Dylan Bratlie says the offensive line has to work harder when it’s asked to run block more — the Raiders are averaging 41 rushes-per-game this season — but he’s fine with the extra work load, so long as they keep putting up big numbers. “There’s a lot more pride in it when we run the ball and we get touchdowns off running because that’s harder work for us and relies more on us to be able to get those yards versus just throwing a deep ball,” Bratlie said. “I imagine because the guys we have in the backfield and losing (Dodge) that we were definitely going to end up running the ball more, I just didn’t know it was going to be quite this much. It’s definitely changed a lot. We don’t throw near as many deep balls, but we definitely run the rock a lot more and it’s fantastic.” Joe Zavala can be reached at 541-821-0829 or [email protected]. By Joe Zavala Ashland Daily Tidings DailyTidings.com By Joe Zavala Ashland Daily Tidings Posted Oct. 23, 2015 @ 2:00 am » Comment or view comments Terms of Service /* $( document ).ready(function() { // Jquery mobile is trying to style the button and leaving a blank gry button on top of a white button $("#viafouracoms .vf-comment-controls li.vf-right").html(' Submit '); });*/ » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. fantasy football Hyde, Bush Post-Week 7 Fantasy Advice Oct. 22, 2015 at 11:59 pm Wilson, Graham, Lockett Post-Week 7 Fantasy Advice Oct. 22, 2015 at 10:55 pm Lynch, Rawls Post-Week 7 Fantasy Advice Oct. 22, 2015 at 10:54 pm Daily Fantasy CFB Week 8 Oct. 22, 2015 at 3:25 pm Play or Bench Advice on Top Fantasy Football Stars Oct. 22, 2015 at 12:00 pm Fantasy Advice Before Thursday Night Football Oct. 22, 2015 at 7:00 am calendar Connect with DailyTidings.com Facebook Twitter RSS Back to top Reader Services Reader Services home Subscriptions Subscriber controls Contact us Submissions Photos Events Letters to the editor Corrections Alerts Email alerts RSS feeds Text Alerts Advertise Media Kit Home Products and services Ad rates Advertising contacts Propel Marketing Mail Tribune Daily Tidings The Nickel Shop Our Valley Blogs Mobile Site Stay Informed Email newsletter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. 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