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--> --> Sept. 28: Raiders hit the road By Bobby Heiken Ashland Daily Tidings After winning three straight home games to start the season, the Southern Oregon University football team is taking its show on the road. The fifth-ranked Raiders travel to Puget Sound Saturday to face the 0-2 Loggers. "One thing we don't know about this team is how well they will travel," head coach Jeff Olson said of his Raiders. "Only two teams at this school have had back-to-back winning seasons. If we have aspirations of going on we have to learn to play on the road." Playing in Tacoma against Puget Sound may be the best way to start. The Loggers have been run over in their previous two games. They opened the season by dropping a 39-0 decision vs. Simon Fraser and then fell last week 43-20 to Willamette. "They've got some very good receivers that can fly," Olson said, defying the form book. "And they are coming off their first winning season since 1987." Even though UPS is only gaining 29 yards a game on the ground, the Loggers' receiving corps has had its bright spots. Senior all-stars Bryan Siu (11 catches for 138 yards) and Adrian Evans (11 for 82) lead the UPS offense. But all of those numbers dim in light of the effort put up by the Raiders. SOU, which has outscored its three opponents 125-25, ranks fourth in the nation in total defense (178) and fifth in total offense (460.3). "The key is how we prepare," Olson said. "And if the last two days of practice are any indication, we are ready to play. The intensity has been there and I think last week was a wake-up call." The wake-up call was Simon Fraser marching to a TD on its first possession. After that the Raiders responded with 49 straight points en route to a 49-19 victory. "We came out flat and finished flat, but in between we were pretty impressive," Olson said. As for the game with Puget Sound, Olson says sophomore running back Dusty McGrorty will start after playing sparingly last week with bruised ribs. Sophomore Shawn Wilson will see some time after two weeks of impressive outings. Wilson gained 100 yards against Linfield in just over three quarters of work and has 204 for the year. "I think Shawn's earned the right to play," Olson said. "Plus it will be a nice mix to get some fresh legs in the game." Senior middle linebacker Erube Magana is still questionable with an ankle injury, while running back Bill Jolin is in doubt as he recovers from an MCL injury. With a victory Saturday the Raiders would become the first SOU squad since 1983 to start the season 4-0. "All the respect and everything is nice," Olson said. "But many of these guys were around here in 1999 and remember how close we were, and we lost it on the final week." Email your... Technical questions & comments to: WebMaster Daily Tidings editorial comments & questions to: Editor Visit our other Oregon Newspapers... | Albany Democrat-Herald | Ashland Daily Tidings | Corvallis Gazette-Times | | Lebanon Express | Newport News-Times | Springfield News | Cottage Grove Sentinel | Ashland Daily Tidings 1661 Siskiyou Blvd. Ashland, OR 97520 Telephone 541-482-3456 © Copyright 2001 Lee Northwest Publishing