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GP, Roseburg set to square off By DON HUNT Three times the Roseburg Indians have taken on highly-ranked opponents. Three times the Indians have won, twice by large margins. Grants Pass gets its crack at the Indians Friday night at Finlay Field in Roseburg, where a capacity crowd of 5,000 is expected to be on hand. Both teams enter the Southern Oregon Conference showdown with 6-0 records, although Roseburg clearly has had a tougher schedule. The Indians own decisive wins over two teams that were ranked in the top 10 - North Medford (47-0) and South Medford (34-10) - and held a 21-20 lead over No. 6 Sheldon when that game was terminated in the fourth period due to a lightning storm. Grants Pass owns a 20-3 victory over the Black Tornado but hasn't faced any other opponent in the top 10. In other games involving SOC teams, South Medford (5-1) travels to Klamath Union (2-4), Ashland (2-4) ventures to Eagle Point (1-5) and North Medford (4-2) meets Crater (1-5) at Spiegelberg Stadium. "We're hoping that our defense can keep the game close and that our offense can be efficient enough to control the ball to some degree," Grants Pass coach Jeff Weiss says. "But that's easier said than done. Roseburg is without question one of the best teams in the state and we're going to have to play a mistake-free game to beat them." The Cavemen are somewhat of a surprise in that they had to replace 18 of 22 starting positions from a year ago. But two of the first-year starters - quarterback Tom Cohen and tailback Tom Martin - have played beyond expectations and the Cavemen's no-name defense has been the stingiest in the SOC, yielding just 10.2 points per game. Cohen has completed 73 of 144 passes for 988 yards, 12 touchdowns and just one interception. He also carries a 4.0 GPA in the classroom. "He's a very bright kid with a pretty good arm," says Weiss of Cohen, a 6-foot-2, 180-pound senior. "And he has a presence about him that you don't always see in a high school quarterback." Cohen made two heads-up plays last week that illustrates his poise, Weiss says. He fired a 15-yard touchdown pass to Kory Mahr as he was falling out of bounds and later scrambled 19 yards for another score. "He doesn't normally run but he saw a lane and took off," Weiss says. "He makes good, spontaneous decisions." The hard-nosed Martin, meanwhile, has run for 740 yards and leads the SOC with 12 touchdowns. Roseburg's Rod Cope paces the SOC in rushing with 774 yards and quarterback Adam Hazel, who has been red-hot the past three games, leads the conference in passing efficiency. Hazel has hit on 33 of 43 passes for 526 yards, seven touchdowns and just one interception in lop-sided victories over Crater, Eagle Point and South Medford. On the season, Hazel has thrown for 756 yards and 11 TDs. Roseburg's best player, however, is tight end/defensive end Joe Newton, a 6-8, 240-pound senior who is among the most recruited players in the Pacific Northwest. Newton was a stalwart on defense last Friday against South Medford and made a spectacular interception from point-blank range as he was rushing Panthers quarterback Boomer Marshall. "He's been a one-man wrecking crew of late," Roseburg coach Thurman Bell says. "Everyone wants to talk about Joe's pass-catching skills and why we don't throw him the ball more often. If you watch him block you'd see why. "He's been a force on both sides of the ball." SOUTH MEDFORD AT KLAMATH UNION - South Medford coach Bill Singler hopes his team can regroup following last week's loss to Roseburg in which three Panthers were injured. Backup lineman Mike Williams broke his arm on a kickoff return and it out for the season; starting two-way tackle David Ballard dislocated a shoulder that will sideline him for Friday's game; and starting tailback/linebacker Andres Reed suffered an ankle sprain that leaves his status in doubt for Friday. "We're a little dinged up but we've got to regroup and regain our edge," Singler says. "The Roseburg game was not make-or-break for us, but now's not the time to have a letdown." Klamath Union played Grants Pass surprisingly tough last Friday, leading the Cavemen 19-14 in the second period and trailing just 27-25 heading into the fourth quarter before the Cavemen pulled away for a 47-25 victory. Pelicans slotback D.J. Munoz, a sprinter in track, burned Grants Pass for a pair of 34-yard touchdown receptions and ran 25 yards for a third score. Klamath Union running back Brad Mejia ranks fifth in the SOC in rushing with 510 yards and four touchdowns. "They've got two or three kids who run real well," Singler says. "We can't overlook these guys." ASHLAND AT EAGLE POINT - Ashland finally firmed up its defense and quarterback Cameron Voget had his best game of the season last week against North Medford, passing for 205 yards and two touchdowns and running for another score. But the Grizzlies gave up three touchdowns on kickoff returns and had a punt blocked for yet another TD, fueling a 62-30 Black Tornado rout. Ashland coach Jim Nagel says several of his offensive and defensive starters will now be a part of special teams. "You like to give certain kids a break, but we've got to do something to shore up our special teams," Nagel says. "And the best solution is putting your best kids on them. "Our two-way players are going to be three-way players." Eagle Point is having its own troubles. The Eagles are in the midst of a five-game losing skid and fumbled the ball way three times during a 14-12 loss to Crater last Friday. Reach reporter Don Hunt at 776-4469, or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2001 Mail Tribune, Inc.