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CLOUDY Temp: 40 °F Wind: CLM at 0 mph Saturday, December 21, 2002 SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion - Politics AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map EXTRA HomeLife Magazine W3 Magazine Jobs @ Mail Tribune Tempo A & E Oregon CarZone Wellness Connection Real Estate Newspaper in Education Prime Times Outdoor Journal Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People CLASSIFIEDS Find a Car Find a Home Find a Job Find Everything E SOUTHERN OREGON Automotive Communities Entertainment Publications Recreation Calendar ABOUT US FAQ What's New Advertise Home Delivery Classified Ad Contact Us Media Kit Email Story to a Friend November 19, 2002 Panthers’ play of late has been downright offensive Prep Notebook By DON HUNT Mail Tribune There’s an adage in football that says, defense tells you whether you win or lose, and offense tells you by how much. That maxim carries the most weight during the postseason, when even the most prolific offenses invariably run into trouble when encountering the toughest defenses. But thanks to record-breaking quarterback Boomer Marshall and arguably the best collection of receivers in the state, the South Medford Panthers are breaking the mold. The sixth-ranked Panthers gave up 446 yards rushing and 536 yards of total offense to Willamette last Friday, but Marshall counter-punched for a school-record 464 yards and six touchdowns passing. And South Medford walked off with another gut-wrenching win, this one 45-38 in double overtime. It’s the first time in roughly 40 years of watching high school football that I’ve ever seen one team (Willamette) produce three 100-yard rushers and the other team (South Medford) generate three 100-yard receivers. And how often do you see more than 1,000 yards of offense go into the books in a high school game? What made Marshall’s numbers all the more impressive was that they came against one of the best defenses in the state. Willamette had allowed only 152 yards and 8.3 points per game going into last Friday’s contest, and the Wolverines had shut down Midwestern League powers Sheldon and Churchill along the way, holding the former to 10 points and the latter to seven. Asked to compare Marshall and Sheldon quarterback Alex Brink, who earned first-team, all-state honors last season and is having another big year, Willamette coach Skip Raish said: "Let’s put it this way. Brink never got into the end zone against us (Sheldon’s only touchdown came on a kickoff return) and Boomer threw six touchdowns." Marshall unofficially broke the Southern Oregon Conference single-season passing record last Friday. His 464 yards put him at 2,911 for the season, and pushed him past former Ashland High standout Bert Petersen, who amassed 2,871 yards during the Grizzlies’ state championship season of 1989. Petersen reached his total in 14 games; Marshall’s sum has been reached in 11. "I believe what we’re witnessing is the greatest quarterback in the history of the Southern Oregon Conference," says South Medford coach Bill Singler, whose team meets Canby in a state quarterfinals matchup Friday at Spiegelberg Stadium. "The numbers don’t lie." They don’t, and what makes Marshall’s stats even more impressive is that they’re coming in close games against stout defenses. He has fueled last-second, game-winning drives against Grants Pass, North Medford and Willamette over the past month, and all but one of the Panthers’ last six games — all victories — have been decided by a touchdown or less. When the pressure is greatest, Marshall seems to be at his best. And never was the pressure greater than during last Friday’s first overtime, when South Medford trailed 38-31 and faced a fourth-and-nine situation at the Willamette 24-yard line. It’s was do-or-die time for Marshall, and he delivered, firing a 15-yard strike to tight end Eric Fischer along the right sideline for a first down. One play later, Marshall rifled a 5-yard touchdown pass to Thom Whiteaker that tied the game, and moments later he threw a 9-yarder to Ryan Benson in the second overtime to win it. Afterward, Marshall talked about all the things that could have gone wrong on the fourth-down play — from the snap in shotgun formation, to the throw, to the catch. One mistake and the season is over. "You think about that stuff later," he said, "but at the time all you’re thinking about is completing the pass and getting the first down." As brilliant as Marshall was last Friday, the South Medford receivers were equally extraordinary. Benson, who had caught a school-record eight passes in a 13-7 first-round victory over Lincoln the previous week, re-set the standard with 10 catches for 126 yards and three touchdowns. Fischer finished with eight receptions for 124 yards and one TD, and Whiteaker had eight catches for 163 yards and two scores, including a couple of leaping grabs in which he got pummeled but still hung onto the ball. "The ball just sticks to my hands — I don’t know how to explain it," shrugged Whiteaker, who also entered the record book last Friday by reaching 957 receiving yards on the season, surpassing Ryan Heil’s mark of 934 set in 2001. "I just try to be aggressive and go get it." Benson, Fischer and Whiteaker are as talented of a receiving corps as I’ve seen. The only other SOC trio that compares was Ashland’s 1989 group of Chad Cota, Matt Wells and Bobby Foot, who all went on to distinguished college careers. Now comes Canby, the only team that has put a blemish on South Medford’s record this season — 43-21 on opening night. No one has come within two touchdowns of the 11-0 Cougars, who feature a big, physical, experienced line and a punishing ground attack. It’s not unreasonable to think the Pacific-9 champion Cougars will ring up 500 yards and 50 points against the Panthers. But the way things are going, Marshall and Co. will ring up 550 and 51. North Medford bowed out of the playoffs faster than expected with last Friday’s 16-13 loss to Hermiston. But look for the Black Tornado to contend for conference and state championships in 2003. The Tornado will return six starters on offense and five on defense, including first-team, all-conference lineman David Faaeteete, second-team, all-conference quarterback Beau Hovland, second-team, all-conference linebacker Brian Jimenez, second-team, all-conference tight end Ryan Weisz and honorable mention, all-conference tackle Frank Clifton. If the Tornado can develop some quality skill position players to augment Hovland and Weisz, it could be in the mix for a state title. Reach reporter Don Hunt at 776-4469, or e-mail [email protected] Printer Friendly Version Email Story to a Friend Subscribe Archive: Click to Search M Mail Tribune Home Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life Opinion - Politics | AP News | Archives | Site Map E Southern Oregon | Classified Copyright 1997-2002 Mail Tribune. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy web master feedback A D V E R T I S E R S