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SUNNY Temp: 53 °F Wind: CLM at 0 mph Thursday, November 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 September 19, 2002 North looking for payback against Roseburg Teams have shared blowout victories the past two seasons, with Indians winning 47-0 in 2001 By DON HUNT Mail Tribune North Medford entered last season’s Southern Oregon Conference opening game against Roseburg with a 2-0 record and ranked No. 2 in the state. It was billed as a showdown between two of Oregon’s best high school football teams. But when the final whistle sounded at Roseburg’s Finlay Field, the Black Tornado had suffered a 47-0 loss. The Indians viewed the game as payback time for the 2000 season, when North Medford romped to a 31-0 victory at Spiegelberg Stadium. In each case, the winning team went on to win the conference championship. The two rivals are bracing for their 2002 battle — it unfolds Friday night at 7:30 at Spiegelberg — and this time the No. 4-ranked Tornado will use revenge as a motivator. "Everyone on our team who was on the field last year remembers," North Medford defensive end Steve Hanlin says. "They crunched us, and I think everyone is working a little harder in practice this week to see if we can turn things around." The Tornado has been the more impressive team this fall, opening its season with a 30-0 victory over Mountain View and then handing highly-touted Lake Oswego a 13-12 loss last Friday — the Lakers’ first home setback since 1999. Roseburg lost to Bend 24-20 on opening night, then beat Oregon City 15-12 last Friday to square its record at 1-1. Indians coach Thurman Bell has had to replace 19 of 22 starting positions from last season, and not surprisingly the inexperience has led to a lot of mistakes in the early going. "We’ve got a long ways to go," Bell says. "We’ve got some talent but we’re so young in so many spots that it makes it tough to consistently execute at a high level. "And this isn’t a good time to be playing North Medford." The Indians have the SOC’s No. 2-ranked rusher in senior tailback Jake Dorsey, who has run for 216 yards on 38 carries and two touchdowns. They’ve also got one of the best tight ends in the conference in Nick Trowbridge and an all-conference caliber lineman in 6-foot-3, 255-pound Steve Jorgensen. But the Indians have struggled to establish a passing attack — they’ve managed just 101 yards in two games — and their defense is yielding an uncharacteristically high 332.5 yards per game. North Medford’s strength has been a swarming defense that is giving up just 148 yards and six points per contest — tops in the SOC. The Tornado also has 11 sacks in its first two games, including six against Lake Oswego. "They’re phenomenal defensively," Bell says. "They’re extremely quick and very unpredictable with their pass rush. They’ll blitz you from every angle." The Tornado hasn’t been perfect, though. Its offense has often stagnated in the red zone and the team has had four touchdowns nullified by penalties — including a pair of punt returns by Tyler Engle. "I think Engle is the best kick returner in the state but we’re ruining his returns with clipping penalties," North Medford coach John Beck says. "We’ve done some drills this week to clean that stuff up." Beck also plans to get Engle more involved with the offense. The 5-8, 160-pound senior speedster has carried the ball only six times for 49 yards and caught six passes for 119 yards in North Medford’s two games. "Whether it’s at running back or receiver, he needs more touches," Beck says. Beck has stressed to his team all week about the importance of getting off to a good start Friday. And while he hasn’t harped much about last season’s debacle, the players saw the numbers "47-0" on a blackboard when they came to practice Monday. No one needed to tell them what they meant. 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