Don’T Let Psu Score Fool You

Portland State coach Tim Walsh has warned Vikings fans - and Big Sky Conference opponents, alike - not to read too much into last Saturday’s 37-20 season-opening win over Western Washington.

Considering PSU is ranked No.

12 nationally among Division I-AA schools and expected to battle Montana for this year’s Big Sky title, its win over Western, a fledgling Division II school, was not as lopsided as many might have expected.

But Walsh said he was not disappointed and does not plan on making any changes Saturday at Division I Hawaii.

“There isn’t any doubt we dominated,” Walsh said of the win over Western Washington, in which his Vikings ran up 555 yards of total offense. “We made mistakes that allowed them to score. We also made mistakes on offense that we usually don’t make.

“If you score 37 points and you’re not happy, that’s a good sign. And if you hold the opposing offense to (289) yards and you’re not happy, that’s a good sign.” The big gun in PSU’s offensive arsenal was senior quarterback Jimmy Blanchard, who completed 16 of 24 passes for 409 yards and three touchdowns. But the Vikings committed three turnovers that stopped nice drives.

Don’t ask, don’t tell

First-year Eastern Washington coach Paul Wulff made an early statement to his players prior to Saturday’s 21-19 loss at Oregon State by suspending middle linebacker Greg Belzer and defensive tackle Dario Romero for the first quarter of the game because of unspecified violations of team rules.

When Belzer, a senior co-captain, was asked by a reporter after the game how it felt to spend the period on the sidelines, he said: “Oooh, do you think we can keep that out of the paper? I haven’t even told my mom and dad about it yet.”

Erickson can spell relief

Wulff expressed a sense of relief following last Saturday’s near upset of Oregon State in his college coaching debut, OSU coach Dennis Erickson understood completely.

Erickson, in his second season with the Beavers, recalled a similar feeling after he had coached Idaho to a 34-14 loss to Washington State is his first college game back in 1982. “There’s no question, it’s a relief,” said Erickson, who later coached Wulff at WSU. “Yeah, now Paul can get on with his career and focus on football. He’s a veteran now.”