Setback leaves Cardinal red-faced

It’s going to be a long two weeks in Palo Alto, Calif.

Stanford lost 20-17 Saturday to I-AA UC Davis, a school that not long ago was a Division II program. Just to throw a little salt on the wound, the Cardinal have a bye this week.

“We are all embarrassed,” first-year head coach Walt Harris said. “Hopefully, we’ll never have a lower point than this.”

Stanford blew a 17-0 lead and also lost starting quarterback Trent Edwards to a hand injury, although the severity is not yet known.

But more than anything else, Harris faces the challenge of pulling his team out of the emotional trash heap as it readies for Pacific-10 Conference season.

“We had many chances in that game, but we just didn’t do it,” Harris said. “We have to deal with the consequences.

“If it could go wrong, it went wrong.”

Offense aplenty

While Stanford couldn’t muster 200 total yards against UC-Davis, the rest of the conference’s offenses seem to be doing just fine.

In fact, six of the conference’s 10 teams are averaging better than 40 points a game, leaving many a head coach shaking his head.

“We’re scoring 35 points a game and we’re eighth in the league,” Oregon State coach Mike Riley lamented.

The Beavers are actually seventh in the Pac-10 at 32.7 per outing, but that is a full eight points in back of Oregon, the next team up on the list. Riley doesn’t see Pac-10 defenses making a full-throttled comeback any time soon, either.

“I don’t think (that’ll happen) soon based on the way things are going,” he said. “It’ll be rough sledding for defenses overall. Maybe when the weather gets bad up north.”

Washington head coach Tyrone Willingham said a primary reason for the offensive outburst is the talent under center.

Aside from Heisman Trophy winner Matt Leinart, Arizona State’s Sam Keller, UCLA’s Drew Olson and Oregon’s Kellen Clemens have had superb starts.

“The conference has been more and more moving towards a wide-open scoring conference,” Willingham said. “Almost every team is loaded with a very good quarterback.”

Linebacker Davis improves

Washington State head coach Bill Doba said linebacker Scott Davis – although still in a protective boot – is doing better after spraining a foot Saturday and should be available when WSU plays Oregon State in 10 days.

“I think he’ll be ready,” Doba said. “I think all of them will be except Ropati (Pitoitua). They should be ready to go if we don’t beat them up too much during the week.”

Doba reiterated his plan to put WSU through tough practices Thursday and Friday in an attempt to prepare the team for an upgrade in competition as the Cougars go from a I-AA opponent to a Pac-10 foe.

The head coach also said he wasn’t sure just how strong his team is, given the weakness of the non-conference schedule.

“Normally we would have played another Division I-A, hopefully a Big 12, someone in the middle of the conference in the Big 12 or the Big Ten,” Doba said. “You’d have a little better understanding of where your kids are. But I think we know what we need to work on. We know our strengths.”

Notes

WSU’s conference opener at Oregon State has been set for a 1 p.m. kickoff on Oct. 1. The game will not be televised. … The Pac-10’s early explosion in points hasn’t precluded a few Cougars from denting the statistical leader lists. Running back Jerome Harrison has more total rushing yards (399) and yards per game (133) than any other player in the conference. His backup, DeMaundray Woolridge, is seventh in yards with 255. Wideout Jason Hill is tied with UCLA running back Maurice Drew for the conference lead with six touchdowns. … The Cougars also have the second-longest winning streak in the conference at four games, dating back to last season’s Apple Cup. Just 20 more to go before catching USC – if the Trojans’ streak isn’t at 44 by then. … Two key starters on top contenders are out for the year: USC cornerback Terrell Thomas and Arizona State guard Zach Krula.