Bear rouses bullish Toreros

SAN DIEGO – Jim Harbaugh was musing about ways to pump up the atmosphere at University of San Diego football games and really, after turning the program into a Division I-AA powerhouse in just three seasons, his wish seems pretty simple.

“Three thousand fans and a band more,” said Harbaugh, the former NFL quarterback who spent his first seven seasons with the Chicago Bears.

Yeah, a capacity crowd in their cozy, 7,000-seat stadium and a marching band would nicely round out autumn Saturdays for the Toreros, who have been so good at doing everything else to get themselves noticed.

The Toreros (7-0) defeated Drake 37-0 on Saturday to increase their winning streak to 15 games.

They’re also ranked for the third straight week in the Division I-AA poll, a major accomplishment for a school that averages 4,000 fans for home games and doesn’t give football scholarships. That means players have to make it on loans and need-based financial aid just like other students do, and an education at USD isn’t cheap. Tuition, room and board, and books run about $43,000 a year.

So when the Toreros find themselves ranked No. 21, “that’s monumental,” Harbaugh said.

So is the job that Harbaugh has done since being hired to his first head coaching job by a school where football was, at best, an afterthought on a spectacular hilltop campus known primarily for its academics.

“If you win enough games, you’re going to attract enough attention,” said Harbaugh, an NFL quarterback for 15 seasons whose father, Jack, was a successful Division I-AA coach. “Last year going 11-1 focused people’s eyes, although we never were ranked. But 22 out of 23, I think, is tough to ignore.”

The Toreros have lost only one time since midway through the 2004 season, Harbaugh’s first at USD. That defeat was by three points at Princeton on Sept. 24, 2005.

They rebounded to finish a school-best record and their first PFL title.

While a repeat league championship is the main goal, earning a ranking has raised the intriguing possibility of an at-large berth in the 16-team I-AA playoffs if the Toreros – it’s Spanish for “bullfighters” – can remain undefeated.

“I think we have a shot,” said Harbaugh, who is 24-5 overall. “I think we’re definitely good enough and deserving.”

While San Diego State is floundering at 0-5 under first-year coach Chuck Long, confidence at USD couldn’t be higher.

“Just looking at the Top 25, which includes all the I-AA scholarship schools, I believe we beat most of them,” Harbaugh said.

With junior quarterback Josh Johnson putting up dazzling numbers and the defense doing its part, the Toreros have attracted attention by putting up scores like 68-7 against Valparaiso, 56-3 over Butler and 50-21 against Davidson in their last three games.

“It’s well-deserved for our team and our program,” said Johnson, who’s thrown for 1,607 yards and 19 touchdowns, with only three interceptions. He’s completed nearly 70 percent of his passes, going 123 of 178.

Johnson is the prototypical Harbaugh recruit.

“I didn’t even know this school existed until Coach Harbaugh started recruiting me and I looked into it more and I found out about the good academics,” said Johnson, who’s from Oakland, Calif. “It ended up being a good situation.”

Of course, it comes with sticker shock. “I’m going into debt, but there’s a lot of people who come out of college in debt,” said Johnson, who’s majoring in communications with a minor in business administration.

Harbaugh sees more than just a good student in Johnson, who last year threw for 3,256 yards, 36 TDs and only eight pickoffs.

“He’s the best junior quarterback in college football, in my opinion,” Harbaugh said. “He’ll be a Day One draft pick, when it’s his time. I’ve had pro scouts tell me that as well.”

Harbaugh knows a bit about that, having gone from Michigan to the Bears in the first round of the 1987 NFL draft. He also played for Indianapolis, Baltimore, San Diego and Carolina.

Most of Harbaugh’s players will have to be content simply to play college ball.

The average Torero player is “the kind of kid who values a good education, who knows what that can do for him for the next 60 years of his life,” Harbaugh said.

“Just because we’re denied scholarships doesn’t mean we can’t be great,” he added.

Most of Harbaugh’s assistants have NFL or Division I-A coaching experience.

“A kid who’s a hard worker, who loves football, we’ve got a spot for them here,” Harbaugh said.

Father Jack coached at Western Kentucky for 14 years, winning the Division I-AA national championship in 2002.