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Last second defeat
at Yuba
Sept. 4,
2004 -- Leading 19-7 in the final period, the Eagles lost
their first game under new head coach Matt Sayre when Yuba culminated
a 99 yard scoring drive with a touchdown as time expired in Marysville.
"It was ugly football," said Sayre, who came to COS this
year after nine years as an assistant coach at Southern Oregon University.
"I don't know who deserved to win... We beat ourselves."
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| Quarterback Travis
Newman and head coach Matt Sayre during Delta game on September
11th. |
Siskiyous moved the ball on offense, but kept coming up empty inside
the red zone, scoring only once on five possessions inside Yuba's
20 yard line. Two of those drives ended with missed field goals; two
others ended with turnovers.
Two missed PATs and penalties also proved costly, including a pass
interference call on Yuba's game-winning drive.
The Eagles started the season with a bang, as freshman Tay Proctor
of Renton, WA, returned Saturday's opening kickoff for a touchdown.
Siskiyous scored again on a run by Alex Gaston, a 5-foot-6, 177 pound
freshman running back from Cheran, SC. That play followed a pass completion
of about 40 yards from quarterback Travis Newman (5-11, 210 sophomore,
San Diego) to wide receiver Bobby Olive (6-3, 183 freshman, Portland,
OR).
After their final possession, sophomore Zach Lampella of Fort Jones
punted the ball to Yuba's one yard line with 1:20 to play and the
Eagles holding a 19-14 lead.
Up to that point, Sayre said the Eagles' defense had been outstanding.
But on the ensuing 99 yard drive, things didn't go the Eagles' way.
"We let them off the hook with dumb penalties when we had them
stopped," Sayre said. "They had some unsportsmanlike conduct
penalties throughout the game; we avoided them most of the way, but
got called for them when it mattered."
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| Cornerback Marquis Walker |
Sayre said freshman cornerback Marquis Walker
(5-8, 172, Arlington, TX), the Eagles' defensive player of the game,
made a nice move on a hitch route on the final drive and nearly got
the interception. Instead he got flagged for pass interference.
Wide receiver Brandon Brammer, a 6-1, 180 pound freshman from Salem,
OR, was named the Eagles' offensive player of the game for his two
pass catches and strong blocking.
Tight end Jason Zarate, a 6-3, 225 pound sophomore from Madras, OR,
also had a pair of key pass catches, as did Olive.
While much about the game was frustrating from the Eagles' perspective,
the offense "made a lot of yards" on offense, Sayre said,
and the defense "played extremely well as a unit."
Now the Eagles are scheduled to host three strong
non-conference opponents in a row, beginning this Saturday with Delta
at Herschel Meredith Stadium, starting with a 3 p.m. kickoff. Then
the Eagles will host former Golden Valley Conference rival Butte on
September 18th and Laney of Oakland on September 25th.
Delta, according to Sayre, features a wide open offense, throws a
lot and likes to use the zone blitz on defense.
A very good team last year, Delta edged Modesto in its 2004 opener.
"We're very close to putting it together," Sayre said of
the Eagles. "We just need to quit making mistakes that hurt ourselves."
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