Hayward Wants to Run and Hide From the Run and Shoot

Cal State Northridge, which generates more passes than a Marina del Rey singles bar, brings its air show to Northern California this weekend for a non-conference game against Cal State Hayward. And Hayward Coach Tim Tierney is worried to death. About CSUN’s running attack.

“Their run-and-shoot offense with all that passing presents all kinds of problems because we never get to face it,” Tierney said. “We’d much rather be facing the old Northridge teams with their pro-set offense.”

For the record, every school would rather face the old Northridge teams and their pro-set offense, which was pro only in name.

“But while their passing game could be a big problem for us, the other coaches who got beat by them (St. Mary’s and San Francisco State) said it was Mike Kane who hurt them much more than the passing game. Kane is the guy we’ve got to stop if we want to win.”

Last week, Hayward trounced Cal Lutheran, 37-15, holding the Kingsmen to only nine yards rushing.

Kane Is Able: The junior running back needs only 20 yards to become CSUN’s all-time leading rusher. With 99 yards in last week’s 41-17 rout of San Francisco State, Kane has ran for 1,745 yards in only two full seasons.

Despite operating out of the pass-oriented CSUN offense, Kane is ranked third in the Western Football Conference in rushing with 219 yards and a 5.2-yard average in three games. He is also ranked No. 1 in the WFC in scoring with 36 points on six touchdowns.

Happy Days: When CSUN Coach Tom Keele introduced the run-and-shoot during the summer, he figured it might take half the season for his players to adjust to it. It hasn’t, and Keele is elated.

“I just didn’t anticipate the offense clicking this fast,” he said. “We’re moving the ball much better than at any other time in my seven seasons here. The thing about the doggone offense is that we have the confidence that we can score very quickly. I’ve never felt that way here. Usually we were fooling around for five minutes on a drive before we were in position to score. With this offense we can score so quickly if anyone makes a mistake in the defensive secondary.

“We know Hayward is great against the run, but they’re untested against a good passing team.”

Mathematically speaking: CSUN’s Chris Parker ranks second in the WFC in total offense with 842 yards in three games. Far out in front is Portland State’s Terry Summerfield, who has piled up 1,327 yards in four games.

CSUN wide receivers Kenny Garrett (17 receptions for 230 yards) and Richard Brown (14 catches for 172 yards) rank third and eighth in the WFC. Cornerback Simon Goss of the Matadors leads the conference in interceptions with three for 61 return yards.

On the darker side of the numbers game, the Matadors’ defense is sinking deeper into the WFC standings. Overall, CSUN is ranked fifth in the seven-team conference, with the pass defense the main culprit. Opponents have piled up 966 yards in three games, putting CSUN dead last in that category.

Making a slow recovery: CSUN has been on the field for 16 fumbles this season. It has recovered just three. The Matadors have lost six of nine fumbles and have yet to recover one of seven fumbles.

Western New Mexico is making a vacation of its trip to Cal Lutheran for Saturday’s game. The Mustangs, whose home is Silver City, N.M., arrived Tuesday at the Vagabond Motel in Oxnard and wall depart for home Sunday.

“They are from small town, USA,” Cal Lutheran Coach Jim Shoup said. “They’d like nothing more than to travel to Southern California and beat us.”

The trip will be a homecoming for two Mustangs. Wide receiver Mike Babich is a Pierce transfer and defensive back Harlen Austin is from Granada Hills.

After losing its first two games, Western New Mexico has beaten Western (Colo.) State and the Colorado School of Mines, whose players’ helmets, incidentally, do not have lights. The Mustangs were 7-2-1 last season and 7-0-1 in the NAIA Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference, but because they were on probation for recruiting violations, the Mustangs were denied the conference title.

An injury-riddled Cal Lutheran defense is hoping to patch itself together before beginning its first Western Football Conference campaign in two weeks.

Two-year starters Chris Hutcherson and Earl Bentancourt are missed most. Tackle Lorenzo Martinez, who played sparingly the past two games after suffering a knee injury, will start Saturday.

Hutcherson, a hard-hitting cornerback, is out for the season with a knee injury. Bentancourt, who plays “kingbacker,” the Cal Lutheran version of a rover, has missed the past two games and is not expected to play Saturday when Western New Mexico (2-2) visits Mount Clef Stadium.

“Bentancourt may suit up only because we could use his presence,” Cal Lutheran Coach Bob Shoup said. “He probably won’t play. Hutcherson (a senior) has applied for redshirt status.”

Taking up the slack on defense have been back Todd Leavens and linebacker Chris Heintz. Both seniors and returning starters, Heintz leads the team with 35 tackles and Leavens has 23 tackles in addition to an interception and 72 yards on three punt returns.

“Todd and Chris have emerged as defensive leaders,” Shoup said. “They are able to match up against our better opponents.”