Tight Race Expected for WFC Title

Terry Malley awoke Sunday morning happy with himself and his football team.

The previous day his Santa Clara team had won a football game at Cal State Hayward, something it hadn’t done since 1979.

“I was in a great mood,” Malley said, “until I picked up the newspaper.”

There he learned that:

Cal State Northridge had defeated Idaho State, a Division I-AA team, 34-23.

Cal State Sacramento had defeated UC Davis, a perennial playoff contender, 31-28.

Cal Poly San Luis Obispo had defeated highly regarded Angelo State (Tex.), 15-8.

Portland State, playing with an injured quarterback and minus three defensive starters, had played seventh-ranked Texas A&I; close, losing 29-22.

Southern Utah State had gained 505 yards in losing, 49-30, to Weber State, another Division I-AA team.

Even Cal Lutheran, a team usually found near the bottom of the WFC standings, had played well in a loss to undefeated St. Mary’s.

“I wanted to go back to bed and think about next year,” Malley said.

Northridge (4-0) is ranked fifth in the NCAA Division II poll and Sacramento (3-0) is ranked 10th, yet neither team is favored by conference coaches to win the WFC championship.

That distinction goes to unranked Portland State, which won the title last season, advanced to the national championship game and finished with an 11-2-1 record.

The Vikings are 1-2-1, but that record is deceiving. The losses were to Texas A&I; and Idaho, a Division I-AA team. The tie was against Eastern Washington, another Division I-AA team.

Portland State’s only game against a Division II team was its WFC opener against San Luis Obispo two weeks ago. The Vikings won, 21-3.

“Their schedule is just horrendous,” Northridge Coach Bob Burt said of Portland State. “The first time they play a normal Division II team, it’s not even close.”

Still, Burt says several teams should give the Vikings a run in their effort to become the first team to repeat as WFC champions.

He counts Northridge among them.

“I don’t think anyone in the conference is better than us,” Burt said. “I also think there isn’t a team that can’t beat us on a given Saturday.”

Most of the WFC begins conference action tonight. Northridge opens by playing host to San Luis Obispo, 1-2 overall, 0-1 in WFC games. Sacramento will travel to Southern Utah State (1-3) in the WFC opener for both teams. Portland (1-0 in the WFC) plays host to Santa Clara.

Cal Lutheran (2-1) plays a nonconference home game against UC Santa Barbara.

Coaches say that the WFC has grown stronger in each of its seven years of existence.

“Every year the winner has attained a level that it’s up to the other teams to match,” Burt said. “It’s like what has happened in the Pac-10. Teams know if they’re going to compete with UCLA and USC they’d better make a commitment to football.”

The conference is so balanced, coaches say, that the conference champion might be decided by injuries or the order of a team’s schedule.

“In Division II it’s usually who stays healthy,” Sacramento’s Bob Mattos said. “We all have a handful of great players. If those guys stay healthy, you have a good shot. If they don’t, you’re in trouble.”

Northridge, for example, will play the next two weeks without tailback Lance Harper, who has gained 430 all-purpose yards in four games. He suffered a bruised right knee in the second half against Idaho State.

Timing also could play a part in the conference race.

“Last year we happened to hit our stride in league play,” Coach Pokey Allen of Portland State said. “For a four- or five-week period we played about as well as any team has ever played here.”

Of the teams generally considered to be the top four in the WFC--Portland, Northridge, Sacramento and San Luis Obispo--Northridge has the most accommodating schedule. The Matadors are the only team among the four to play the other three at home.

A loss to Southern Utah, Santa Clara or Cal Lutheran by one of the top four also could be a determining factor.

“You try and be consistent,” Coach Bob Shoup of Cal Lutheran said. “If the other teams let down, you have a chance to win. In this conference, chances are if you don’t play your best, you’re going to lose no matter who you are.”