Aztecs Hoping to Duck the Pac-10 Jinx Tonight

Recent Rose Bowl history proves that playing Pacific 10 Conference teams confounds even the best of the Big Ten Conference.

Judging from the frustrations of Denny Stolz in his first 3 seasons at San Diego State, the same might be said for former Big Ten coaches.

Stolz did bring the Aztecs their first Western Athletic Conference football title, but he might also have brought the jinx with him after three years of coaching at Michigan State. The Aztecs have not won in 7 tries against Pac-10 teams since Stolz took over in 1986.

Stolz and the Aztecs (1-2) will get another chance tonight at 7 when they play No. 20 Oregon (3-0) at San Diego Jack Murphy Stadium.

It will be SDSU’s third and final game against a Pac-10 team this season, the Aztecs having sandwiched losses at No. 2 UCLA (59-6) and Stanford (31-10) around a WAC victory against Air Force (39-36).

“The Pac-10 is probably the best football conference in the nation this year, and Oregon certainly is part of that reputation,” Stolz said. “We thought we played a very good Stanford team, and they held USC to a relatively close game, and USC takes Oklahoma apart, and UCLA did a number on Nebraska. It’s tough that we decided to schedule them all this year.

“We hit them at about the best they’ve been. This is one of the best Oregon teams, and this very well may be the best UCLA team.

“Other than that, our timing has been wonderful.”

Stolz could not help but laugh about his team’s predicament. He has been working to integrate a new quarterback (Brad Platt) into his offense and reshape a defense that was one of the worst in the country last season--all while playing some of the nation’s top teams.

“The underlying thing is it is tough to get knocked around and overcome the psychological problems of losing and get better,” Stolz said.

And while the Pac-10 has provided the Aztecs with some difficult early tests, it might not get any easier when they start the heart of their WAC schedule next week.

The Aztecs play host to No. 18 Wyoming next Saturday and Hawaii Oct. 15. Both are undefeated.

“I don’t know in my coaching career if I’ve been the underdog in my first four games,” Stolz said. “And we’ll probably be the underdog in the fifth game, too.”

Oregon enters tonight’s game having beaten Stanford, 7-3, in Eugene for its fifth consecutive victory over two seasons. It is Oregon’s longest winning streak since a string of 10 in 1963-64.

But the Ducks likely will be going for victory No. 6 without quarterback Bill Musgrave.

Musgrave sprained his ankle in the last series against Stanford and although he made the trip to San Diego, junior Pete Nelson is listed as his replacement.

It would be the second start for Nelson, who last season directed a 31-17 victory at Washington State in place of an injured Musgrave. He is described by Oregon Coach Rich Brooks as having a better arm than Musgrave, but he’s not quite as fast. Musgrave threw three touchdown passes against the Aztecs in a 25-20 victory last season.

Nelson has played in 13 games over three seasons and has a career completion rate of 56.2% (54 of 96 for 738 yards). But he has thrown 7 interceptions and only 2 touchdowns passes. He also has been slowed by back and ankle problems.

The running game is led by junior tailback Derek Loville, who is averaging 127 yards per game.

“I don’t know about their quarterback situation, but it won’t make much difference,” Stolz said. “They run a power offense. They are a more run-oriented team. They are not going to change their game plan regardless of what their quarterback situation is.”

It is the Oregon defense that has Stolz especially concerned. The Ducks are allowing an average of 265.7 yards and forcing an average of 3 turnovers per game.

“They are a very, very good defensive team,” Stolz said, “and they play like they know they are good.”

Two defensive starters are San Diego natives--Matt Brock, a senior end from University City High School, and Thom Kaumeyer, a senior free safety from Palomar College and San Dieguito High School.

That helps illustrate one reason Stolz why would like to beat Oregon and the other Pac-10 schools.

The Aztecs frequently compete against the Pac-10 for some of San Diego County’s best players. There is nothing like a victory to convince impressionable minds.

“Darn right it makes a difference (in recruiting), if we can beat them,” Stolz said.

After winning 5 of its first 9 games against Pac-10 schools, SDSU has lost its past 8, starting with the first of 2 losses to Oregon--49-37 in 1985. SDSU has not beaten a Pac-10 school since a Doug Scovil-coached team defeated Stanford, 48-22, in the fourth game of 1985.

Even in their WAC champion season of 1986, the Aztecs lost to UCLA (45-14) and Stanford (17-10).