The Colleges : Homecoming Week Nothing Special for CS Northridge’s Burt

Bob Burt, Cal State Northridge’s football coach, spent six years as defensive coordinator for Coach Gene Murphy at Cal State Fullerton.

Today, they will be on opposite sides of the field for the first time.

But if Burt feels any extra butterflies as game time approaches, he’s not confessing. He talks about facing his former team in a friendly rather than competitive tone.

“I talked to Murph twice this week already,” Burt said. “We’ll probably stand out at midfield before the game and talk about everything but football. This game is not about me beating him or him beating me. It’s a matter of the players going out and doing what they’re supposed to do.

“I’m sure it will be deja vu for both of us. I have a lot of friends down there. That part will be interesting. I’ve had a lot of phone calls already. But after it’s over, we’ll just shake hands and go on our separate ways.”

Add homecoming: Eight players from Burt’s tenure at Fullerton remain with the Titans, including two starters he recruited--center Mark Hauser and linebacker Chris Wright. The others are fullback Tim Byrnes, safety Mike Schaffel, tight end Bill Brennan, safety Todd Prukop and wide receivers Tony Dill and Mark Hill.

Net return: Nancy Nichols, a freshman from Cleveland High, has made quite an impression on Walt Ker, coach of the Northridge volleyball team.

When practice started three weeks ago, Nichols was battling to make the final roster. Then, once it became clear she belonged, a year as a redshirt appeared to be the best possibility.

How quickly things change.

Nichols is now battling to crack the starting lineup.

“It’s a real compliment to her that we’re even thinking about it, since she’s a freshman,” Ker said. “It’s a tribute to her athletic ability. Her game still needs some polish, but she’s really come around.”

Nichols may be tried as a starting middle blocker during a tournament at UC Davis this weekend. Marianne Dixon, a second-team All-American in the middle last season, might be moved to a left-side hitting position to make room for Nichols.

Local connection: Brad Gossen, a junior from Westlake High, is off to a quick start for Washington State. In his first collegiate start a week ago, Gossen threw for 288 yards and three touchdowns to win Pacific 10 Conference Offensive Player of the Week honors.

And Thursday, against BYU, he passed for 317 yards and two more touchdowns as WSU scored a 46-41 upset in Provo, Utah.

Gossen, who replaced Timm Rosenbach, the Pac-10’s leading quarterback last year, completed scoring passes of 66 yards to Steve Broussard and 64 yards to Tim Stallworth against BYU as Washington State ran its record to 2-0.

Stallworth, a senior from Montclair Prep, caught six passes for 121 yards.

Schedule change: Northridge will open its cross-country season at the Fresno Invitational on Sept. 16.

The Matadors were scheduled to start the season at the UCLA Invitational on Sunday, but the meet was canceled because of construction on the Westwood campus.

Darcy Arreola, an eight-time Division II All-American in cross-country and track, is expected to start her season two weeks after her teammates, in the Riverside Invitational.

Arreola’s late start stems from two factors: She took two weeks off at the end of her track season--which didn’t conclude until Aug. 6--and she had her wisdom teeth pulled last week, which caused her to miss five days of training.

“She’ll be fine,” Northridge cross-country Coach Don Strametz said. “We just don’t want her coming back too quickly.”

You gotta believe: It’s only the opener, but Occidental’s football game tonight against Menlo College has playoff ramifications.

In fact, every game on Occidental’s schedule is a must-win game if the Tigers hope to return to the National Collegiate Athletic Assn. Division III playoffs for the first time since 1985.

Last season, Occidental’s only loss was a season-opening defeat to Azusa Pacific, and the Tigers wound up being overlooked by the playoff selection committee in November.

“Small-college football--not just Division III, but Division II and NAIA--is unique in that there’s pressure every game,” Occidental Coach Dale Widolff said.

Widolff, in his eighth season at Occidental, said this team has many of the characteristics of other Tiger playoff teams.

“They’re pretty committed to wanting to return to the playoffs,” Widolff said. “I think the last couple years, the players didn’t really believe they could. But then, this team is probably better, physically, than those teams.”

Slipped away: Dennis Gossard, the coach of the Pasadena City College football team, is looking forward to this afternoon’s opener against Glendale at Glendale High.

The way Gossard sees it, his team bobbled away its chances when the teams met last season.

And who can blame him?

Pasadena fumbled 10 times during a 24-14 loss.

“We led the world, not just college football, in fumbles that game,” Gossard said. “But playing Glendale is great because they know our kids and we know theirs. I think it will be another great game--if we can hold onto the football.”

Around the world series: Coach Bill Kernen was not the only member of the Northridge baseball team experiencing jet lag during the summer.

While Kernen vacationed for three weeks in Europe, John Bushart and Kyle Washington were members of a team that toured the Soviet Union. Sophomore third baseman Denny Vigo spent two weeks in Paris with a U. S. team that played an eight-game series against the French national team.

“I would love for all of our players to travel on those teams for the cultural experiences and the learning,” Kernen said. “That’s just as important as their education in the classroom.

“The baseball is really pretty secondary. It’s part of a learning process that gives you a whole different perspective on life.”

Ballplayers wanted: An open tryout for the Northridge baseball team will be held Sept. 16, at Matador Field.

“I want to see who is here,” Kernen said. “Very seldom do you find a top-level contributor, but every once in a while there turns out to be a guy who can make a contribution.”

Goal oriented: Classes began at Cal Lutheran on Wednesday, but one group of students will feel like they have already taken a final this weekend. On Sunday, the Cal Lutheran men’s soccer team opens its season with a match at UC Santa Barbara against a team Kingsmen Coach George Kuntz calls “probably the toughest opponent in the last three years.”

Santa Barbara is a National Collegiate Athletic Assn. Division I program, and Kuntz sees the game as a good barometer of his team’s progress.

“UCSB always has a good team,” said Kuntz, who is in his second year as the Kingsmen’s coach. “That’s a big game. It’s an important game to show us where we’re at.”

Goalie David Selzwedel, a second-team NAIA All-American, leads CLU, which finished 6-7-3 last year. Junior forward Larry Gidley is the top returning scorer, and Kenny Epperson, a senior sweeper-defender, was a second-team NAIA District III pick.

The 1988 team had only three seniors, but the Kingsmen are nonetheless a young squad. Kuntz said at least one freshman will start.

“We feel as far as talent goes this team is one of the better ones,” Kuntz said. “The future is looking bright. We’ve brought in some young players we’re really happy with.”

Gary Klein and staff writers Mike Hiserman, John Ortega and Brendan Healey contributed to this notebook.