Washington Takes a Difficult Loss, James Takes the Heat

The loss was undoubtedly tough enough for Don James to bear without the Washington coach being questioned about his strategy.

His team had just lost to USC, 24-16, Saturday at the Coliseum, and with two conference losses, the Huskies are virtually eliminated from the Rose Bowl race.

James was tight-lipped and terse in the Washington locker room as reporters closed in on him.

They wanted to know why James opted for a two-point conversion try with Washington trailing, 17-16, and 8:44 remaining to play.

Quarterback Cary Conklin’s pass sailed over the outstretched arms of split end Mario Bailey, enabling USC to retain the lead.

The Trojans then clinched the victory by driving 69 yards to a touchdown. On the advance, James didn’t call a timeout to, perhaps, halt the momentum of the drive.

Said James, on the two-point conversion: “There was never any question about it. The way our offense was going, I thought we might not get down there (into scoring territory) again.

“Also, if we made it, it would have put pressure on the USC offense.”

As for not calling a timeout on USC’s final touchdown drive, James said: “If I thought we could have stopped them, I would have called a timeout.

“It didn’t make a helluva lot of difference. I considered it every play, but every time we were going to use one (a timeout), USC moved the ball and picked up a first down.”

Although reporters continually questioned James about not calling a timeout when he had three at his disposal, the two-point conversion play was more critical.

Last year here, the Huskies lost, 28-27, in the final minutes when they failed to complete a pass for a two-point conversion.

The two-point conversion adds suspense and drama to the college game--the pros don’t have it--but it can mean defeat if it fails. James knows all about that.

Conklin said the pass play that was called Saturday was similar to the one that failed here last year.

He didn’t question the call, saying, “If we got it, it would have have given us a big lift and put a lot of pressure on them.”

Last year, he threw a pass in the flat intended for Vince Weathersby that was just beyond the tailback’s reach.

As for his pass to Bailey, Conklin said: “He ran a flatter route than I anticipated. I just threw the ball too far for him to stretch.”

The two-point pass failures were to the same side of the field, the northwest corner of USC’s end zone.

James also reasoned that a tie wouldn’t help him down the line considering that a tie counts as a half-game won and a half-game lost in the Pacific 10 Conference.

“We thought we had to give USC a defeat to even up this league,” James said. “They’re sitting in a pretty good spot now.”

The Trojans, who play only seven conference games while some other schools play eight, are 2-0 in the Pac-10 and 4-1 overall. Washington is 0-2 and 2-3.

It was a disturbing loss for James and his Huskies. However, Beno Bryant, a reserve Washington tailback, had more on his mind than just a game.

While watching television Friday night in his hotel room, he learned that his best friend, Kevin Copeland, had died.

Copeland, a 17-year-old football player for Dorsey High School, collapsed on the field in a game against San Pedro and later died from cardiac arrest.

Bryant and Copeland were teammates last year at Dorsey, and the Washington player said they had been good friends since the second or third grade.

“I looked forward to seeing him while I was here,” said the 18-year-old Bryant, who is used by Washington as a kickoff return specialist. “I just talked to him on the phone a few nights ago.”

Although Bryant was devastated by his friend’s death, he said there was never any doubt that he would play against USC.

“I wanted to play for him,” he said. “I think that’s what he would have wanted.”

There was a time when the James-coached Huskies had a series edge over the Trojans. But USC has been in command recently, winning four straight and five of the past six games.

“We’re just playing for our pride now,” said Washington linebacker Chico Fraley, adding that his team just doesn’t seem to get any lucky bounces at the Coliseum.

James was asked to compare Colorado, which beat Washington, 45-28, to USC.

“USC has a better defense; it is one of the best in the country,” James said. He added, however, that he would give the edge to Colorado on offense.

James was reminded that the Huskies went to the Rose Bowl in the 1981 season with two conference losses.

That fact didn’t brighten his day, especially since he pointed out that USC has yet to lose a conference game.