CAL STATE FULLERTON NOTEBOOK : Titan Football Short on Players

Cal State Fullerton has dubbed its May 5 intra-squad football scrimmage the May Bowl, but a more appropriate name might be the Maybe Bowl--as in maybe they’ll have it if there’s enough players.

The Titans began spring practice Monday with 44 players, 20-25 fewer than Coach Gene Murphy usually has in the spring. Twenty-three seniors, including 16 starters, from last season’s 6-4-1 team are gone, leaving Murphy with a major rebuilding job.

And hardly the tools to start.

“If we have any injuries, it might be sayonara for that game,” Murphy said. “We’re not going to do a lot of hitting this spring. We’re just going to teach them the system.”

Knowledge of the system, though, won’t give the Titans any more game experience. As Murphy says, “It’s one thing to go out and play against yourself; it’s another to line up against another team.”

Especially when the other team is Auburn or Mississippi State, which both loom on Fullerton’s September schedule. The Titans open the 1990 season at home against Sonoma State, then travel to Auburn, Mississippi State and Akron.

“To say this season will be a challenge is the understatement of the year,” Murphy said. “I hope we come out of the first four weeks as physically capable as possible. If we’re emotionally inept after those four weeks, we’re going to have some problems. It will be interesting to see how we react to that adversity.”

Hard-hat zone: There will be some serious construction going on at Fullerton this month, but we’re not talking about the Titan Sports Complex. Murphy is attempting to build a team from the raw materials he has in front of him.

The offense returns only two starters, wide receiver J.J. Celestine and guard Shannon Illingworth. Among the departed are quarterback Dan Speltz, who threw for 2,671 of the team’s 2,695 passing yards, and running back Mike Pringle, who gained 1,727 of Fullerton’s 1,793 rushing yards.

Six of the top seven receivers from last season are gone, including record-setter Rocky Palamara, who caught 69 passes for 1,024 yards and 10 touchdowns.

Four defensive starters--cornerbacks Terry Tramble and Nuygen Pendleton, tackle Dave Dorf and end Clarence Siler--return, but the Titans lost inside linebacker Russ Oleyer, who set a school record with 129 tackles last season.

“I’ve never lost this many starters in one year,” Murphy said.

Expected to fill some of the voids are senior quarterback Paul Schulte, who appeared in only three games last season, completing two of three passes for 24 yards, and senior running back Deon Thomas, who rushed for 101 yards in 24 carries in 1989. Schulte is expected to be challenged by redshirt freshman Terry Payne.

Potential starting offensive linemen are Dave Collins, Bill Huston, Chris McFadden, Tim Drevno and John Cotti. Potential defensive starters are linemen Gary Thornton and J.C. Farrow, linebackers Chad Lindsay and Teddy McMillan, and defensive backs Mike Jones, Bob Baiz and Darrell Bruce.

Murphy won’t have to worry about is the kicking game. Returning starter Phil Nevin will miss spring drills because he’s playing on the Titans’ baseball team, but he’ll be back this summer.

“This year reminds me a lot of 1980 when I first came here,” Murphy said. “Except I know all the coaches’ and players’ names this year.”

Some relief: Fullerton’s financially strapped athletic program got some good news this week: a windfall of about $73,400, thanks mainly to Nevada Las Vegas’ success in the NCAA basketball tournament.

With UNLV winning the national title Monday night, UC Santa Barbara reaching the second round and New Mexico State making the tournament, the Big West Conference will earn an estimated $2.3 million, according to the NCAA.

Under the Big West’s revenue-sharing plan, UNLV will pocket about $1 million, Santa Barbara will make about $435,400, and New Mexico State will make about $244,400. The other seven schools each will make about $73,400, and the conference will receive $90,000.

Fullerton Athletic Director Ed Carroll said the school had budgeted $14,000 for NCAA basketball tournament revenue, meaning Fullerton will have an extra $59,400 to play with.

Carroll said the school will use the money to help offset shortfalls in this year’s budget.

“I’ve been rooting for UNLV all the way through,” Carroll said. “This was definitely needed. It means a lot to us, because this late in the fiscal year it’s difficult to reduce expenses. We were looking at the possibility of having to borrow more money, but we shouldn’t have to do that.”

Titan Notes

Former Fullerton basketball player Cedric Ceballos will play in the Orlando All-Star game, a series involving many of the nation’s top college players, April 12-15 in Florida. The Orlando event is one of three post-season tournaments played for the benefit of NBA and European League scouts, who use the games to rate potential professional players. . . . The Fullerton men’s and women’s gymnastic teams will be competing in the West Regionals on Saturday, the men at the University of Oklahoma and the women at UCLA. The Titan men’s team, which is ranked fourth in the nation, will have to finish among the top four to qualify for the NCAA nationals, April 19-21 at Houston. If the Titan women, ranked 10th in the nation, finish among the top four teams, they’ll advance to the NCAA nationals, April 20-21 at Oregon State.