THE COLLEGES : SCIAC Lead at Stake in Rivalry’s 91st Game

There is USC vs. UCLA, Cal vs. Stanford and even St. Mary’s vs. Santa Clara. An argument could be made for any of these as to which is the best, or perhaps the most-storied, college-football rivalry on the West Coast.

However, none can match Occidental vs. Pomona-Pitzer for sheer longevity.

Since 1895, when Occidental won, 16-0, the teams have met 90 times officially. Occidental holds a 46-41 advantage in the series; there were three ties and neither team claims victory for games played from 1896 through ’99 because records from those meetings apparently have been misplaced.

The teams have met annually for 95 years with the exception of the 1943 and ’44 seasons when the series was interrupted by World War II.

To the winner of the game goes a drum, which, in recent seasons, has not been enough to keep the rivalry up-tempo. Since 1979, Occidental has beaten Pomona-Pitzer as though it was the drum.

“To be honest, (the rivalry) hasn’t been big for our kids because Pomona hasn’t been all that good,” said Dale Widolff, Occidental’s coach.

Expect that to change tonight at Occidental when the teams meet for the 91st time. In this meeting, first place in the Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference will be at stake.

Pomona-Pitzer has won its two SCIAC games and is 3-1 overall. Occidental is 3-2 and is also 2-0 in conference games.

The name game: And you thought the California Raisin Bowl was a strange name for a football game?

Today in Cedar City, Utah, Southern Utah State will play host to St. Mary’s in “Doe Bowl ’90.” The game carries the name because it coincides with the opening weekend of deer hunting season.

Double trouble: Until Anthony Nicholson gained 136 yards against Southern Utah State last week, no Northridge fullback had gained 100 yards since Albert Fann became starting tailback early in the 1987 season.

Fann also had 136 yards against Southern Utah State, giving the Matadors two running backs in triple digits for the first time since Sept. 24, 1988, when Fann gained 166 yards and reserve tailback Lance Harper had 107 against Idaho State.

Before Nicholson’s outburst, Cedric Johnson held the distinction as CSUN’s top rushing fullback in the Fann era. He had 83 yards against Southern Utah State in the final game of the 1988 season.

Briefly: Moorpark’s chances of winning a mythical national junior college championship took a dive after the Raiders lost to Bakersfield, but Moorpark should still win the Northern Division of the Western State Conference and not drop another regular-season game this season. The same thing happened after a loss to Bakersfield last season. . . .

Northridge is last in the Western Football Conference in rushing (143 yards a game) and last in passing (138.3). You can’t say the Matadors aren’t consistent. . . .

Marty Fisher had a rather undistinguished high school career but was close friends with Kevin Burt, son of CSUN Coach Bob Burt, when the two played at Damien High. Therefore, it crossed my mind that Burt’s signing of Fisher to a scholarship two years ago was something of a family favor. Wrong. Fisher is big, tough, has a great arm and is mobile enough to scramble. . . .

Northridge is ranked 13th in the NCAA Division II football poll this week, so does that mean bad luck will strike the Matadors? Probably not. Barry Smith, CSUN’s sports information director, points out that Northridge has had good luck with No. 13s so far this season. In CSUN’s 13th meeting with both Portland State and UC Davis, the Matadors won and ended losing streaks. CSUN had dropped three consecutive decisions to Portland and eight in a row against Davis. . . .

Abe Valdez knows how to pick a winner. A year ago, he was the top cross-country runner for Camarillo, the nation’s No. 1-ranked high school cross-country team. Now he’s the No. 3 man for Central Arizona, the top-ranked junior college team in the nation. . . .

Abo Velasco, a senior from Burbank High, needs one field goal to tie Jose Ballina’s Northridge record of 31 career field goals. Velasco made a 50-yard attempt last week at Southern Utah State, the longest of his collegiate career. . . .

Chris Mims, who played football at Pierce College in 1988, made his first major-college start for Tennessee last week. The 6-6, 233-pound defensive end made two tackles and broke up two passes as the third-ranked Volunteers routed previously unbeaten Florida, 45-3. . . .

Cal Lutheran ended a five-game losing slide last week and started what should be a three-game winning streak. Expect the Kingsmen to defeat La Verne today and Whittier next week. . . .

Portland State’s Darren Del’Andrae, a Calabasas High product, is yet another example of a quarterback receiving too much credit when the team wins and too much blame when it loses. . . .

Lance Martin, a freshman from Thousand Oaks High, started the football season as a redshirt at Northern Arizona. Now he is a starting linebacker for the Lumberjacks. . . .

Northridge introduced its men’s basketball team to the media on Friday. I’m still wondering who will guard Harold Miner. . . .

Lost and found: Steve Miller, Antelope Valley College’s tailback, gained six yards but lost a record when school officials reviewed statistics from last week’s game against East Los Angeles.

Miller was credited with six extra rushing yards, giving him 223, but he lost a share of the school record for longest run from scrimmage when a check into the record books showed that Bob Keys had a 99-yard run in 1956. Miller’s 95-yard run against the Huskies equaled the record listed in the game program.

Hit man: Sam Edwards had nine interceptions last season and was selected Western State Conference Southern Division defensive player of the year. This season, the Valley College defensive back has none.

Yet Chuck Ferrero, Valley’s coach, says “he’s playing better now than he ever has.” Opponents are throwing away from Edwards and Valley has moved him closer to the line of scrimmage to help against the run.

The result: Less interceptions but more tackles.

Edwards was credited with 14 unassisted tackles and 15 assisted tackles in a 37-27 loss to Glendale on Oct. 6. He also returned a fumble 43 yards for a touchdown.