Tolliver’s Act Over Heads of Players, Fans : Football: Backup QB John Friesz shines in relief, but Raiders beat Chargers, 17-7.

The Raiders were in town, and the hometown fans spent much of the evening booing . . . their own team.

In a break from tradition, the Raiders were not the most hated folks in San Diego Jack Murphy Stadium Friday night.

The Raiders (3-2) completed their dress rehearsal for the next week’s regular-season opener in Houston with a 17-7 exhibition victory and left Charger fans behind to boo quarterback Billy Joe Tolliver and chant for backup John Friesz.

“I don’t think there is any question what happened out there,” Charger Coach Dan Henning said. “We’ll give John a chance to keep that spark going. He completed passes, and Billy didn’t.”

Friesz didn’t let his success get to him. “I don’t know (about starting),” he said. “It’s really up to the coaches. Hopefully, with the things I have showed them, they will see my improvement.”

Quarterback Jay Schroeder ignited a Raider offense that had been lethargic through much of the exhibition season with a first-quarter 10-yard touchdown pass to running back Marcus Allen and a 19-yard scoring strike to Ethan Horton for a 14-0 halftime lead.

Schroeder, who was 10 of 20 for 130 yards, gave way to Vince Evans after three quarters of play with his team ahead, 17-0. Before leaving, however, he completed a 46-yard pass to Tim Brown to the Chargers’ three-yard line to set up Jeff Jaeger’s 19-yard field goal.

The Chargers (1-3) meanwhile, were coming off an embarrassing showing against the Rams and a lackluster effort against the 49ers. Three days of practice did nothing to sharpen their act.

On their first possession, running back Rod Bernstine was dropped for a four-yard loss by Raider linebacker Thomas Benson. On second down, tight end Arthur Cox was penalized for a false start. After a two-yard gain by Bernstine, running back Ronnie Harmon collided with Tolliver on the handoff exchange and Harmon was knocked down for a one-yard loss.

And the booing began.

The Chargers’ second possession ended with a pair of Tolliver overthrows that would have evaded Manute Bol.

And the booing continued.

The Raiders’ defense kept the pressure on Tolliver throughout the game, and cornerback Lionel Washington became prime benefactor with a second-quarter interception.

Tolliver was sent scrambling in the third quarter, and after being hit, his fumble was recovered by linebacker Brian Jones.

“It was a rough night to say the least,” Tolliver said. “You either get the job done or you don’t. And I didn’t.”

Backup quarterback John Friesz relieved Tolliver and found wide receiver Anthony Miller for a 34-yard touchdown with 14:07 to play. Friesz put in his bid to become the team’s opening-day starter in Pittsburgh by completing his first 11 passes for 131 yards.

Friesz finished 17 of 19 for 210 yards and had the hometown fans standing in appreciation at game’s end after driving the Chargers to the Raiders’ 7. Evans, meanwhile, came on to complete 1 of 6 for 16 yards.

“I have tried each game to be consistent,” Friesz said. “It’s what it takes to be successful. It feels good to have a good showing, but I still have to continue to work hard.”

The Raiders embarrassed the Chargers in last year’s exhibition finale, 34-7, and were well on their way to duplicating the feat. They found little resistance in the NFL’s fifth-ranked defense.

Allen ran nine times in the first quarter for 52 yards, including an 18-yard burst on the Raiders’ first scoring drive. Allen took the ball into the end zone after Schroeder had run away from trouble and dumped the ball to the running back.

Roger Craig went to work on the Raiders’ second-quarter scoring drive and gained 26 yards on five carries. He gained 12 yards on a push up the middle, had his face mask yanked by Charger linebacker Henry Rolling, and the Raiders received an additional 15 yards via the penalty to the Charger 17-yard line.

After linebacker Junior Seau pulled Craig down for a two-yard loss, Schroeder dropped a well-thrown floater into the arms of Horton, who had beaten Rolling.

The Raiders ran 6:07 off the clock in the third quarter, moving from their 15 to the Charger three-yard line. Fullback Steve Smith’s goal-line plunge was stuffed by the Chargers’ defense on first down, and Allen’s leap netted one yard.

Schroeder rolled right on third down, but his pass attempt to Allen was swatted down by former Rams’ linebacker Mike Wilcher, who was claimed off waivers this week.

The Chargers tried to rally behind Friesz but ran out of downs at the Raider 41 and then got as far as the seven before time ran out.

“We needed a spark in there and it came in two areas,” Henning said. “One came from our defense and the other came from Friesz. We had some improvement, but we’re still hurting.”

Charger Notes

The Raiders released cornerback Tahaun Lewis before the game and activated recently signed defensive lineman Scott Davis. . . . Raider defensive back Elvis Patterson got into a shoving and jersey-holding contest with former Charger teammate linebacker Gary Plummer.