FULLERTON NOTEBOOK : Finding a Lining of Silver

The news out of Georgia, where the Cal State Fullerton football team suffered a 56-0 thrashing at the hands of the 19th-ranked Bulldogs Saturday, wasn’t all bad.

As Titan Coach Gene Murphy duly noted upon returning from Athens, “I had a nice room. . . . It was great to see 75,000 fans. . . . Our punt coverage was a positive because of great hang time. . . . We put the ball on the ground 13 times and got eight back, which is pretty good.”

More good news for Fullerton:

--After playing UCLA and Georgia in successive weeks, the Titans won’t have to play another nationally ranked team this season--unless, of course, New Mexico State (3-0) keeps winning and garners some sentimental votes.

--Fullerton is home for two consecutive games, against Sacramento State Saturday and Nevada Oct. 3. It’s the first time since 1989 and only the sixth time since Murphy arrived in 1980 that the Titans have had back-to-back home games.

--The Titans won’t have the burden of unrealistic expectations that accompanied them on their return trip from Georgia last season.

Georgia didn’t take Fullerton very seriously in 1991 and was nearly upset. The Titans trailed, 20-14, and had the ball on their 41-yard line with 3 minutes 30 seconds remaining. But a fourth-down play came up short, Georgia took over and scored with 32 seconds left for a 27-14 victory.

Playing Georgia close gave Fullerton followers--and, probably, many Titan players--the impression the Titans were pretty good last season. Murphy knew better, and six consecutive losses after the Georgia game bore that out.

So this season, the Titans get hammered at Georgia, but they’re probably not as bad--at least defensively--as the score indicates.

Georgia returned two fumbles for touchdowns, recovered another at the Titan 22 and scored a touchdown, and a good punt return to Fullerton’s 37 led to another touchdown.

“Everyone has such great expectations, but you don’t turn a program around in one year with all new people,” Murphy said. “Everyone was excited when we opened the stadium (a 28-7 victory over Cal State Northridge) and played OK at UCLA (37-14 loss), but I just don’t know about this team. I hope to God we’re better than we showed last week.”

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Theory of relativity: Georgia Coach Ray Goff spent much of last week drilling his players on the dangers of complacency.

But if Sacramento State Coach Bob Mattos’ perception of Fullerton is any indication, the Division II Hornets should be properly inspired for Saturday’s game.

Mattos on the Titans: “Turn up the dial, Hornets. They’re big. They’re fast, and they’re good. This is the most athletic team we will play on our entire schedule, without question. This is a tremendously improved Fullerton State team.”

Murphy’s response: “I don’t believe what is said in the press.”

Murphy is impressed with Sacramento State, though--the Hornets (2-0) are ranked 12th in Division II and rated first in the nation in total defense (87.0 yards per game), first in rushing defense (minus seven yards per game) and third in scoring defense (8.0 points per game). They’re also huge, averaging 281 pounds on the offensive line and 280 on the defensive line.

“This will be the biggest team I’ve faced as a coach,” Murphy said. “They’re NFL-sized. They’re humongous.”

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Future Titan: Chris Dade, a 6-foot point guard from Oceanside El Camino High School, said Monday he has orally committed to play basketball at Fullerton and will sign a letter of intent Nov. 9.

Dade averaged 17.9 points, six assists and five rebounds last season to lead El Camino to a 20-7 record and the semifinals of the San Diego Section Division II playoffs.

He attended Vista High School as a sophomore and was academically eligible to play basketball, but his father, Herman, held him off the team because Chris didn’t meet the family’s more stringent academic requirements. Dade transferred to El Camino in the middle of his sophomore year.

“It was hard, but I understood it and it turned out to be a good situation,” Dade said. “I started focusing more on school.”

Dade said he chose Fullerton because it has a strong business school, it’s close to home, and he likes the new coaching staff, which is led by Brad Holland. Washington, San Diego State, Montana and St. Mary’s were among the other schools recruiting Dade.

“I was going to sign late (next spring), but Fullerton changed my mind,” Dade said.

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Symbiotic striker: The Titan soccer team is off to a solid 4-2 start, and forward Eddie Soto, a transfer from Chapman University, has maintained a torrid scoring pace with six goals in six matches. While Fullerton has benefited from Soto, Soto has also benefited from the Titans.

“He’s a very good striker, but our team has stepped up significantly this year, and that has something to do with his success,” Titan Coach Al Mistri said. “This is not to take anything away from Eddie, but if you put him on the team we had last year he might have had some difficulty scoring.”

Mistri said teams have begun double-teaming Soto, but that works to the Titans’ advantage.

“He commands a defensive presence and that frees up other people,” Mistri said. “He’s frequently marked by two people, and that allows more freedom to other players, especially Ricky Rodriguez (who has a goal and two assists).”

Titan Notes

The Fullerton baseball team has been boosted by the addition of two prominent walk-on players, Jeremy Giambi and Scott Allen. Giambi, younger brother of former Cal State Long Beach standout and U.S. Olympic team member Jason Giambi, is an All-Southern Section outfielder/first baseman from West Covina South Hills High, and Allen is an All-Southern Section outfielder/second baseman from Long Beach Millikan High. . . . Shariff Metoyer, a point guard from Long Beach Poly High, has joined the Fullerton basketball team as a walk-on, and Coach Brad Holland said he’ll have a good chance to back up starter Aaron Sunderland this season. . . . Football Coach Gene Murphy did not name a most valuable offensive or defensive player from the Georgia game, but Noel Prefontaine, who had a 45.8-yard average in 10 punts, was named most valuable special teams player. . . . The Titans didn’t complete a pass in five attempts against Georgia, but Murphy said the staff called 18 pass plays. “They didn’t develop for one reason or another,” Murphy said. . . . Sacramento State, which plays Fullerton on Saturday, set Western Football Conference scoring records with 36 points in the third quarter and 50 points in the second half Saturday as it rallied to beat Abilene Christian, 57-9.