Pass It On

After the last full practice before his first big start, Cal State Northridge quarterback Josh Fiske strolled off the field, personifying what he calls the three Cs:

Calm, cool and collected.

That’s how Jeff Rio, Fiske’s former youth league and high school coach, used to tell Fiske to behave during games.

“He was always an inspiration to me,” Fiske said of Rio, who died in a car accident last year. “I say a little prayer to him before every game. I know he’ll be looking over me.”

Fiske will be easy to spot tonight. He’ll be the one dropping back to pass or handing off to a running back when the Matadors (2-2) play their Big Sky Conference opener at Portland State (0-4, 0-2 in conference play).

It’s uncharted terrain for Fiske, a 6-foot-3, strong-arm sophomore who threw one pass for the Matadors before replacing senior Aaron Flowers in a game against Azusa Pacific on Sept. 20.

Flowers, who is among the top quarterbacks in Division I-AA and owner of several Northridge passing records, broke a bone in his right leg in the game and is not expected back for two or three more weeks.

The Matadors are asking Fiske to keep the team’s run-and-shoot scheme in high gear--or at least keep it from conking out--until Flowers returns.

“Having Aaron has been real comfortable for me,” Coach Jim Fenwick said. “I’m cautiously optimistic on how [Fiske] is going to do.”

Not exactly an overwhelming endorsement, but a realistic appraisal. Flowers knows the offense like he invented it.

Fiske hails from Santa Ynez High, where he passed for 4,660 yards in a run-oriented attack.

Fiske played well against Azusa Pacific, Northridge’s last game because of a bye last week, completing seven of 11 passes for 123 yards and one touchdown. But the Cougars are an NAIA program and Portland State, despite a 3-12 record since joining the Big Sky in 1996, presents a much different challenge.

The Vikings, desperate to pull out of the quicksand, might try to test Fiske with blitzes and other defensive maneuvers. Fenwick believes the Matadors are ready to counter whatever Portland State sends their way.

“I think we can regulate a lot of that stuff,” Fenwick said. “That’s why we go on motion and things like that. We should be able to recognize [blitzes] and try to get into a better play.”

Fiske has spent the past two weeks trying to learn those plays. It has been a load to assimilate, to digest over a few practices and film sessions.

He says he’s ready.

“I feel I’ve prepared myself the best I can,” Fiske said. “The bye week helped me out a lot. . . . Being out there with the offense and running it was more difficult than I thought.”

Fiske came close to never playing with the Matadors, never mind starting a game. He considered transferring when Dave Baldwin left Northridge in December to become coach at San Jose State. But he changed his mind after talking with Fenwick.

“I just thought I’d stick it out and see if I could get the second string [job],” Fiske said. “I’m pleased where I am now. I never thought my opportunity would come this early. . . . What happened to Aaron is too bad, but I’m excited.”

Flowers has joked that Northridge could have a quarterback controversy when he returns if Fiske shines in the next few games.

Fiske is not looking past the present.

“If the time comes and coach has to make a decision like that, he’ll make the right decision,” Fiske said. “It’s been a dream of mine to play college ball. . . . I’ve been waiting for it since I was 8 years old.”

Fiske said his nervousness decreased throughout the week and he has tried to focus on his capabilities and not about taking over for an All-American quarterback.

“I’m thinking about what Josh Fiske can do,” he said.

And, surely tonight, about a friend’s advice.

(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX / INFOGRAPHIC)

Northridge (2-2, 0-0) at Portland State (0-4, 0-2)

When: Tonight, 6:05

Where: Civic Stadium

Fast fact: Portland State is 1-9 in two Big Sky Conference seasons.