The Ones That Got Away

To college football recruiters, the Southland is like a sea full of fish. Coaches are the anglers, trawling through schools and reeling in prized catch after prized catch.

UCLA and USC have long laid claim to these waters. But in recent years, a combination of factors has enabled rivals to lure away many top players.

Oregon State is perhaps the most successful. Coached the last three years by Dennis Erickson--no novice fresh off the day boat--the Beavers have successfully stocked their roster with talent rejected by the Bruins and Trojans.

There are 38 players from the Southland on the Beaver roster, including 12 starters and the kicker. Nearly all say that given the opportunity they would have gone to UCLA or USC.

But they make do quite well in tiny Corvallis, helping turn Oregon State into a nascent national power, a team that went 11-1 last season and currently is ranked No. 19.

Some went to Oregon State because admission requirements are not as stringent as at UCLA or USC. Others, such as quarterback Jonathan Smith from Glendora High, are late bloomers. Several were just plain overlooked.

“A lot of guys weren’t blue-chippers or there was something keeping them from going to the elite programs,” Smith said. “We all have stories about how we ended up here.

“But we all take a lot of pride in how far the program has come, where it was when we got here and where we are leaving it.”

The Beavers came into the season ranked No. 1 in some polls but opened with a loss to Fresno State and struggled to beat lowly New Mexico State.

But there will be no shortage of motivation for Oregon State when unbeaten UCLA visits Corvallis on Saturday in a Pacific 10 Conference opener.

“I really wanted to go to UCLA but they didn’t recruit me,” said Josh Hawkins, a freshman receiver and punt returner from Long Beach Poly. “I guess they thought they had enough receivers. I want to show them they were wrong.”

A glance at the Oregon State starters from Southern California debunks stereotypes that the Beavers are mostly junior college transfers and are not good students.

Late Bloomers

* Smith, senior quarterback, Glendora: He grew up a USC fan and spent Saturdays at either the Rose Bowl or Coliseum. Only 5 feet 10, he walked on at Oregon State after getting offers only from UC Davis and Humboldt State. He has stood tall against UCLA, passing for 935 yards and seven touchdowns in three games.

* Vincent Sandoval, senior offensive tackle, Palmdale: He had a 3.5 high school grade-point average, but the only Pac-10 school to offer him a scholarship was Oregon State. Like other Beaver seniors, he preceded the Erickson era.

* Calvin Carlyle, senior safety, Dorsey: Not highly recruited, he developed into a three-year starter and emotional team leader. Carlyle, an excellent student awarded a fellowship from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, was injured in practice last week and will redshirt.

Overlooked

* Dennis Weathersby, junior cornerback, Duarte: UCLA recruiters admit that not recruiting this preseason All-American was a mistake. Weathersby had a 3.8 GPA in high school and has made the Pac-10 all-academic team the last two years.

* Hawkins, freshman receiver-punt returner, Long Beach Poly: A newcomer making an immediate impact, Hawkins was ignored by UCLA despite qualifying academically.

* Nick Barnett, junior linebacker, Fontana A.B. Miller: Barnett was injured and sat out the last four games of his senior season at A.B. Miller--where he had a 3.8 GPA--and Oregon State was the only Pac-10 school to recruit him. He moved from safety to linebacker and played in all 24 games the last two years.

* Anthony Cesca, junior kicker, Manhattan Beach Mira Costa: A Groza Award candidate, Cesca walked on at Oregon State in 1999 and won the job. He made 80 consecutive PATs over two years and last season made 16 of 19 field-goal attempts.

Other Factors

* George Gillett, redshirt freshman receiver, Manual Arts: A blue-chip prospect, Gillett wanted to attend USC but was borderline academically. UCLA recruited him briefly as a defensive back.

* Lee Davis, junior offensive tackle, Gardena Serra, L.A. Harbor College: Davis is the only Oregon State starter from Southern California who attended a junior college. He transferred from Harbor after his freshman year.

* Patrick McCall, senior running back, Carson: A standout reserve who rushed for 146 yards against the Bruins last year, McCall transferred from Michigan after his sophomore year. UCLA recruited him out of high school but he showed little interest.

* Noah Happe, sophomore defensive end, Simi Valley: A walk-on from a low-profile high school program, Happe is a first-year starter after moving from linebacker.

* Eric Manning, junior defensive tackle, Compton Dominguez: A blue-chip talent with 4.7 speed in the 40, Manning could not qualify for UCLA or USC as a Dominguez senior in 1998. He did not enroll at Oregon State until the spring of 1999 and is in his second year as a starter.

* Cornerbacks Aric Williams, Diamond Bar, and Shamon Jamerson, Palisades: Neither Williams, a redshirt freshman who started against New Mexico State, nor Jamerson, a redshirt sophomore who will start against UCLA, were recruited by UCLA.

The Southland transplants felt right at home in rural Corvallis.

“When I got there, I was surprised to find so many guys from the L.A. area, a lot of guys from the city,” Gillett said.

The migration continues. Seven Beaver freshmen are from Southern California.

“We are getting the attention of a better player now,” Erickson said. “Can we go to L.A. and beat USC and UCLA on a daily basis? No. But there are a lot of great football players in Southern California and there is not much difference between who UCLA gets and we get.”

UCLA, of course, does quite well recruiting nationwide. However, it is interesting to note that Oregon State will line up more starters from Southern California than the Bruins, who have eight.

“A big part of it is that the scholarship limit was reduced to 85 a few years ago,” UCLA Coach Bob Toledo said. “We can’t lock up every good player in the area.”

He can, however, reel in the occasional big fish from Oregon.

Bruin tackle Bryce Bohlander, a junior from Keizer, Ore., was rated the nation’s No. 3 prep offensive lineman in 1998. He became something of a salmon, heading in the opposite direction of everyone else.

“I wanted to go to a big school in a big media market,” he said. “In my eyes a degree from UCLA is something I can really be proud of. Oregon State didn’t even recruit me.”