Orediggers look to regroup in Oregon

By Bill Foley - 09/06/2008

For the second straight week, the Orediggers face a bit of a mystery.

They'll have to solve that mystery Saturday in La Grade, Ore., in order to bounce back from last week's season-opening loss to Southern Oregon.

Tech opens 10 straight weeks of Frontier Conference play when they take on Eastern Oregon at noon (Mountain time) at Community Stadium.

The Mountaineers are led by first-year head coach Tim Camp, and Saturday marks their season opener. So the Orediggers don't really know what to expect.

Since Camp spent the past two years as an assistant at Eastern Oregon, Tech coach Bob Green said he expects to see some familiar stuff — the option running game and a 3-5 flex defense — from the Mountaineers.

Green, though, isn't betting the farm that is all his Orediggers will see. So the Orediggers have been playing the balancing act of preparing for what they're used

to seeing from Eastern Oregon and preparing for, well, everything else.

"I don't want them to do something we haven't prepared for, if we can help it." Green said. "We're going middle of the road. It's the Barry Manilow approach. It ain't George Jones and it ain't heavy metal."

The Orediggers have also been doing a lot of focusing on themselves and improving on the 30-25 home loss.

In that game, sophomore quarterback Matt Komac threw four interceptions, and the Orediggers lost the turnover game 4-1.

Green said Komac just needs to work out some "internal clock problems" and take off running or throw the ball away instead of trying to make something out of nothing.

"Matt's a hard-nosed guy with great command of our offense," Green said, assuring that he expects Komac to bounce back.

The Orediggers also have to improve the running game that slowed down significantly in the second half last week.

"Usually by the second half we're running the ball pretty well," Green said.

Consistency on the offensive line, which returns all five starters from last year — is the key to powering sophomore running back Drew Savage, Green said.

That, too, will open the passing game for receivers Alex Grevas, Zach Soukup, Cal McQueary and J.T. McIntyre.

The Eastern Oregon returns five starters from last year's 1-10 team.

The Oredigger defense, which is still smarting from allowing too many third-down conversions to Southern Oregon, are focused on takeaways.

"We've got to get the ball back to the defense quickly," Green said. "We've got to get more turnovers. We've always been a turnover-based team. We need to cause and create and convert turnovers."

Linebackers Joel Wilson and Billy Glennon had big games in the opener, while defensive end Stephan Burns recorded Tech's lone sack.

Green said he's hoping freshman quarterback Chris Wane will be easier to get to than quick-release Bryan Lee-Lauduski was last week.

The 6-foot-5 Lee-Lauduski helped keep the Oredigger defense on the field too long, even though Britt Siddoway and the boys held the Southern Oregon running game to 2.1 yards per carry.

"It wasn't like we were giving up big plays," Green said. "They were just knocking them in."

Green said the Orediggers took little solace in the fact that last week's loss doesn't count in Frontier Conference standings.

What little room for error the Orediggers might have had in the playoff hunt is all but gone.

"There's nothing we can do about being 0-1," Green said. "We've got to go be 1-1."

MONTANA TECH

Head coach — Bob Green (22nd season)

Offensive starters

QB — Matt Komac, 6-4, 212, so, Helena.

RB — Drew Savage, 5-11, 178, so, Great Falls

FB — Rylan Brenneman, 5-10, 247, so, Kalispell

WR — Alex Grevas, 5-6, 201, sr, Helena.

WR — Zach Soukup, 6-2, 193, sr, Sheridan, Wyo.

TE — Justin Hansen, 6-1, 228, jr, Scobey.

LT — Tom Probert, 6-5, 285, sr, Colorado Springs

LG — Matt Crowe, 6-2, 275, jr, Butte.

C — Kyle Sullivan, 6-3, 305, sr, Idaho Falls.

RG — Shannon Buell, 6-0, 279, sr, Absarokee.

RT — Wacy Deegan, 6-4, 310, so, Stanford

Defensive starters

E — Britt Siddoway, 6-4, 296, sr, Great Falls.

NT — Josh Robinson, 5-9, 269, fr, Butte.

E — Stephan Burns, 6-2, 242, so, Butte.

OLB — Paul Klaboe, 6-1, 229, so, Billings

ILB — Billy Glennon, 6-1, 232, sr, Billings

ILB — Joel WIlson, 6-0, 222, jr, Gillett, Wyo.

OLB — Skippy Sims, 6-0, 222, jr, Malta.

C — Jason Watkins, 5-11, 179, sr, Missoula

FS — Cole Salo, 5-10, 188, sr, Butte.

SS — Jake Stagnoli, 5-11, 186, so, Butte.

C — Jess Johnson, 5-10, 183, so, Glendive

Special Teams

K — Sean Kelly, 5-9, 163, so, Helena OR Nolan Lopez, 6-3, 210, so, Billings

P — J.T. McIntyre, 5-11, 178, so, Butte.

EASTERN OREGON

Head coach — Tim Camp (first season)

Offensive starters

QB — Chris Wane, 6-0, 215, fr, Rainier, Ore.

SB — Gavin Smith, 5-8, 175, sr, Bellevue, Wash.

SB — Jordyn Jackson, 5-11, 190, jr, Columbia River, Wash.

FB — C.J. Taylor, 5-11, 220, sr, St. Louis.

WR — Kirk Miller, 6-0, 170, so, Kuna, Idaho.

WR — Alex Cook, 6-1, 175, sr, Boise.

LT — Cameron Brophy, 6-5, 275, so, Prosser, Wash.

LG — Kevin Biddle, 6-2, 280, jr, Richland, Wash.

C — Chad Achatz, 5-11, 245, sr, Boring, Ore.

RG — Nate Cress, 6-2, 270, so, Cathlamet, Wash.

RT — Jordan Smith, 6-2, 240, so, Coeur d' Alene, Idaho.

Defensive starters

E — Seath Kimball, 6-3, 235, so, Wenatchee, Wash.

NT — James Williams, 5-11, 250, jr, Modesto, Calif.

E — Kyle Witty, 6-4, 230, so, La Grande, Wash.

OLB — Ty Murdock, 6-2, 220, sr, Kuna, Idaho.

ILB — Corey Dunn, 5-11, 225, jr, Gilbert, Ariz.

ILB — Travis Morscheck, 6-1, 220, sr, Pullman, Wash.

OLB — Trent Pharr, 5-11, 215, jr, Cathlament, Wash.

Rover — Scott Dumon, 5-10, 210, sr, Novaoto, Calif.

FS — Jeff McNally, 6-0, 190, jr, Cathlament, Wash.

C — Rodell Razor, 5-8, 170, jr, Seattle.

C — Ulises Trejo, 6-1, 190, jr, Moreland, Idaho.

Special Teams

K — Thomas Akers, 5-11, 205, jr, Vancouver, Wash.

P — Akers.

Montana Tech at Eastern Oregon

Kickoff: noon (Mountain time),

La Grande Oregon

Radio: KBOW, AM 550

Internet: Liveradio.mitec.us