These are good days for USD's wide receivers. Through two games, USD's passing attack has been most impressive.
“If people are going to play man-to-man coverage on the outside, they are just asking us to throw,” coach Ron Caragher said.
Case in point: Quarterback Sebastian Trujillo has thrown for 555 yards and eight touchdowns. Receiver John Matthews has 294 receiving yards and five touchdowns.
Fine fantasy numbers indeed, but Caragher knows that not every game can be an aerial buffet. And as the team heads into its Pioneer Football League opener today at Campbell University in Buies Creek, N.C., advancing the running game is a point of emphasis.
“Honestly, I'm pretty disappointed with where the running game is,” said running back Phil Morelli, a transfer from Colorado State and the team's leading rusher. “It's a huge emphasis and we don't want it to fall off. We want to get better. We have to pick it up. We want to be averaging about 125 yards per game.”
The ground game suffered a critical setback when All-America running back J.T. Rogan was lost for the season with a knee injury in the first quarter of the first game. Just how valuable was Rogan? His 46 yards (on three carries) before the injury is still second-best on the team after seven quarters without him. The Toreros are averaging 118 yards on the ground, but take out Rogan's numbers and it's fewer than 100 per game.
Still, Caragher says he isn't terribly concerned.
“We are going to take what the defense gives us,” Caragher said. “I'm not hard-headed about it. I'm a big believer in running the football, and in a perfect world we'd like to be a 50-50 team (running and throwing). I'm not worried. We have young backs and I think we're going to be fine.”
The Campbell Fighting Camels (0-3, 0-1 PFL) have brought back football for the first time since 1950 and are coming off a 52-0 road loss to Jacksonville.
USD ranks in the top 25 in 11 NCAA-FCS offensive categories, and those include seventh in passing (298.5 yards per game) and 11th in scoring (39.0 points per game). It has yet to lose a fumble or give up a sack.
True freshman Matt Jelmini is splitting time with Morelli and said the initial realization that the team would be without Rogan for the season took some time to settle in.
“We were all a bit shell-shocked,” Jelmini said. “But all through camp, he kept telling us, 'You're one play away, so be prepared.' He took us under his wing and it made us better. But it's on its way. We just need to (man) up and get it done. It's on our shoulders.”
Caragher cautioned not to be deceived by the rushing stats. The West Coast offense USD runs relies on what he calls “long handoffs,” which are essentially quick-hit slants and swing passes to running backs that accomplish the same goal as a 4-yard run up the gut.
But as the Toreros get into the thick of the PFL season and start facing elite teams, the running game will be critical.
“In close games, you have to move the chains,” Caragher said. “It demoralizes your defense to run off the field, then your offense throws three incomplete passes and it only takes 15 seconds off the clock. You can't live and die by your quarterback's arm.”
Kevin Gemmell: (619) 718-5304; kevin.gemmell@uniontrib.com
