Despite mistakes, Vikings defeat Wolves

To say Portland State’s 31-14 victory over Western Oregon in its season opener Saturday afternoon went according to plan would frankly be a stretch.

Aside from securing the win and attracting 8,235 fans to PGE Park for an afternoon tilt, little went exactly according to the pre-game blueprint.

Starting quarterback Tygue Howland had to be replaced late in the second quarter due to ineffectiveness. Portland State held only a 7-0 lead over the Division II Wolves at halftime. And the Vikings were penalized 17 times for 145 yards.

Regardless of the mistakes made, the team seemed pleased with the end result.

“Without a doubt, any time you start the season off 1-0 that’s huge,” said senior linebacker Andy Schantz.

Following the game, head coach Jerry Glanville and his players understood that they had made some mistakes and vow to improve before facing off against UC Davis in two weeks.

“We’re happy to be 1-0 right now,” said Schantz, who had nine tackles to lead a defense that allowed only 225 total offensive yards. “We need to get better.”

Portland State started the game with some fireworks, scoring in four plays on a series that was headlined by a 47-yard bomb from Howland to senior wide receiver Ty Coleman.

As a result of the long-distance connection, the Vikings were inside the Wolves’ five-yard line. This is when junior fullback Bobby McClintock struck the first cord of a motif that would define the day for Portland State: He scored a rushing touchdown.

Proving to be a bright spot for the Vikings, McClintock found the end zone four times in his first appearance since sustaining a season-ending knee injury in Portland State’s opener at McNeese State a season ago.

Needless to say, Glanville and Co. were happy to have No. 37 in the backfield once again.

“We lost Bobby a year ago, and I have to say that I’m a better coach when he suits up,” Glanville said in praise of the 5-foot-10, 240-pound fullback.

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On the day, McClintock racked up 116 all-purpose yards, including maintaining a 3.2 yards-per-carry average and pulling in seven receptions for 68 yards.

While McClintock performed wonderfully coming off his season-ending injury from a year ago, Howland did not fare as well.

Howland battled with sophomore signal caller Drew Hubel throughout camp, officially earning the starting gig about a week before Saturday’s matchup with Western Oregon.

Despite the early heroics, Howland was unable to sustain any production in the Portland State offense, finishing with 152 yards on nine of 21 passing and tossing an interception.

Hubel relieved Howland with about three minutes remaining in the second quarter and the offense instantly appeared smoother and more under control.

Unfortunately for Howland, after scoring the touchdown on the opening drive, the penalties began to rack up for the offense, which consequently may have impeded the unit’s productiveness.

“We weren’t getting it done,” offensive coordinator Darrell “Mouse” Davis said of making the switch. “Drew threw completions and ran the club well.”

Hubel, who also threw an interception but completed 28 passes for 305 yards, is penciled in right now as the starting quarterback for the Vikings’ next matchup, according to Davis.

“Right now, he would be our guy,” Davis said.

However, the depth chart could change because the Vikings have two weeks of practice before heading south to take on UC Davis.

With four touchdowns, it is hard to look past McClintock as the one who made the biggest difference for the Vikings, but the Portland State defense is also worth some consideration.

The Vikings had four takeaways and held the Wolves to three of 15 on third-down conversions in a performance that had several of the offensive players flashing a smile or two.

“It was fun to watch the defense,” Hubel said several times after the game. “I know we have an offense that put up points, and it’s very comforting to know that our defense is going to be compatible.”

Most of the damage done by the Wolves came at the hands of junior running back Ben Kuenzi, who gained 78 yards on the ground including a 53-yard dash that almost ended in a score.

Western Oregon employed two quarterbacks Saturday, sophomores Brady Lovell and AJ Robinson, however, neither was effective and combined to throw two touchdowns, the same number of interceptions and 118 yards.

Despite adding a late touchdown to a third-quarter score by junior wide receiver Demarco Ballard, Western Oregon had trouble escaping mistakes and the active hands of the Vikings defense when given opportunities to make the game closer.

“Our defense played great,” McClintock said. “That’s what kept us in the game.”