By Cliff Kirkpatrick
For the Democrat-Herald | Posted: Friday, July 25, 2008 12:00 am
LOS ANGELES - Football training camps open next week around the Pacific-10 Conference, and all the teams feel confident about their potential.
That's because a game has not yet been played in one of the country's most competitive conferences, let alone facing the typical grueling nonconference schedule.
It's another year with Southern California, Pac-10 winner the last six years, leading the way. Places two through six are wide-open, with Oregon State in the mix.
"Our (conference) is so competitive, and obviously USC has set a high standard," Arizona State coach Dennis Erickson said Thursday during the conference media day. "You take our (conference) and anybody can beat anybody. To pick who will be second is going to be very difficult."
Each team is filling in gaps with untested talent and has standouts back, which makes things unpredictable. That's why OSU coach Mike Riley said he believes his team has as good a chance as anyone to move up the standings.
"The whole picture of the program is exciting to me," Riley said. "We have a program in place. Guys have been into it, know it. And I think they have a good feel for each other. Now we just have to get ready in fall camp and compete hard in games."
The Beavers surprised people the last two years, finishing in third place. They were picked to finish in their usual place of sixth this season by the media.
When asked about that, Riley laughed it off. He doesn't pay much attention to preseason polls because they always have his team in the middle of the pack.
Senior cornerback Brandon Hughes, who accompanied Riley to media day, was a little more animated about the respect the Beavers get, or don't get.
"This year, we're tired of being - I wouldn't call it being disrespected," Hughes aid. "Some of it reflects back to us. We've been in big games and haven't capitalized. Saying we're being disrespected, it takes away from our responsibility as a team. But sixth, come on. That's how we look at it."
Hughes and some of the other OSU players have thrown out the Rose Bowl - although he prefers the Fiesta Bowl - as a legitimate goal.
To reach the ultimate goal, Riley said his biggest concern is getting the Beavers to start fast. They have a reputation of finishing strong after embarrassing early losses.
And how does he change that?
"We have to try to solidify the parts you want to be your identity, try to make a good assessment of what you have and then focus on what enhances your team," Riley said. "You have to do that earlier."
And then get a lot of repetition."
The Beavers must start strong because they open on the road at Stanford in a conference game. Then they head to Penn State, and they haven't done well in Eastern time zone.
It's in those early defeats, usually on national TV, where the nation forms an opinion about OSU.
"For us to compete in the Pac-10 every year, we can't lose games we should win, or not get blown out in a loss," Hughes said. "We can't let that happen."
So with plenty of work still to be done before the opener, is it a rebuilding or reloading year?
The Beavers call it a year of growth. And since everyone has the same record at this point, there's optimism for a big year and the attitude is right.
"We are tired of being average," Hughes said. "And we are tired of being picked to finish sixth and fifth when we finish in the top three the last two years. But it starts with us."
Cliff Kirkpatrick covers the Oregon State football team for the Corvallis Gazette-Times. He can be reached at cliff.kirkpatrick@lee.net.
Pac-10 Poll
The media covering the Pacific-10 Conference voted on who it thinks will win the conference title, with first-place votes in parenthesis and total points at right:
School Points
1. USC (38) 389
2. Arizona State 330
3. Oregon 295
4. California (1) 274
5. UCLA 204
6. Oregon State 192
7. Arizona 185
8. Washington 139
9. Stanford 76
10. WSU 61