Taylor carries Mountaineers to victory

Is it wins, or the number of people in the stands?

Well, for the Eastern Oregon football team, it has to be more than any statistic will show.

On Saturday, EOU added another number to that column with a 27-10 victory over Southern Oregon.

“For us, (SOU) is our rivals,” Mountaineer running back C.J. Taylor said. “They really disrespected us by saying we were nothing to them. They thought they’d leave here with an easy victory.”

Taylor may have had his biggest day of the season Saturday. He ran for 118 yards on 22 carries, and scored three of Eastern’s four touchdowns.

EOU quarterback Chris Ware completed 10 of his 18 passes for 125 yards and ran for 109 yards on 21 carries.

“Chris is just a special guy,” Mountaineers’ head coach Tim Camp said. “He’s like a good marinara sauce. He makes anything come out good.”

Ware led a strong opening drive for Eastern Oregon. The Mountaineers marched 46 yards in 1:50 on six plays, capped off by a Jake Hartley three-yard run.

“We had a fast start with a strong finish,” Camp said. “This was for bragging rights in the state of Oregon. (SOU) is a great team. They are as good as any team we’ve played.”

After being pinned on the seven-yard line, EOU went 93 yards on 14 plays to score its next touchdown. Taylor finished off a drive that took 4:36 with a six-yard touchdown run.

The score gave Eastern a 14-0 lead with 3:49 remaining in the first quarter.

“It helps us a lot scoring that quickly,” Ware said. “It gives us a belief we can play with these guys. Sometime we get a little complacent after we score. We have to be more consistent.”

After scoring on its first two possessions, EOU wouldn’t find the end zone again until its 10th possession.

On the Mountaineers’ second drive of the third quarter, Taylor would end a nine play, 49-yard drive with a three-yard run.

Eastern held the Raiders to 267 yards of total offense. The Mountaineers forced SOU into four turnovers.

Senior Travis Morsheck finished his career at Eastern with five tackles, a fumble recovery and an interception.

“We had higher aspirations, but we ended with a win,” Morsheck said. “It gives us seniors a sense of completion. It wasn’t just about the seniors, to leave the season with a win it helps build this program.”

Just a season ago, the Mountaineers were 1-10 and finished the season on a four-game losing streak.

In Camp’s first season, EOU has won five games, going 5-1 at home.

“I think the key is the seniors accepted me,” Camp said. “They believed in the system. I couldn’t be prouder of these guys. We’ve found out that you can win here.

“This place is a gold mine. This is my USC. If we couldn’t get it done here, then I wouldn’t have taken the job. This win is just a start.”

The difference in this turnaround season is, the players love to play again. It’s easy for anyone watching to see. These guys are smiling again, patting each other on the back and playing as a team.

Eastern Oregon football is back.

EOU 27, SOU 10

SOU                                     0   3  7  0  - 10

EOU               14  0 13  0  - 27

First Quarter

EOU - Jake Hartley 3 yd run (Thomas Akers kick)

EOU - CJ Taylor 6 yd run (Thomas Akers kick)                                               

Second Quarter

SOU - Corey O'Neill 37 yd field goal                                                

Third Quarter

EOU - CJ Taylor 3 yd run (Thomas Akers kick failed)                                                    

SOU - Drew Dukeshire 3 yd pass from J.C. Hunsaker (Corey O'Neill kick)                                         

EOU - CJ Taylor 1 yd run (Thomas Akers kick)

 Individual statistics

RUSHING – SOU, Rosales 26-123, Hunsaker 7-23, Beach 2-8. EOU, Taylor 22-118, Smith 2-59, Ware 21-109, Hartley 5-15, Udy 2-6.

PASSING – SOU, Hunsaker 15-38-2-150. EOU, Ware 10-18-0-125, Udy 0-1-0-0.

RECEIVING – SOU, Dukeshire 5-61, Beach 3-32, Price 3-30, Jorgensen 2-17, Steindl 1-6, Patenaude 1-4. EOU, Udy 4-31, Abrams 2-42, Watson 2-21, Hartley 1-16, Oveson 1-15.