Raider Stadium football runout

@SOU_Football @SOURaiders

As mentioned previously, and as Hensley Ratings predicted, #4 Faulkner was beaten this past weekend. This means SOU will likely be the #4 team heading into their final game against Eastern Oregon. While a victory over Eastern will be no easy feat (Hensley rates them as #3 in the country even though the Midwest-biased coaches have them way back at #21), the Raiders have beaten them on the road already this year so Southern will be the clear favorite this Saturday at home.

If SOU wins they will have home field advantage for their first NAIA playoff game. Should they win that game, if the NAIA has any sense of fairness or justice, they may also have a home game in the quarterfinals given their likely rise to #4 on Monday, November 10.

Hang in there Raiders. Just five more wins to go until you are National Champions.

Posted on November 9th, 2014 under only in ashland. Tags: AF-S Nikkor 20mm f/1.8G ED lens, football, Nikon D750, photoshop photomerge, Raider Athletics, Southern Oregon University, sports photography. Comments Off on Two post season home games, here we come

SOU football – Joseph Lealofi

@SOU_Football @SOURaiders

The Raiders won their 9th game of the season, tying their previous record of most wins. They still have a regular-season game to go (and hopefully four post-season games after that). Lealofi picked up a fumble and ran with it for a touchdown in today’s victory.

Posted on November 8th, 2014 under people. Tags: football, JOSEPH LEALOFI, Nikon 300mm f/4.0D ED-IF AF-S Nikkor Lens, Nikon D600, Raider Athletics, Southern Oregon University, sports photography. Comments Off on Southern Oregon 45, Montana Tech 33

SOU football – Nathan Torres-Walker interception sequence

Nathan Torres-Walker, Julius Rucker, Tyler Rogers

@SOU_Football @SOURaiders @HensleyRatings @NAIA_News

Nathan Torres-Walker had his second pick of the season this past Saturday, part of the reason Southern Oregon University is now 8-1. Rocky Mountain was the victim this time, and they are no longer listed in the coaches’ poll. The #5 Raiders could use some help from them this weekend, though, as Rocky Mountain will be facing #2 Carroll College.

Hensley Rankings still has Rocky Mountain as one of the best 11 teams in the country even if the coaches are not impressed with their four losses. Hensley, which looks at schedule strength and where the wins and losses happen, unlike the coaches, predict losses for the #3 and #4 ranked teams this weekend. If just one of those things occur, the Raiders will crack the top four in the coaches’ poll and be in a position for two home post-season games.

Posted on November 3rd, 2014 under only in ashland, people. Tags: football, nathan torres-walker, Raider Athletics, Southern Oregon University, sports photography. Comments Off on Raiders knock Rocky Mountain out of rankings

SOU Raiders – football and basketball schedules

@SOU_Football @SOURaiders

Posted on October 29th, 2014 under only in ashland. Tags: basketball, football, joel spear, Raider Athletics, sports photography. Comments Off on Big sports weekend

SOU football – Tyler Rogers #5

@SOU_Football @SOURaiders

As I predicted on Saturday, the Raiders are back to #5 in the national rankings. If they can crack the top four by the end of the regular season they can have home games for the first round and quarterfinals of the NAIA playoffs. #3 Grand View may lose next week in a tough road match up. #4 Faulkner has a difficult road game the following week too. Things look good if the Raiders continue to win.

This Saturday’s game is in Ashland against #21 Rocky Mountain.

Posted on October 27th, 2014 under only in ashland, people. Tags: football, Raider Athletics, Southern Oregon University, sports photography. Comments Off on Back to #5

SOU football – Melvin Mason

@SOU_Football @SOURaiders

The Southern Oregon University football team had no problem breaking the College of Idaho’s undefeated-at-home winning streak today. Details of the game can be found here. Melvin Mason averaged nearly 7 yards per carry while rushing the ball 12 times today.

It’s that time of the season in which scoreboard watching comes into play. If the Raiders can crack the top four in the rankings by the end of the season, they will earn the right to host several possible playoff games. Currently SOU sits at #7 in the coach’s poll, the only poll that counts. #2 Baker lost today and #6 Georgetown barely won against an unranked, previously 2-5 team. The odds look pretty good that the Raiders will come in at #5 when Monday’s poll is released with three regular season games to play.

Posted on October 25th, 2014 under people. Tags: football, melvin mason, Raider Athletics, Southern Oregon University, sports photography. Comments Off on Raiders crush Yotes on road for 7-1 record

SOU football – Dylan Young

@SOU_Football @SOURaiders @DY_Lee11

This weekend the Southern Oregon University football team will be on the road again, taking on the College of Idaho Yotes. Carroll is the only team in the Frontier Conference getting much respect from the coaches doing the NAIA national rankings. The coaches seem to look more at records and the teams’ performances in prior years than strength of schedule in the current year, who a team beat, or where games take place.

College of Idaho doesn’t garner any votes from the coaches, but more accurate and objective rankings like Hensley Ratings say otherwise. There, the Yotes are ranked #15. In addition, College of Idaho is undefeated at home. Still, Hensley Ratings predicts the Raiders will be victorious by a touchdown.

Posted on October 23rd, 2014 under people. Tags: dylan young, football, Nikon 300mm f/4.0D ED-IF AF-S Nikkor Lens, Nikon D600, Raider Athletics, Southern Oregon University, sports photography. Comments Off on Raiders head to Idaho

SOU football – Dustin Fretwell

@SOU_Football @SOURaiders

With the Raiders loss to Carroll College the NAIA Football Coaches Poll rather unfairly dropped SOU three spots in the rankings. Both Carroll and SOU are undefeated against a similar schedule. (In fact, SOU has one more win than Carroll and no more losses.) SOU beat Carroll by 3 points at home. Carroll beat SOU by 2 points at home. Anyone who has watched both of those games would say that the teams are evenly matched. They would probably win about 50 games each if they played each other 100 times. Yet Carroll is ranked #3 while SOU is ranked #7. Why?

If SOU wins the rest of their games they will get at least one home game in the playoffs. However, if Carroll wins the rest of their games they will get at least two home games in the playoffs. Why?

Hopefully, SOU wins the rest of their games and a few teams ahead of SOU in the current rankings are upset between now and November 15.

Posted on October 20th, 2014 under people. Tags: football, Raider Athletics, Southern Oregon University, sports photography. Comments Off on Down to #7

SOU football – Nathaniel Timoteo (78) and Keegan Lawrence (36)

@SOU_Football @SOURaiders @k_law21

Huge game today for the Raiders as they take on the #3 Saints of Carroll College in Montana. The only reason Carroll isn’t ranked #2 is because SOU beat them at home earlier this year. Supposedly you can watch the game here this afternoon.

P.S. Keegan broke the tackle in today’s photo and rambled for another 10 yards on the play. He is averaging 7.7 yards per carry in his freshman season.

Posted on October 18th, 2014 under people. Tags: football, keegan lawrence, Nikon 300mm f/4.0D ED-IF AF-S Nikkor Lens, Nikon D750, Raider Athletics, Southern Oregon University, sports photography. Comments Off on Game day