The Cougs bounce back after a gut check last week giving up a 12 point lead in the final five minutes as they beat FCS Portland State 44-24.
The game was anything but perfect, but exactly what the Cougs needed to get some confidence back in their corner before they open up conference play next week against the USC Trojans. “It’s better this week than it could have been,” said coach Nick Rolovich following the game.
The thing that has been a huge asset for the Cougs, is the legs of Jayden de Laura. Coming from the likes of Luke Falk and Connor Halliday who weren’t runners, having a dual threat quarterback has been a welcome change. In the Cougars second drive of the game, de Laura ran for a 21-yard first down scamper followed by a 22 Yard touchdown pass to Calvin Johnson Jr to give the Cougs an early 7-0 lead. The Vikings answered with a touchdown drive of their own. Viking quarterback Davis Alexander showed his legs in a 14 yard dash. He then punched it in from 1-yard out to tie the game at 7.
The Cougs 2- headed monster in the back field combined for 125 yards on the ground which has been more of a focus coming from the Air-Raid. A steady diet of both Deon McIntosh and Max Borghi were the recipe for the day to help set up the passing game. De Laura used his legs early in the 2nd from 10 yards out to give the Cougs a 14-7 lead. That was followed up by a McIntosh 16-Yard run for a touchdown and the Cougars never looked back.
The Cougs held a 30-10 lead at the half. The Cougars played the Vikings in 2015 and lost before being able to turn things around in a 10 win season. They showed progress from the week before in their opener against Utah State. The bigger test will be next week at Martin Stadium against the Trojans. “He(de Laura) has a way of keeping them on their toes,” Rolovich commented. “He calls the last touchdown play, that tells me his head’s in a good place,” said Rolovich talking about Jayden’s last touchdown pass in the 4th. USC dropped out of the top 25 after a blowout loss at home against Stanford. Only a shade over 22,000 fans Saturday, but expected to be a full house next Saturday. Cougs played the Trojans in 2017 when the Cougs beat the fifth ranked Trojans in the Cougars most memorable season.
