Oct. 21: Team doesn't lose faith in Baker

By Joe Zavala

Ashland Daily Tidings

When you live and die in that vacuum of chaos between the hash marks, where the difference between success and failure can be anything from an ill-timed gust of wind to a poorly placed divot, words like "nervous" or "afraid" aren't really allowed to infiltrate your vocabulary.

Take it from Steve Baker, the Southern Oregon University kicker who booted a 38-yard field goal with 28 seconds left Saturday night at Raider Stadium, lifting the fifth-ranked Raiders to a 17-14 homecoming victory over 14th-ranked Azusa Pacific.

Baker took the field carrying the weight of two first-half yanks that cost SOU six points, not to mention the 43-yarder he missed Sept. 21 at McMinnville that eventually led to the Raiders' only loss of the season. But the 5-11, 225-pound junior said trotting onto the field late in the fourth quarter with the independent championship and quite possibly a playoff berth on the line wasn't as scary to him as it may have seemed to the 3,000 or so spectators.

"Not nervous, ready to win," Baker said simply.

That's not to say that the most celebrated kicker to descend upon Ashland in some time didn't have his doubts when it came to his team's support of him, but that was taken care of long before Azusa rolled into town with its gaudy offensive numbers and 5-0 record.

"It's been rough," admitted Baker, who has wowed the Raider coaching staff with his range since transferring from Arizona State University in the offseason. "After the Linfield game, I didn't know if my team still believed in me and a lot of players came up to me and said they really believed in what I could do and what I could be to help this team. I just came out and did my job and didn't have a great day, but we got the job done.

"I was basically just waiting to get my chance. All I could remember was that Linfield field goal and how it feels to lose. And the last thing I want to do is lose."

His latest make marked the second time since Linfield that Baker played a major role in a Raider victory.

Against Humboldt State Sept. 28, Baker drilled a 34-yarder as time expired to get SOU within 7-3 at the half, then put the game away by nailing a 50-yarder - the third longest in Raider history - with 6:15 left in the game.

That's why before the season SOU coach Jeff Olson called Baker a "Division I caliber kicker," and that's why when the game's on the line, the Raiders won't hesitate to roll out their secret weapon.

"We'll put the game in Steve's hands any time," SOU quarterback Dan Woodward said. "The guy's a phenomenal kicker. We'll give him the game any time and we told him that on the sideline. We said, `You know what, we're going to work this clock and then we're going to get the field goal and it's going to be up to you, Steve.' Steve Baker's a great kicker and the game was in his hands and he got it done."

Of course, only one man ultimately decides when Baker will kick and when he won't, and Olson said that wasn't a hard decision Saturday night.

The Raiders had just got the ball back following a Gabe Raso interception, and had a 1st-and-10 at the Azusa 36 with just 2:49 on the clock. Olson had a plan from the beginning of that drive and it didn't include going for the touchdown.

The seventh-year coach, who's on the verge of leading SOU to its second straight playoff berth, promptly called five consecutive running plays - all for junior tailback Dusty McGrorty, who finished with 33 rushes for 139 yards and a touchdown. That gave SOU a 4th-and-6 at the Cougars' 21-yard line, where Olson said there were no second thoughts about what to do next.

"Not one at all," he stressed. "We were in a perfect situation with the turnover, changing momentum, field position. I've got all the confidence in the world in Steve that he's going to finish that."

Olson had no last-minute advice for Baker because, says Olson, Baker didn't need it.

"They called a timeout to ice him and I told everybody to stay away from him," Olson said. "He's been here before. He's not a kid, he's an experienced kicker and I told him earlier tonight, `You're going to get another chance to do this at some point tonight. I'm not going to lose faith in you.' And right after he made it, I said, `Steve, do you want to kick this thing off or do you want to squib it.' He said, `Coach, I can put it in the end zone.'"

Baker did, blasting the ball deep into the end zone for a crucial touchback, and five plays later the clock ran out and the Raiders were celebrating their biggest win of the season - all thanks to the kicker nobody lost faith in."

"I'm not letting him coach for me," Olson says, "but I want to show him that we've got confidence in him that he can do this."