Page 8 * OVERTIME WIN A REPEAT school, but one that boasts excellent potential. The schedule they play is a challenging one, featuring top) competition from all levels of colleges and universities. The Wildcats suffered some preseason setbacks early on by virtue of defections and a key injury. A pair of highly-touted newcomers — one a first string All-California junior college transfer — opted not to play ' basketball this year and left the team in the early stages of practice. Sophomore guard Mark Mattos, the team captain, broke a smail wrist bone early in November and was expected to miss the first eight weeks of action. The resulting shuffle has found many players outside their normal positions and has created coaching problems for third-year mentor, Neil McCarthy. The situation is not all gloom, however. This year’s squad is extremely talented and can only get better as the season “NEW BREED" PROGRESS and arduous process. Winning four games and being in a position to win at least four others is considered by many around Ogden to be nearly a miracle. “Considering our _ personnel problems, I am happy with the had this season,” Coach Péte Riehlman said after the last game. ‘“‘Our first and primary goal was to show improvement in each game, and I think that we did that this year. We had very few people and were hurt as a result of our thinness, but the players responded in. an outstanding manner and did everything that we asked for. I feel very optimistic about our future.” The Riehlman work and trademark organization, and start the season and the in Wildcat Gym was also an overtime contest. It set the stage for one of the was Weber’s Morris Bledsoe, who was also the passing and total offense leader of the league. Bledsoe averaged 190 yards per game passing for the Wildcat’s most remarkable home-court win) ning streaks in history. This year’s — cats are hoping that history continues ; weekend of March. 53 per cent of his passing attempts, and threw nine touchdown strikes. Bledsoe is the first Wildcat to quarterback the coaches’ dream team since Tim Jones turned the trick in 1966. Two of Bledsoe’s favorite receivers were also named to squad. Senior split end Tommy Coleman repeated on team from Although they’re young, they look to be good. One thing’s for sure, are exciting. they certainly is hard it was never more evident than after the season ended. Twelve hours after the team had showered for the last time, - Riehlman and his staff were in the field recruiting new prospects for the school. The 1977 Wildcats were thin and young, but they will have a world of experience and will be bolstered by several junior college transfers Spring quarter. The experience gained by several freshmen who were ’ thrust into starting roles will provide a good foundation to build the team last season, with a record of 34 catches in nine games for 638 yards and Weber State’s cross country team captured their first conference title recently, and did so in convincing fashion. Coach Chick Hislop’s charges rolling completely 10,000 meter dominate the course to Big Sky a pair of scores. Tight bread-and-butter receiver, was Kent caught yards. passes 529 end Kent Critchlow, the Wildcat’s © also named to the all-league team. showed great strength and depth as they walked away from the field over the 33 for field. The Cats won with the biggest earned the margin ever in competition, and had the lowest point total (cross country has low team winning) since the coaches at his position. was credited with an incredible 145 tackles in ten games. He also conference expanded to more than six teams. Wildcat runners placed first, second, sixth, and eigfhtk in the meet, Whetten. Strong is a senior seven-man team _ count Steve Scharmann, earned a 12th place finish for the team. The convincing victory found the Wildcats a full 48 points ahead of runner-up team Arizona, the expected to give Weber Northern their biggest challenge. The meet, for the first time, was held in conjunction with the NCAA District VII race to determine the participants in the national championships. Next year the same race will be hosted by Weber State, and will bring not only the Big Sky Conference to Ogden, but the Western Athletic Conference, and all of junior, All-American be a mainstay is a_ legitimate. candidate and will of the team next year. Selected to the second team were running back Mark Billmire and kicker Mike Korvas. Billmire was the leading Wildcat rusher in both of the last two seasons, and was one of the better blocking backs in the league. Korvas was also the second team punter last season on the dream team. Besides punting Korvas also handled the place-kicking chores for the Wildcats. Korvas kicked 15 The players were nominated by Wildcat coach Pete Riehlman, but the under rules of the balloting coaches were not: allowed to vote for their own players. Evans Se Cee eee eee eee eee to earn all-conference honors for four — Weber runners. Respectively, they were Jorge Ruiz and Javier Chavez, a pair of Mexican students studying at Weber State; Lynn Strong, and while Whetten is just a freshman. The other Weber point earner — the first five across the line from the nod off an enemy _ aerial, ftumbie, and deflected or 20 field goal attempts, and was the leading scorer on this year’s team with 66 points in ten games. On defense the Wildcat’s leading tackler, linebacker Tim Evans, Robert a ten games this season, completed The Wildcats play 15 games at home this year, with hopes of again hosting the Big Sky Tournament the first were named to the Big Sky Conference All-Conference team in a vote by the opposing coaches in. the league. The ‘cats placed five members on the first team and two’ more on the second team in the balloting. Named quarterback of the team playing in the new facility. As if to demonstrate the cyclical nature of history, the inaugural game to repeat. players a five passes during the season. The other ‘cat on defense was free safety Dennis Duncanson. Duncanson was the only defensive player in the conference to be a unanimous selection of the coaches. Duncanson set a new school record with ten interceptions during the season. In two separate games he picked off three enemy passes. He was also a bone-jarring tackler who had 92 stops during the year. In addition, he recovered four fumbles and deflected five passes. Duncanson, eee Me diterrancan Cruise 1979 SP Approximate Cost $1600 per person aslo 2 weeks-between ports on a cruise ship in the Beautiful Mediterranean VISIT: GREECE, TURKEY, ISRAEL, EGYPT For Information Contact: WEBER STATE COLLEGE ALUMNI OFFICE 399-5941 Ext. 346 « lau) season. Rebuilding a program virtually from scratch is usually a long that we to of the season. The Capture Title ~The start of the football season found the Wildcats making no promises other than a ‘‘new breed” taking the field. After a _neardisastrous season the year before, the coach’s staff had been completely changed, and many new faces were on campus. Now, with the season history, the promise of a new breed _ has been more than fulfilled. The Wildcats turned in an outstanding 4-6 record, which~is not really indicative of the success of the progress way picked torced Individual honors were garnered by seven Weber State football players at the conclusion eee that nee eee team the other schools in the Intermountain =) The eee ee eee eee games. ee home represents the Wildcats this season is the youngest in the history of the —s _ their DRE The Weber State basketball team opened a new era this year as they moved into the Dee Events Center for WILDCAT FOOTBALL _ PLAYERS EARN HONOR progresses and experience is gained. You’d have a tough time con-vincing any of the 8,500 fans on opening night that the team could get any more exciting, though. The Wildcats put on quite a show of teamwork and hustle to defeat Long Beach State in the opening game of the new Dee Center 99-96 in a heartstopping overtime. The Californians had been ranked as high as 17th in some pre-season polls, and the Wildcat victory was a very uplifting West. el John Peterson around in coming years. A talented core of receivers, linebackers, and defensive backs — many of whom had outstanding years — will return as well. — © ALUMNIL = p TRAVE eee eeeeeeD!