
There’s one week left to go in the regular season for the Roseburg football team and it’s back to the grind for the Indians after their first loss of the season.
“Sometimes it’s good to get a loss,” said Roseburg senior quarterback/safety Colton Marsters. “Changes everyone’s mindset.”
Roseburg (7-1; 3-1 SWC) suffered a heartbreaking 49-47 defeat against Sheldon (7-1; 3-0 SWC) in a battle for the Southwest Conference title last Friday. The loss ended Roseburg’s seven-game winning streak and doused the hopes of an outright league championship.
“I think it kind of humbled us a little bit,” added senior Jackson Bartlett, who had his game-winning field goal attempt blocked as time ran out.
The Indians will look to regroup and get back on track against Class 5A Springfield (3-6; 3-4 Midwestern League) at 7 p.m. on Friday night. The nonleague contest will be Roseburg’s final chance to fine tune its game before the state playoffs begin in November.
Marsters, who accounted for over 400 yards of offense against the Irish (272 passing, 189 rushing), says this week will be a chance for varsity players to get a breather, rest and get healthy.
“But it’s not a week off. We still have to get ready for the playoffs. (There’s) bigger things ahead,” the senior quarterback said.
Roseburg has put in plenty of work this season to achieve the dramatic improvements the team has realized since their last season in the spring of 2021.
The Indians are averaging 418 yards of offense, second best in the SWC. They’ve got the best rushing attack (301.6 yards per game) in the conference and the second-best scoring average (38.9).
It’s been a significant improvement from a team last season that struggled to amass more than 100 yards a game.
The most successful game for Roseburg last season was against Springfield in the final game of a five-game schedule. The Indians exploded for a 28-0 lead in the first quarter and finished with a 42-0 victory.
Roseburg looks primed for another blowout victory against a Springfield team that has earned two of its three wins by forfeit and is averaging just 4.7 points per game.
Marsters says the team has worked heavily on defense this week and Bartlett says the intensity has increased after last week’s loss to the Irish.
“This week we’ve been focused. It’s the most focused we’ve ever been, I think. After that loss, it really put us in a good mindset to want to win,” Bartlett said.
Friday’s contest is likely the end of the season for the Millers, who are out of the running for an automatic berth in the 5A state playoffs and are presumably ranked too low to receive an at-large bid.
Yet, an upset win against a powerful Roseburg team would be just the offseason motivation third-year coach Miles Haley could use for his young squad.
Prior to kickoff, Roseburg will honor this year’s senior class. The Indians have 15 seniors on the roster.
The game will be broadcast in Douglas County on sports radio station The Score 92.3 FM/1490 AM and live streamed on 541radio.com.
The Indians will also be watching closely to the Southwest Conference scoreboard. First place Sheldon visits last place Grants Pass to finish the regular season. If the Cavemen managed to upset the Irish, Sheldon and Roseburg would be co-league champions.
In the other SWC matchup of the night, South and North Medford renew their rivalry series with the Black and Blue Bowl at Spiegelberg Stadium. The winner of the contest will receive the final automatic playoff berth as the third place team in the conference standings.
Once the SWC standings are finalized Friday, the 6A state playoff bracket won’t be determined until the OSAA rankings freeze on Saturday night at 10 p.m.
The 6A state playoffs begin on Nov. 5.
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