Oct. 14, 2006
LONGVIEW, Wash. -
By Rick S. Alvord, Longview Daily News
Prior to last Saturday, Adam Perry's career passing totals at Western Washington University consisted of one attempt, one completion and eight total yards.
But once given the opportunity to prove himself in what he called "a real situation," the 2004 R.A. Long High School graduate gave the Vikings' coaching staff something to think about.
And smile about.
Perry, a redshirt sophomore, replaced senior starter James Monrean under center with eight minutes remaining in Western's North Central Conference game against St. Cloud State in St. Cloud, Minn.
All the former Lumberjack did was help the Vikings to their biggest comeback in 40 years ---- a 24-17 victory that included three touchdowns in the final 5:09.
"It felt good to finally get in there and do something for a change," said Perry, who backed up Monrean all of last year as a freshman and in the first five games of this season. "It was my first meaningful action. Up 'til then, it was nothing but mop-up duty. It felt great. It reminded me of why I actually like playing football."
With the offense continuing its season-long slump, Western trailed the Huskies 17-3 in the fourth quarter. That's when head coach Robin Ross sent Monrean ---- a former Sehome High star who passed for 2,322 yards and 19 touchdowns last season ---- to the bench and summoned Perry. Monrean, who passed for four TDs with four interceptions in Western's first five games, was 11-of-16 for just 67 yards when he was replaced.
"Our offense had been stagnant all year (averaging 15 points per game), so it wasn't something that came out of the blue. There had already been some grumbling going on," Perry said. "Our offense in that game (against St. Cloud State) was extremely flat. It was a lot of fun to come in, be a little bit of a spark-plug and throw the ball downfield."
Perry's first two pass attempts were anything but impressive. The first was batted down and the second "I threw at the receiver's feet."
On third-and-10, Perry completed a crossing route for 15 yards. After a pass interference penalty, Perry scrambled for two yards, then fired three more completions on the 68-yard drive ---- the final one a 10-yard touchdown strike to Kelley Alley that made it 24-10 with 5:09 remaining.
"Our coach told me that I'd been practicing well and that it was a good time to put me in there to see what I could do," said Perry, who passed for 5,519 yards and 50 touchdowns during his all-state career with the Lumberjacks. "It was just nice to get that first touchdown (pass)."
Western's defense took over from there, blocking consecutive St. Cloud punts. The first set up a short rushing touchdown that tied it 17-17, and second was returned two yards for the winning TD by Steve Davis with 43 seconds left.
Perry finished 4-of-9 for 51 yards with no interceptions. He was not sacked.
The win ended a three-game losing streak for the Vikings (2-4, 1-3 conference), who host 14th-ranked South Dakota (5-1, 3-0 conference) at 1 p.m. today at Bellingham's Civic Stadium.
Although Monrean will be back in the starting lineup today for Western, Perry has been told to "be ready."
"They told me if things didn't click, I'd get in there again," Perry said. "I definitely earned a lot of respect for the way I played. I'm kind of being penciled in as the starter for the next two years after James graduates, but if I can get some more experience this season, that will make it a little bit easier when my time comes."
