Past Tense AN OFFENSIVE OUTBURST From 1975 to1980 the PSU football team, under coach “Mouse” Davis, and with quarterbacks June Jones and Neil Lomax leading the “run and shoot” offense, led the nation in passing and total offense for five straight years and led the nation in scoring three times. Portland State set 20 NCAA Division II offensive records in addition to being the NCAA’s all-time point producer in 1980. The Viks scored 541 points in 11 games—an average of 49.2 points—along with 434.9 yards passing and 504.3 yards of total offense per game. PSU fans still talk about the 50-49 win over Montana in 1976 as the most exciting game ever. June Jones threw a two-yard touchdown pass to Dave Steif, with no time remaining, for the win. Another record-setting game (most passes by two teams) was against Santa Clara. The Viks were victorious in the game as well, which included a 98-yard strike from June to Scott Saxton. After graduation, June played for the Atlanta Falcons (1977-81), then the Toronto Argonauts (1982). In 1983 he began his coaching career at the University of Hawaii. He is now head coach at Southern Methodist University. Led by Lomax in 1980, the Vikings had record scores of 105-0 over Delaware State, 93-7 over Cal Poly, and 72-0 over Weber State. Lomax played only two quarters in these games; despite that, he threw seven touchdown passes in one quarter against Delaware State. After graduation, Neil was drafted by the St. Louis Cardinals, where he had a nine-year career. He is currently living in Lake Oswego and supplies quarterbacks (his sons) to Lake Oswego High School. In 1981 coach Davis joined the UC Berkeley coaching staff. He concluded his long career in 2009 when he retired as offensive coordinator at Portland State University. He currently lives in Lake Oswego. Davis and his players saved football at Portland State—the sport was under consideration of being dropped—and gave the school some great football tradition at the same time. —Mouse Davis and Roger Moseley Past Tense features glimpses into Portland State’s history. To submit a story (or an idea for one), e-mail the RAPS History Preservation Committee at raps@pdx.edu.
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