It came as no surprise on Monday when sophomore quarterback Drew Hubel was named The Sport Network's National Offensive Player of the Week and the Big Sky Conference Offensive Player of the Week. Hubel had one of the best day's a collegiate quarterback has ever had, completing 44 of 73 passes for 623 yards and five touchdowns in a 47-36 win over 11th-ranked Eastern Washington.
The 6-5, 205-pound Hubel tied the PSU record for completions in a game and the Big Sky record for attempts in a game. He set a new Portland State record for passing yards and came up one yard short of the national record. He also set a national record for most attempts in a game without an interception.
Amazingly, it is Hubel's second moment in the national spotlight, despite starting just seven games in his career. In 2007, Hubel tied a national record with nine touchdown passes in a 73-68 loss to Weber State. It was the highest scoring regulation game in NCAA history. Hubel threw for 485 yards on 35-56 attempts in that game - also without an interception.
Hubel was remarkably consistent in the win over the Eagles, completing 10-18 for 154 yards and a touchdown in the first period, 12 of 20 for 195 yards and two touchdowns in the second period. That gave him 22-38 for 349 yards and three TDs at halftime - a brilliant full game for any quarterback. In the second half, Hubel was 12-20 for 140 yards in the third period, and 10-15 for 134 yards and two touchdowns in the fourth quarter. That gave him second-half numbers of 22-35 for 274 yards and two touchdowns.
Hubel had four different receivers compile at least 100 yards in the game.
Said Hubel, after his amazing day: “We've got great athletes that can move the ball after the catch. You can see that. Every one of my wideouts that caught a ball today made a play after the catch.”
“The o-line was blocking really well, and (fullback) Bobby (McClintock) cleans up whatever they don't get. It's neat when it flows like that. It doesn't get old.”
“I threw the ball nine times (a game) in high school. Here you get to go out every week, move the ball up and down the field and score some points. That's the biggest thing. It's fun to be a part of an offense that is successful and moving the ball.”
It is also worth noting that Hubel's success comes at the hands of offensive mastermind Mouse Davis. The 76-year old Davis, who popularized the Run-and-Shoot Offense as the Portland State head coach from 1975-80 (and inspired the rest of the football world to move to the spread offense), was calling the plays in both instances of Hubel's greatness.
For the season, Hubel has played in four of five games, starting three. He has completed 113-191 for 1,388 yards, eight touchdowns and three interceptions. In 10 career games, Hubel, from Corvallis (OR) High School, has started seven and eclipsed 300 yards five times, 400 yards three times and, of course, 600 yards once. Hubel has thrown for 2,858 yards, 23 TDs and 14 INTs.
Portland State has now had 30 400+ individual passing games in school history. Neil Lomax holds the record with 10 such games. Hubel is tied for second with three 400-yard games. He is one of three players to pass for 500 yards in a game (John Charles, Jimmy Blanchard), and of course, the only Viking to pass for 600 yards in a game.
Joining Hubel's on the Viking star chart against Eastern Washington were JR WR Mario D'Ambrosio and FR CB Deshawn Shead. D'Ambrosio tied a Portland State record with 16 receptions for 192 yards and three touchdowns. Shead had two interceptions and forced a fumble, which led to two PSU touchdowns.
