MIKE HASS, WR, SR., OREGON STATE
Background: The nation’s leader in receiving yards per game (149.6) didn’t even receive a scholarship out of high school. All he did was earn Oregon’s 4A player of the year award after leading Portland power Jesuit High School to a state title with 1,739 yards and 21 touchdowns. Against archrival Central Catholic in the playoffs, he scored seven touchdowns: five pass receptions, an interception return and a fumble recovery. He had 19 interceptions for his career. However, Pacific 10 schools weren’t the only ones to ignore him. So did I-AA Portland State. They didn’t think he was big enough (6-feet-1, 180 pounds) or fast enough (4.6 or 4.7 seconds in the 40-yard dash). That year Oregon State signed three receivers: Jayson Boyd, who transferred to Texas-El Paso; Andre Cyrus, who never made it; and Josh Hawkins, who has 39 career receptions.
“To this day, I still don’t understand it,” Hass told The Seattle Times. He walked on at Oregon State because of then-coach Dennis Erickson’s pro-style offense in 2001. Hass redshirted that year and was listed as fifth string in 2002. By the time Erickson left for the San Francisco 49ers that year, Hass had built himself up to 208 pounds, and new coach Mike Riley saw enough of him to move him to starter by the 2003 opener.
Stat line: His 3,439 career receiving yards are only 133 behind school record-holder James Newson and rank fifth on the Pac-10 charts, 5 yards behind current Arizona State receiver Derek Hagan. Hass’ 20 career TD catches tie Newson for the school lead. Hass is third nationally in catches per game with 8.2.
What’s up: Hass has huge hands, which makes it possible for him to catch everything in traffic. The civil engineering major also is smart. “I don’t know how he does it, but Mike gets open,” quarterback Matt Moore said. “He’s a great player, but he runs routes different than anybody else – he leans and pushes and gets open. If the ball is anywhere near him, he catches it.” In two games against USC, Hass has 16 catches for 327 yards. “Every film session, I watch myself to see why something worked or why it did not,” he said. “I look to see how the defensive back lined up and how I can use leverage.”
What’s next: The Beavers (4-3) host Arizona (1-6) on Saturday. If Hass keeps up his current pace, he will end up with 4,187 career receiving yards, topping the Pac-10 record of 4,047 set by Stanford’s Troy Walters from 1996-99.
Henderson’s take: Hass is the ultimate argument against the validity of recruiting services, not to mention Bill Callahan’s stance on limiting walk-ons at Nebraska. Hass has the best hands of any receiver I’ve seen on TV in three years and will play in the NFL next year. I’m not the only one who thinks so. So does Erickson.
