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49ers' undefeated pre-season evaporates in San Diego
By Morris Phillips September 4, 2009 |
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The 49ers undefeated pre-season didn’t evaporate on Nate Kaeding’s onside kick to start the game, but it was gone soon after that. Six plays after the Chargers recovered Kaeding’s kickoff, Kareem Osgood snagged Billy Volek’s 39-yard touchdown toss, and the 49ers were trailing 7-0 less than two minutes into the game. The Chargers took it from there, beating the 49ers 26-7 in front of a large, enthusiastic crowd at Qualcomm Stadium. Now the 49ers and coach Mike Singletary turn their attention to the Arizona Cardinals and their NFC West showdown on September 13. Visiting the NFC Champions gives the 49ers an opportunity to make a big impression the first time they hit the field for real in 2009. Not to mention, the 49ers get an opportunity to erase the bad taste that still lingers from the Monday Night loss in Arizona that effectively cost them a shot at the playoffs last year. Are you over pre-season yet? Probably so, and all it took was a quick mention of the Cardinals. With Shaun Hill playing just one series, and Alex Smith unavailable due to injury, the 49ers put their undefeated pre-season in the hands of Nate Davis. The third-stringer from Ball State played well again, but in passing 13 of 23 for 115 yards, the 22-year old rookie didn’t get a lot of impact on the scoreboard. Davis hit Jason Hill for a pretty 21-yard touchdown pass right before halftime, but that was the entirety of the 49ers’ scoring on the evening. In the second half, Davis’ nifty footwork didn’t result in any success throwing the football down the field, and the powerful San Francisco running game took the night off. The 49ers managed just one drive that didn’t end with three and out, and that drive, with less than a minute remaining in the game, ended when C.J. Spillman picked off Davis with the 49ers threatening at the Chargers’ 10-yard line. Meanwhile, the Chargers didn’t too much against the 49ers’ defense, but they ran well enough to have four drives end with field goals from Kaeding. Rookie Gartrell Johnson got most of the work carrying the ball for San Diego, finishing with 85 yards on 20 carries. Quarterback Philip Rivers and LaDainian Tomlinson sat the game out for the Chargers, and Frank Gore did not play for San Francisco. Kory Sheets led the 49ers’ rushing attack with just 33 yards on six carries. |
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