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UT QB race far from a 4-gone conclusion
By Ron Higgins,
Contact
August 8, 2004
KNOXVILLE - And they're off!
Tennessee's starting quarterback race opened here on Saturday afternoon as the Vols went through their first of 29 preseason practice opportunities.
The leader in the clubhouse after spring practice was sixth-year senior C.J. Leak, who hasn't been overwhelming (122 yards, one touchdown) in eight games of sporadic action over the last two seasons as the backup to the graduated Casey Clausen.
Behind Leak is Clausen's younger brother Rick, a fourth-year junior who played in three games two years ago for LSU before transferring to Tennessee last year.
Incoming freshmen Erik Ainge of Hillsboro, Ore., and Brent Schaeffer of Deerfield Beach, Fla., have the potential to leapfrog both Leak and Clausen.
Ainge, 6-6 and 205, is the classic dropback passer with the big arm while the 6-2, 195-pound Schaeffer is the multi-purpose athletic QB who runs as well as he passes.
"Like (linebacker) Al Wilson told me going into the '98 season that 'whoever the quarterback is, we're not going to let him fail,' " Vols coach Phillip Fulmer said. "I want our team to take that challenge, rally and play the best they can to help us through the quarterback situation."
The quarterbacks know this. When the hitting starts on Wednesday on the first day of pads, they'll be live targets. The QBs won't wear green jerseys, a color that usually indicates no contact allowed.
"We're not going to let them get beat up," Tennessee offensive coordinator Randy Sanders said. "But we've got to find out what they can do against a live pass rush. Right now, there's not a big gap between C.J. and the rest of them."
Leak, older brother of Florida quarterback Chris Leak, said he's ready for the challenge of taking on all comers to hold the spot he earned in the spring.
"I've dealt with competition my whole life," said Leak, a solid 6-4, 220-pounder. "You understand every year you'll be challenged and you have to do your job.
"For me, it's a matter of just playing smart, and I've always been a smart guy. It feels good going in knowing I'm the guy at the top. I just need to keep doing the things I've been doing. I've worked hard and this is my time. This is my last fall camp."
Fulmer noted that Leak had just two bad days in spring practice, and improved in the areas that Fulmer wanted to see improvement - game and huddle management, as well as throwing accurately and on time.
"Once we started spring, C.J. worked hard in the offseason to improve and he was clicking on all cylinders for a while in the spring," Fulmer said.
The 6-3, 210-pound Clausen, though improved, still lacks the arm strength of the others.
But he feels his knowledge of being able to study the system last season with Casey somewhat compensates for physical deficiencies.
"When Casey was here, I spent a lot of time watching film with him and learning," Clausen said. "I realized what you could do against certain defenses and what you can't. It helped me to sit and learn with Casey for a year."
Clausen has no regrets about transferring from LSU, where he played in three games in 2002 and where he played terribly against Ole Miss in his only start. Last season after Clausen transferred to Tennessee, LSU won the BCS national championship.
"I've been able to learn things from two different programs," Clausen said. "Things happen for a reason. I was happy for a lot of those (LSU) guys; I still talk to them quite a bit.
"But I'm here at Tennessee to win a SEC championship. I'm here to win games."
Clausen said his biggest challenge at Tennessee has been acclimating himself to a new playbook and offensive system. He said since he has had game action in the SEC, he understands the speed of the game.
All those things - the playbook, the system and the speed of the game - are elements that Ainge and Schaeffer must learn quickly if they want to play this season. Schaeffer has been in Knoxville most of the summer and Ainge has been here the last four weeks.
Schaeffer, because he played in the highest high school classification in the richest football talent state in the nation, may have an edge adapting to the incredibly quick college game because of the competition he faced.
"Some people describe me as a Michael Vick-type, but I take pride in my passing and breaking down a defense with my arm," said Schaeffer, who had 3,725 yards total offense and 36 TDs (24 passing, 12 rushing) last season. "All of our quarterbacks are hungry to play. I'm not thinking about the pressure. I just want to think like a little kid thinks, like how much fun it is to play football."
Ainge, the nephew of former NBA player Danny Ainge, post ed big passing numbers (3,078 yards, 24 TDs) as a senior in a considerably smaller prep classification than Schaeffer. But he said two of his strengths will take him a long way.
"If you're smart and you're accurate, it helps a lot," Ainge said. "I've done a lot of film study, and I think it will help me in the preseason. The better I do early, the more chance I have to play."
Will Fulmer have the guts to open the season with a freshman quarterback in the starting lineup? It's something he has never done in his head coaching career. Peyton Manning didn't start until the fifth game of his career in '94. Casey Clausen didn't start until his sixth game in 2000.
"I don't want to have to start a freshman quarterback, but the best player is going to play," Fulmer said. "We've got a heck of a tough schedule with three big games (Florida, Auburn and Georgia) in our first five weeks. We're not going to be able to work up to anything.
"I'd like to say in two weeks we'll have an answer where we are with our quarterbacks, and our starter has time to get himself ready completely. If we have to go up to game time before making a decision, we will. But I don't want to do that."
By Ron Higgins,
Contact
August 8, 2004
KNOXVILLE - And they're off!
Tennessee's starting quarterback race opened here on Saturday afternoon as the Vols went through their first of 29 preseason practice opportunities.
The leader in the clubhouse after spring practice was sixth-year senior C.J. Leak, who hasn't been overwhelming (122 yards, one touchdown) in eight games of sporadic action over the last two seasons as the backup to the graduated Casey Clausen.
Behind Leak is Clausen's younger brother Rick, a fourth-year junior who played in three games two years ago for LSU before transferring to Tennessee last year.
Incoming freshmen Erik Ainge of Hillsboro, Ore., and Brent Schaeffer of Deerfield Beach, Fla., have the potential to leapfrog both Leak and Clausen.
Ainge, 6-6 and 205, is the classic dropback passer with the big arm while the 6-2, 195-pound Schaeffer is the multi-purpose athletic QB who runs as well as he passes.
"Like (linebacker) Al Wilson told me going into the '98 season that 'whoever the quarterback is, we're not going to let him fail,' " Vols coach Phillip Fulmer said. "I want our team to take that challenge, rally and play the best they can to help us through the quarterback situation."
The quarterbacks know this. When the hitting starts on Wednesday on the first day of pads, they'll be live targets. The QBs won't wear green jerseys, a color that usually indicates no contact allowed.
"We're not going to let them get beat up," Tennessee offensive coordinator Randy Sanders said. "But we've got to find out what they can do against a live pass rush. Right now, there's not a big gap between C.J. and the rest of them."
Leak, older brother of Florida quarterback Chris Leak, said he's ready for the challenge of taking on all comers to hold the spot he earned in the spring.
"I've dealt with competition my whole life," said Leak, a solid 6-4, 220-pounder. "You understand every year you'll be challenged and you have to do your job.
"For me, it's a matter of just playing smart, and I've always been a smart guy. It feels good going in knowing I'm the guy at the top. I just need to keep doing the things I've been doing. I've worked hard and this is my time. This is my last fall camp."
Fulmer noted that Leak had just two bad days in spring practice, and improved in the areas that Fulmer wanted to see improvement - game and huddle management, as well as throwing accurately and on time.
"Once we started spring, C.J. worked hard in the offseason to improve and he was clicking on all cylinders for a while in the spring," Fulmer said.
The 6-3, 210-pound Clausen, though improved, still lacks the arm strength of the others.
But he feels his knowledge of being able to study the system last season with Casey somewhat compensates for physical deficiencies.
"When Casey was here, I spent a lot of time watching film with him and learning," Clausen said. "I realized what you could do against certain defenses and what you can't. It helped me to sit and learn with Casey for a year."
Clausen has no regrets about transferring from LSU, where he played in three games in 2002 and where he played terribly against Ole Miss in his only start. Last season after Clausen transferred to Tennessee, LSU won the BCS national championship.
"I've been able to learn things from two different programs," Clausen said. "Things happen for a reason. I was happy for a lot of those (LSU) guys; I still talk to them quite a bit.
"But I'm here at Tennessee to win a SEC championship. I'm here to win games."
Clausen said his biggest challenge at Tennessee has been acclimating himself to a new playbook and offensive system. He said since he has had game action in the SEC, he understands the speed of the game.
All those things - the playbook, the system and the speed of the game - are elements that Ainge and Schaeffer must learn quickly if they want to play this season. Schaeffer has been in Knoxville most of the summer and Ainge has been here the last four weeks.
Schaeffer, because he played in the highest high school classification in the richest football talent state in the nation, may have an edge adapting to the incredibly quick college game because of the competition he faced.
"Some people describe me as a Michael Vick-type, but I take pride in my passing and breaking down a defense with my arm," said Schaeffer, who had 3,725 yards total offense and 36 TDs (24 passing, 12 rushing) last season. "All of our quarterbacks are hungry to play. I'm not thinking about the pressure. I just want to think like a little kid thinks, like how much fun it is to play football."
Ainge, the nephew of former NBA player Danny Ainge, post ed big passing numbers (3,078 yards, 24 TDs) as a senior in a considerably smaller prep classification than Schaeffer. But he said two of his strengths will take him a long way.
"If you're smart and you're accurate, it helps a lot," Ainge said. "I've done a lot of film study, and I think it will help me in the preseason. The better I do early, the more chance I have to play."
Will Fulmer have the guts to open the season with a freshman quarterback in the starting lineup? It's something he has never done in his head coaching career. Peyton Manning didn't start until the fifth game of his career in '94. Casey Clausen didn't start until his sixth game in 2000.
"I don't want to have to start a freshman quarterback, but the best player is going to play," Fulmer said. "We've got a heck of a tough schedule with three big games (Florida, Auburn and Georgia) in our first five weeks. We're not going to be able to work up to anything.
"I'd like to say in two weeks we'll have an answer where we are with our quarterbacks, and our starter has time to get himself ready completely. If we have to go up to game time before making a decision, we will. But I don't want to do that."
