6Footba!l '89The Daily Tar HeelFriday, September 8, 1989
Mays (heads Tech toward irespectabilnty
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Georgia Tech's Jerry Mays is a
Graduation leaves Wake o mi a forest
By JOHN BLAND
Staff Writer
Wake Forest head football coach
Bill Dooley has a couple of major
problems to resolve before his team's
opening kickoff against Appalachian
State Sept. 9.
For one, he can't decide who's
going to be his starting quarterback.
Wake's all-time passing leader,
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double threat out of the backf ield
Mike Elkins (7,304 yards); was the
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NFL draft and is now hurling long
for Marty Schottenheimer's Kansas
City Chiefs. This leaves a battle be
tween junior Phil Barnhill and sopho
more Greg Long as inheritors to the
job.
"Going into the first game, we have
two number-one quarterbacks,"
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By BOBBY McCROSKEY
Staff Writer
Relax, UNC football fans, there is
at least one team in the Atlantic Coast
Conference that is worse than the Tar
Heels Georgia Tech's Yellow
Jackets.
If you think North Carolina has
been playing terribly the last few
seasons, take a look at some appall
ing statistics about the Ramblin
Wreck.
Tech has beaten only one Divi
sion I-A opponent in two years. Sur
prisingly enough, that was a 34-0
drubbing of South Carolina last sea
son. The Yellow Jackets went 0-for-the-ACC
in 1987 and 1988.
Georgia Tech has won only five
games in 22 chances under head coach
Bobby Ross. Ross has never had three
consecutive losing seasons anywhere
he's coached. This season could be
the third subpar year in a row follow
ing Tech's 2-9 record in 1987 and
the 3-8 showing in 1988.
As if all this weren't enough pres
sure, the Yellow Jackets took a les
son from The Who and sold them
selves. Home games against Virginia,
Maryland, North Carolina, Western
Carolina and Wake Forest were sold
to corporate sponsors for $75,000
apiece, a Thanksgiving weekend with
Boston College for $100,000 and the
annual finale with Georgia for
$ 1 75,000. That's quite a load of cash,
but Georgia Tech is quite aware that
Dooley said, taking his usual practi
cal approach. "We're not going to
flip a coin.. I'm not sure how we're
going to decide who's going to take
the first snap."
Dooley's second, third and fourth
problems are interrelated and more
troubling than having to choose be
tween two healthy quarterbacks.
Problem No. 2: He hasn't got a
starting tailback.
For Dooley, whose football phi
losophy is summed up by the words
"three yards and a cloud of dust," the
lack of a tailback might prompt him
to look to the skies. However, with
no proven quarterback, that possibil
ity is rather dim.
At the end of spring practice
Dooley had four, count 'em, four tail
backs, keeping in the great Dooley
tailback tradition: Mark Young, Dar
rell France, Tony Rogers and An
thony Williams.
At the start of the real season, he
has two: Rogers and Williams.
Young had some troubles in classes
and is out for the season for aca
demic reasons. France, projected to
take his place, is lost to knee injuries
that will keep him out for "three to
four weeks," Dooley said.
Rogers, the undersized (5-9, 185
pounds) second-leading rusher on the
team last year with 468 yards, had
his own share of injury problems,
but looks to be the one Dooley will
hand off to the most.
Problem No. 3: "Defensively,
we're greener than grass."
In Dooley's own words, he's say
ing that a defense which gave up 41 1
yards a game will probably not be
any better this year.
With only junior safety Brad Ben
'.
1 i .
1 A
there is no market for losing teams.
"We have to win for this to be a
success," said Kevin Bryant, Geor
gia Tech's director of marketing and
promotions. Unfortunately for the
Yellow Jackets, they haven't had a
winning season since 1985.
However, Tech is more optimis
tic about its gridiron chances for this
season. But Ross would be even more
optimistic if he weren't having to
rebuild at quarterback for the third
straight year.
The Jackets have four young quar
terbacks in sophomores Lee William
son and Paul Bowman, and red-shirt
freshmen Shawn "Jones and Jeff
Howard. Of those four, however, only
Williamson has taken a collegiate
snap. No one was able to win the
starting position in spring workouts,
and that is annoying to Ross.
"If Williamson had been the starter
all last year, someone would've had
to beat him out," Ross said.
As soon as the Jackets solve their
quarterback woes, they have to turn
their attention to the kicking game.
Tech's kickers are dismal and the
NCAA's removing tees during extra-point
and field-goal situations only
figures to add to their misfortunes.
Just how bad are the placekick
ers? Witness the events that transpired
during the spring intrasquad game.
Rodney Nilson missed two 24-yard
field goal attempts. He didn't even
get under the first one, which was
nullified by an inadvertent whistle.
son as a returning starter in the sec
ondary, the others sophomore Tony
Hollis and freshman George Coghill
at the comers, and freshman Lamont
Scales at the other safety position
will get a trial by fire with such air
oriented opponents as Duke and
Maryland.
TTie defensive line is also in tat
ters due to graduation. Junior tackle
Marvin Mitchell is the biggest player
on the line at 6-5, 285 pounds, but
the others range from 220 to 265.
The only bright spot defensively
is in the linebacking corps. Juniors
Warren and Levern Belin and senior
Rodney Hogue all return. Warren
Belin led the team with 81 tackles
last year, and twin brother Levern
had 54 (Hogue had 62).
There is also another problem
defensively, but is no means limited
to it, and it shall be deemed Problem
No. 4: Depth.
In addition to the secondary's
chartreuse shade, it is also lacking in
backups. So is the defensive line.In
general. Wake is about as shallow as
a kiddie pool.
With all this bad news, you'd think
the outlook for the Deacs would be
bleaker than bleak. Not necessarily.
All-ACC wingback Ricky Proehl
returns, paired with flanker Steve
Brown, and the two combined for
1 345 yards last year (Proehl had eight
touchdowns). All Dooley needs is
someone who can get them the ball.
And whoever gets the starting QB's
job will have great protection.
The Deacs return the offensive line
basically intact, led by tackle Rod
Ferguson, guard Robbie Lingerfelt and
All-ACC candidate Tony Mayberry
at center.
1988: 3-8, 0-7 ACQ eighth.
43 Returning Lettermen; 12
Returning Starters.
Key Offensive Starters
Back: Running back Jerry Mays,
four offensive linemen.
Key Defensive Starters
Back: Tackle Willie Burks, line
backer Eric Thomas, safety Ken
Swilling.
Key Losses: Quarterback
Todd Rampley, split end Steve
Davenport, All-ACC linebacker
Willis Crockett, linebackers
George Malone and Rod
Stephens, safety Andre Thomas,
cornerback Cedric Stall worth,
kicker Thomas Palmer.
Strengths: Strong, experi
enced offensive line, dependable
running of Mays, seven home
games.
Question Marks: Passing
game, Who will take control at
the QB spot?, Can they find a
clutch kicker right away?
Then he missed the freebie attempt
wide right and later a 30-yard at
tempt wide left. Ross can only hope
that incoming freshman Scott Sisson
will have something to add this fall.
The other half of the kicking game
appears to have been answered in the
form of Scott Aldredge. Ross pulled
him out of the quarterback competi-
See TECH, page 13
of woes
1988: 6-4-1, 4-3 ACC, fourth
place.
40 Return ing Lettermen; 1 2
Returning Starters.
Key Offensive Starters Back:
Wide receivers Steve Brown and
Ricky Proehl, tackle Ron
Ferguson, center Tony Mayberry,
kicker Wilson Hoyle.
Key Defensive Starters Back:
Linebackers Warren Belin and
Rodney Hogue, safety Brad Ben
son. Key Losses: Quarterback Mike
Elkins, tight end David Jarvis,
defensive end Mike Hooten, All
ACC cornerback A.J. Greene,
cornerback Tony Mosley, safety
Ernie Pumsley. .
Strengths: Offensive backs
and receivers, game-saving kicker,
powder puff schedule.
Question Marks: Defensive
secondary, quarterback, depth
everywhere, Who will fill the voids
left by Elkins and Greene? How
will they adjust to loss of TB Mark
Young (academics)?
The outlook for the Deacs is simi
lar to that of UNC. Inexperience and
lack of depth are problems for both
teams, and injuries to key personnel,
particularly in both the offensive and
defensive backfields, will make a
tough season even tougher. But Bill
Dooley is nicknamed "the trench
fighter," and with his guidance (and
a non-conference schedule that in
cludes Rice and Tulsa), the Demon
Deacons might just pull out their third
consecutive winning season, a feat
never before accomplished in Winston-Salem.
. j