Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, April 22, 1990 TAG: 9004220194
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: SCOTT BLANCHARD SPORTSWRITER
DATELINE: BLACKSBURG LENGTH: Medium
Remember Furrer? Once upon a time, he was Tech's starting quarterback. A knee injury in last year's fourth game ended his season and has given the confident Furrer a tiny flame of insecurity.
"You want to know, have I lost my job?" Furrer asked as a reporter approached him during the Maroon-White game, won by the dark-jerseyed first team 28-20. The White team was spotted 20 points.
To Furrer, it's not a pointless question. Rodd Wooten's showing in the last two games last year has made Tech's staff a believer in him, and highly touted freshman Maurice DeShazo may get a shot at the job depending on how quickly he develops this fall.
Because of Furrer's inactivity and Wooten's shoulder surgery, Tech got a good look at reserves Tom Zban and Eros Sanchez this spring, but ended the five-week workout without a clear No. 1 quarterback. On Saturday, Tech coach Frank Beamer wouldn't commit to naming a first-string quarterback for fall practice.
Furrer, however, would.
"I'm going to come back and I'm going to play and someone's going to have to beat me out," Furrer said. "I think I'm going to be on in the fall. I don't see me giving it away."
Beamer's in no mood to give away the job, either - especially not after Wooten missed most of spring practice with a shoulder injury and after ex-wide receiver Sanchez played well enough to tie for the spring No. 1 job with Zban, who's finishing his second year in the program.
Asked if a healthy Furrer would have to be beaten out in the fall or would be thrown in with the other quarterbacks, Beamer walked the fence.
"There are so many unknowns, we'll answer that when it comes up," Beamer said. "Let's get them back and then we'll see where they fit in exactly."
How about DeShazo? The Bassett High School star said that when he signed with Tech he might be redshirted. But, as with everything else concerning Tech's quarterbacks, it's a wait-and-see proposition.
"I don't know," Tech quarterbacks coach Rickey Bustle said when asked if the Hokies' staff would prefer to redshirt DeShazo. "If he can play, I want to find out what he can do and how early he can do it."
Tech discovered quite a bit about Sanchez, a non-scholarship walk-on from Brooklyn, N.Y., who'll be a fourth-year junior next season. On Saturday, he played for both the Maroon and White teams and was 12 for 17 for 189 yards and one touchdown, a 2-yard pass to DeWayne Knight. He also completed a 71-yarder to Bo Campbell.
"The way he played there tonight, that's probably pretty amazing," Beamer said, noting that Sanchez has played all of 20 days at QB for Tech.
Sanchez's play could be just one more thing to frazzle Furrer. But Furrer refuses to rattle, even though he said he's gotten 2 a.m. phone calls from Tech followers criticizing his play and telling him his starting days are over.
"I don't want to slight my teammates' ability, but there are a lot of things they haven't had to do yet," said Furrer, who said Tech's spring offense is more simplified than the fall version he ran until his injury. "I have to look at it and take into account what they're not doing.
Tech's coaches felt Furrer, who struggled as a freshman as Tech went 3-8 in 1988, was blossoming last year. Tech was 1-0-1 when he was hurt Sept. 23 against Temple.
Since then, Furrer said, he's become a weight-room devotee and said his upper body is stronger. He said he thinks his knee is at about 80 percent strength, and said it will be tested on Monday to see how far it's progressed.
"I'm a little leery of that, because I'm scared it's not going to be where I want it to be," said Furrer, who for the moment finds confidence in his arm, not his knee. "I feel like my velocity is good. I'm excited about that."
White 20 0 0 0-20
Maroon 7 7 7 7-28
W - Awarded 20 points at start of game.
M - Hebron 2 run (Thomas kick)
M - Knight 2 pass from Sanchez (Thomas kick)
M - Kennedy 25 pass from Zban (Thomas kick)
M - Kennedy 4 run (Thomas kick)
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
Rushing - Sanchez 6-(-15), Bryant 3-10, Kennedy 9-37, Hebron 11-36, Swarm 2-22, Zban 5-26, E. Smith 1-(-7), Boatwright 1-10, Bullock 8-30, L. Smith 5-17, Poindexter 2-4, Strock 6-(-9), Jackson 1-0.
Passing - Sanchez 12-17-1-189, Zban 4-7-1-77, Strock 5-12-0-47.
Receiving - Campbell 4-131, Cullen 1-7, Daniels 3-67, Knight 2-11, Kennedy 1-25, L. Smith 4-17, McClung 1-7, Bullock 1-5, Poindexter 1-5, Reynolds 2-34, Mooney 1-4.
Keywords:
FOOTBALL
by CNB