Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, October 14, 1993 TAG: 9310140027
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Doug Doughty
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
Or maybe he wouldn't have been at JMU at all.
Instead, Cawley, who was the No. 3 quarterback for Syracuse last season, was the hero of the Dukes' 42-38 upset of Delaware, ranked No. 2 in Division I-AA.
"When I decided I was going to transfer, I made a list of Division I-A and I-AA programs that interested me," said Cawley, who scored three touchdowns Saturday, the last with 12 seconds remaining. "As soon as they put in the rule, I scratched all the I-As off my list."
Several of the state's Division I-AA programs have benefited from the rule, including Liberty, which landed highly regarded quarterback prospect Antwan Chiles from Florida, and VMI, which added linebacker Sam Daniels. However, JMU coach Rip Scherer advises caution for those who are excited about the new talent source.
"I don't think you're going to see it happen a whole lot because I think the rule will be rescinded," Scherer said. "I understand the [College Football Association] has discussed legislation that would allow the converse to happen."
Cawley, who was redshirted by Syracuse in 1991, would have lost a year's eligibility if he had transferred to a I-A or I-AA program and been required to sit out a year, as the old rule required. The new rule went into effect in January.
"It came about because [Division I-AA teams] were losing kids to Division II," Scherer said. "Most of the I-A coaches I've talked to like the new rule because of their scholarship limits, but some administrators felt upset or threatened."
Scherer said it was Syracuse coach Paul Pasqualoni who recommended Cawley to him.
"It was beneficial for the kid and the program," Scherer said. "Mike was frustrated because he saw himself behind a Heisman Trophy candidate [Marvin Graves] and a really good back-up [Kevin Mason]."
Liberty coach Sam Rutigliano said the new rule had some benefits, but wondered if it was one more excuse for Division I-A coaches to run off players who can't help them.
"The moment the NCAA reduced scholarships in I-A, coaches started to clear the cupboards," Rutigliano said. "It's fine if the kids find a home, but it's bad if [the rule] is misused. It's an invitation to unrecruit a kid so they can recruit somebody else."
In addition to Chiles, Rutigliano added lineman Matt Davenport from Maryland and running back J.T. Morris from Penn State, although Morris had a redshirt year at his disposal and is not playing this season. Chiles and Davenport are back-ups, although Rutigliano is high on both of them.
"If a player thinks he has a chance to play, he ought to stay where he is," Scherer said, "but then there's the flip side. A lot of people who can't play at I-A can't play at our level either."
\ IN THE STATE: VMI linebacker Mike Edwards, a 5-foot-11, 195-pound true freshman from Franklin County, made his first start for the Keydets in place of Daniels, a transfer from Virginia Tech who was injured. . . . One of Washington and Lee's most promising linemen, sophomore offensive tackle Robert Turner, will miss Saturday's game with Hampden-Sydney to be best man in his brother's wedding.
\ IN THE ACC: Something has to give Saturday in College Park, Md., where winless Maryland entertains Duke, which is trying to break a 16-game ACC losing streak. The Blue Devils, whose last conference victory was at Maryland in 1991, need to beat the Terps or Wake Forest to avoid matching Virginia's record 18-game ACC losing streak between 1958-61.
Duke is one of four ACC teams making a change in quarterbacks this week, replacing Spence Fischer with Joe Pickens, who was No. 1 going into the season. Terry Harvey moves in for Geoff Bender at N.C. State, Jim Kemp takes over for Rusty LaRue at Wake Forest and Clemson has chosen Louis Solomon over Patrick Sapp.
Sapp has completed a total of 10 passes in the last three games for Clemson, which is 4-1 despite gaining no more than 354 yards in a single game. The Tigers, routed by Florida State 57-0, have been outscored by 35 points for the season. . . . North Carolina is 3-0 in games when it has given up 35 points or more. The Tar Heels have beaten Maryland 59-42, Texas-El Paso 45-39 and Wake Forest 45-35.
\ RECRUITING: Duke has received m basketball commitment from 6-foot-5 Ricky Price from Gardena, Calif., whom many consider the nation's top wing guard. The Blue Devils already had received commitments from two other top backcourt players, 6-foot-4 Trajan Langdon from Anchorage, Alaska, and 5-10 Steve Wojciechowski from Baltimore, who is certain to draw some comparisons to ex-Blue Devils' star Bobby Hurley.
Virginia is in the final three with Wake Forest and Florida for 7-3, 255-pound Chase Matheney from Charlotte (N.C.) Lation School. . . . Florida State has received commitments from 6-5 LaMarr Greer from Cape May, N.J., and 6-4 Geoff Brower from Fort Walton Beach, Fla. Recruiting analyst Bob Gibbons rates both in the top 100 prospects nationally. . . . Jerry Braswell, a 6-1 guard from Randolph-Clay High in Cuthbert, Ga., is going to Wake Forest.
\ MCNEIL A PRIZE: Radford University women's basketball coach Lubomyr Lichonczak must be delighted by the performance this fall of Christiansburg's Rebecca McNeil, who committed to the Highlanders in mid-September.
McNeil, a 6-foot inside player, is the leading scorer among those Timesland teams that play girls' basketball in the fall with a 21.0 average and ranks among the top 10 in three other categories: field-goal percentage (54.3, fifth), free-throw percentage (76.1, third) and rebounding (9.8, 10th).
by CNB