Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: WEDNESDAY, September 6, 1995 TAG: 9509060131
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: DOUG DOUGHTY STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: CHARLOTTESVILLE LENGTH: Medium
One of the developing Virginia football stories this fall deals with a once- promising quarterback making the move to wide receiver.
No. Not Symmion Willis.
Unlike Willis, who left the team rather than change positions, Derick Byrd has prospered since electing to catch passes instead of throw them.
Byrd, a 6-foot-3, 196-pound sophomore from Fredericksburg, has at least one reception in all 14 games of his college career.
As a freshman, however, that's all Byrd had - one reception - and his day was done.
``I got a lot of my receptions on the same play,'' said Byrd, who had 14 receptions in 12 games. ``It's called `Jailbreak.' By the end of the season, teams had seen it so much on film that I couldn't come in the game without somebody yelling, `Jailbreak, Jailbreak.' ''
The Cavaliers haven't stopped using the play, a flanker screen that calls for Byrd to run toward the center of the field along the line of scrimmage, but this year his role has been diversified.
Byrd has caught three passes in each of UVa's first two games, despite arthroscopic knee surgery that left him doubtful for the Cavaliers' opening game at Michigan.
``The doctor told me I had a pretty strong knee,'' Byrd said. ``They were predicting I wouldn't play against Michigan, but I was back practicing two weeks after surgery and didn't really get any swelling or any pain.''
Although he hasn't started a game yet, Byrd gets frequent playing time in UVa's three- and four-receiver sets.
``He and [Germane] Crowell could be big-league receivers if they keep improving,'' head coach George Welsh said. ``They both can run well and they're tall. They have real good hands.''
Byrd had never played wide receiver until the spring of his freshman year at Virginia, when he asked Welsh if he could move. He had been the scout-team quarterback the previous fall, when he gave the No. 1 defense fits with his impersonation of Florida State quarterback Charlie Ward.
``It looked like the quarterback position would be up for grabs,'' Byrd said, ``but they had Symmion and Mike Groh coming back and they had to get [practice] time for them. I wasn't getting the repetitions I needed to learn the offense.''
Welsh's response was to ask Byrd to stay at quarterback for another week. Byrd got Welsh's attention - but, maybe not in the desired manner - when he ran for two touchdowns and passed for a third in the Cavaliers' next scrimmage.
``I went back to Welsh and he said, `You have too much talent to be sitting on the bench,' '' Byrd related.
Welsh also told Byrd that he could return to quarterback in the spring, if that was his desire.
``Since I was in the second spot at wide receiver, I guess they decided to leave me,'' Byrd said. ``I'm sure they would have given me the opportunity to go back if I would have asked. But they had recruited [quarterback] Aaron Brooks at that point and I figured they didn't need me.''
Groh, who had a chance to observe Byrd as a quarterback, thinks he made the right decision.
``He was an athlete,'' Groh said. ``A lot of people don't understand the distinction between a quarterback and an athlete playing quarterback. He's at the best position for him. He can have fun and not have to be perfect.''
Byrd is not the first Virginia quarterback to make the move. Harrison Davis, who started at quarterback for the Cavaliers in the early 1970s, later played in the National Football League as a wide receiver. Brian Satola, a converted quarterback, caught passes for both UVa touchdowns in a 14-9 victory over North Carolina in 1991.
Nevertheless, Byrd understands why Willis declined the invitation and effectively put an end to his college career.
``I don't think I would have been too interested, either, if I was in his place,'' Byrd said. ``I was more of a running-type quarterback; Symmion could run, but he was a strong passer.''
Oddly, Maryland wanted Byrd as a wide receiver and the Terrapins were his favorite team, ``but they didn't show much interest in me,'' he said. He picked the Cavaliers over North Carolina after a year at Fork Union Military Academy.
Byrd did not have any Division I-A offers at James Monroe High School in Fredericksburg, partly because of his shaky academic status after three years. Although he had a 3.7 grade-point average as a senior, most schools had crossed him off their list.
Byrd is one of eight UVa football players from Fork Union, located 30 miles southeast of Charlottesville. One of his roommates is Fork Union alumnus Harold Deane, star point guard for the Cavaliers' basketball team.
``We've got one of the cleanest apartments around,'' Byrd said. ``We don't leave in the morning without making our beds. We've got the military corners and everything.''
by CNB