ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Thursday, July 25, 1996 TAG: 9607250018
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C-4 EDITION: METRO
COLUMN: COLLEGE NOTEBOOK
SOURCE: DOUG DOUGHTY
Virginia Tech football signee Robert Adams, rated one of the top five prospects in Virginia by The Roanoke Times, will have to wait before making his Hokies' debut.
Adams, who failed by one point to make the required score on the American College Test, will enroll at Tech this fall as a partial qualifier.
Adams may receive scholarship aid and will be allowed to practice with the team, but he will lose a year's eligibility.
``I don't know if I should say this or not,'' said Adams, a 6-foot-5, 230-pound defensive end from William Campbell High School in Campbell County, ``but, if I had a choice, I probably would have chosen to be redshirted.''
Adams did not make All-Group AA as a senior, but he has been compared to one-time William Campbell star Charles Haley because of his potential. There was some talk that he would play for Hargrave Military Academy if he did qualify.
``I thought about that,'' Adams said. ``It was not an easy decision. I thought till the end that I would get the test score, though. It was a real big blow.''
Tech has not previously taken partial qualifiers; however, eligibility standards stiffened this year and basketball prospect Jermaine Kilgore from Hargrave was accepted by Tech even though he did not have the required grade-point average out of high school.
DELAYED ENTRY: Defensive back Donald Harris, considered one of the top prospects in the Washington, D.C., area, will not be entering Tech until the second semester. Harris underwent reconstructive knee surgery this week after he was injured in an all-star game.
nAnthony Kapp, a reserve offensive lineman, did not have enough credit hours to keep his eligibility and is not expected to return to Tech. Kapp originally signed with Tech in 1993 and enrolled in the winter of '94 but has never played enough to letter.
DEVILS' DELIGHT: Duke has received a football commitment from Nate Krill, a 6-7, 235-pound tight end from McLean High School who is easily one of the top 10 prospects in the state and a likely preseason All-American.
Krill received his first offer from Virginia in January and said Wednesday that the Cavaliers were in his final three. His mother has a degree from UVa, but he sensed far greater interest from Duke and Northwestern.
``From the beginning, it's [UVa] where I wanted to go,'' he said. ``It's the perfect place for me - two hours from my home - but I didn't hear from them as much as I would have liked. I figured if they really wanted me, they would have recruited me a lot harder.''
IN THE PROS: Ex-Virginia quarterback Mike Groh has signed with the Baltimore Ravens and is in a battle for the No.3 job with fellow free agent Scott Otis, a one-time West Virginia quarterback who finished his college career at Glenville (W.Va.) State.
The newcomers caught a break when seventh-round draft pick Jon Stark underwent a shoulder operation that will keep him out of training camp. The Ravens' quarterback coach is Don Strock, a collegiate standout at Virginia Tech and for many years a prized NFL back-up.
HASKINS HOOPLA: VMI's Thomas Haskins has been named to the preseason Division I-AA All-America team picked by The Sporting News and has been rated the No.2 Division I-AA running back behind Alfredo Anderson of Idaho State.
Ed Perry of James Madison is rated the No.1 tight end in Division I-AA by The Sporting News and the No.8 tight end in the country, regardless of classification. William and Mary offensive guard Josh Beyer and defensive back Darren Sharper also made preseason All-American.
HAGOOD HAILED: The Sporting News listed Virginia Tech offensive tackle Jay Hagood among 25 Division I-A players who are ``Lost in the Shadows.'' Hagood and linebacker Brandon Semones from Glenvar High School were joined on the preseason All-Big East team by fellow Hokies Cornell Brown, Waverly Jackson and Torrian Gray.
TRIP JEOPARDIZED: Virginia, which begins a foreign tour Aug.14, may have been forced to scrap the trip when the NCAA did not grant it approval to use Chris Alexander, who completed his eligibility last season.
Coach Jeff Jones said Wednesday that he doesn't know whether to expect 7-4 Chase Metheney when practices start next Thursday. The UVa staff has had difficulty contacting Metheney, who has investigated a possible transfer to Iowa.
Metheney already has been to Europe once this summer on a team coached by Iowa assistant Gary Close. Metheney reportedly took a liking to Close's coaching style and requested a release from his scholarship that enabled him to visit Iowa and South Carolina.
WAITING LIST: Maryland's top-rated basketball signee, 6-8 LaRon Cephas from Wilmington, Del., failed to meet NCAA eligibility guidelines and will sit out the fall while preparing to re-take the Scholastic Assessment Test, with hopes of enrolling in January.
Coach Gary Williams said that Cephas may have been victimized by attending private school because the grading scale might have been tougher. Cephas told The Washington Post that he had a 2.34 grade-point average in the ``core'' curriculum and a 790 on the SAT.
TRAVELS WITH HOWIE: Howie Burgess from Roanoke continued to move up the college officiating ladder when his mentor, Dale Phillips, was named supervisor of basketball officials for the new Big 12 Conference.
Burgess, a 37-year-old Cave Spring High School graduate, already was scheduled to call games this year in Conference USA, the Sun Belt Conference and the Southern Conference. Burgess worked the Sun Belt Tournament last year and hopes to reach the NCAA Tournament in 1997.
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