THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Monday, December 5, 1994 TAG: 9412050140
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C3 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY JIM DUCIBELLA, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: TAMPA, FLA. LENGTH: Medium: 76 lines
Brian Mitchell's team-record-setting 48th kickoff return of the season will be one he won't soon forget.
Mitchell fielded the opening kickoff against Tampa Bay on Sunday and maneuvered to the 25-yard line, when he was steamrolled by Buccaneers special-teamer Curtis Buckley.
Buckley went helmet-to-helmet with Mitchell. The force of the blow caused Mitchell to fumble (Buckley recovered) and left him sprawled on the Tampa Stadium turf for more than five minutes.
Mitchell said he lost consciousness momentarily, but he jogged off under his own power. He came back to return punts and kickoffs, rush from scrimmage and catch a 22-yard pass as a wide receiver. It wasn't nearly enough as the Redskins lost, 26-21.
``I never saw him coming,'' said Mitchell, who admitted that he had traded barbs with Buckley before the game. ``He got a good lick on me. I just know that he hit me and I locked up.''
Mitchell's 21-yard kickoff return in the second quarter gave him 2,000 all-purpose yards this season. He's the first Redskin to achieve that. But he took little solace in those stats.
``Hey, they got the best of us today,'' Mitchell said. ``But they've got to come to us in a couple of weeks (Tampa Bay visits Washington on Dec. 18). We'll see what happens then.''
SOME DEBUT: Off and on the past six weeks, the Redskins have sent Olanda Truitt deep downfield on long pass plays that smacked of desperation.
Sunday, desperation became inspiration as Truitt scored his first NFL touchdown.
With time running out in the first half, the Redskins sent three receivers to one side of the field, Truitt among them. He drew double coverage but, inexplicably, both Bucs defenders left him. Truitt kept running and quarterback Heath Shuler hit him with a 77-yard touchdown strike that gave Washington a 21-17 halftime lead.
``I've been contributing in practice since the Redskins acquired me,'' said the soft-spoken Truitt, wiping his glasses. ``They've attempted to get the ball to me before, but today we were finally able to connect.
``This was my first NFL touchdown, and I was excited. But I quickly realized that it was just the first half. I knew we needed a good second half to win.''
Truitt was wide open earlier, but Shuler fired the ball well over his head. Later, Truitt was behind the Bucs' secondary but Shuler threw to someone else.
``Yeah, I had a chance at three today,'' Truitt conceded, adding that he wasn't sure whether Sunday's performance will open new opportunities for him.
``I don't know if I'll get more chances,'' he said. ``You never know. Winning is the most important thing. They'll do what they think is best to achieve that.''
MILESTONES: Michael Husted's 53-yard field goal in the first quarter was the third-longest of the former Virginia Cavalier's pro career. . . . Redskins punter Reggie Roby averaged 56 yards on six kicks. . . . Desmond Howard set a career-best mark for the second time in three weeks. Howard caught five passes for 130 yards, the latter figure beating his previous high of 107 yards, set in Dallas on Nov. 20. . . . Andre Collins' 92-yard touchdown run with an interception was the third-longest in Redskins history and the first time a Washington linebacker has returned two interceptions for touchdowns in one season. His other came against Indianapolis. . . . Anthony McDowell's 13-yard touchdown reception in the second quarter was the first scoring catch by a Tampa Bay running back in 19 games.
QUOTING . . .
Redskins coach Norv Turner, on Shuler's performance - ``I know there were not many bright things out there, but Heath did some good things. I'm not ready to say he played well, but he made some good plays.''
Howard, on his 15 receptions in the last three games, one fewer than his total the previous nine weeks - ``They're throwing me the ball. I'm not doing anything different lately. I can't control where the quarterback looks, and it so happens now they're looking my way.'' by CNB