Cincy has not named a QB ...

[E.T.]

And I thought only USF was in trouble.  ;D

Wess gives UC another option

Adds running element at QB

BY BILL KOCH | ENQUIRER STAFF WRITER

David Wess has never thrown a pass in a college game. He has spent only 20 days in practice at quarterback, and the coaches say he doesn't fully understand the offense.

Because he has so many factors working against him, he will not be the University of Cincinnati's starting quarterback when the Bearcats open their season Sept. 2 against Eastern Kentucky.

But he should be.

UC head coach Mark Dantonio made it clear after Tuesday's scrimmage at the Higher Ground Conference Center in West Harrison, Ind., that he would choose the starter from between senior Nick Davila, who now appears to have the edge, and sophomore Dustin Grutza, last year's starter.

But Wess, a 6-foot-2, 215-pound sophomore from Columbus, can do what neither Davila nor Grutza can. He has the speed and the acceleration to be as much of a running threat as he is a passing threat.

Wess, a high school quarterback before he was moved to the defensive secondary last year, is back at his natural position and playing as if he had never left it.

He completed five of seven passes Tuesday for 87 yards and one touchdown. He also ran for an apparent 40-yard touchdown that the coaches later took away from him because they ruled that he would have been down if the defense had been allowed full contact on a quarterback.

"It's a good situation," Dantonio said of UC's quarterback position. "I think we've got two guys that played pretty well and are game functional right now. Then we've got another guy who, maybe, as time goes on, maybe he can get in the mix.

"But the learning curve is there. It's pretty drastic. These guys understand. We'd have to change our offense around a little bit (for Wess)."

So change it.

This wasn't an offensive juggernaut last season under Grutza. UC finished seventh in the eight-team Big East Conference in total offense.

The Beacats averaged 323.4 yards and 17.4 points per game last season.

They were predictable and not very entertaining, producing only nine plays of 30 yards or more the entire season.

Wess has the potential to light up an offense that could use a little luster. Even without a thorough understanding of the offense, more often than not he moves his teammates down the field during practice.

Because of his athletic ability, his presence on a team with an unproven offensive line would allow UC to have one more weapon in its arsenal. It would force linebackers and defensive backs to concern themselves with Wess' running threat, creating openings in the passing game for the Bearcats' talented receivers.

And because Wess is only a sophomore, he has plenty of time to grow with the program.

If Davila is the starting quarterback - as it appears he will be - he'll have only one year to run the offense. That means the Bearcats would have to start over again next year with their third different starting quarterback in three years.

Why not let Wess get his feet wet this season so he's ready to go next year when the Bearcats will be a junior and senior-dominated team with a better chance to compete in the Big East?

Of course it would be a huge risk putting Wess at quarterback because of his inexperience and tenuous grasp of the offense. Davila and Grutza both are safer choices.

But this is a program screaming for attention in a market dominated by the NFL Bengals, a program that has to entertain as well as win if it's going to attract fans.

This is a program that needs to take a chance now and again.

http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060823/SPT0101/608230357/1064

[BullyPulpit]

Look how important having a stellar defense is. We could be in the same predicament as Cincy. Their issues at QB look a lot like ours. Of course speed is not a problem on our team, but thank God for our Tenacious-D

[Triple B]

If Davila is the starting quarterback - as it appears he will be -

That's kind of surprising. I thought the other kid played pretty darn well us considering he was a freshman. Was Davila hurt last year?

[E.T.]

... I thought the ... kid played pretty darn well ... considering he was a freshman.

...

Hope all of us will be saying this at season's end.

8-)

[Triple B]

... I thought the ... kid played pretty darn well ... considering he was a freshman.

...

Hope all of us will be saying this at season's end.

8-)

[E.T.]

[JoeB]

I thought Dustin Grutzka was going to be the starter....?  

[ksquire]

Wasn't too concerned with Cincy from the get go

[E.T.]

I put Cincy in with UCF, Kansas & UNC ... should win, but we NEED to play our best!

We should have beat Pitt & UConn easily, but ...  :-[

I see a similiar score as last years, with the same result. A 100 yard rusher & a QB with over 50% of his passes completed and no INT's - just like last year. But we need to stop them better than what we did last year ... and LESS penalties - 18 for 137 yards!

>

[smazza]

et-this isnt the type of company usf should keeping

indecisiveness is a trait of a bad team

if i posted this-you would criticize me. and tb would have posted the pictrue of guy hitting head

what gives!