As the pigskin turns ... a tale of three quarterbacks

Moore faces QB dilemma; Paladins come to Boone for SoCon showdown

Ty Brueilly Sports Beat

At the beginning of the football season, it looked as if there were only two go-to quarterbacks, regular starter Daniel Jeremiah and backup quarterback David Reaves.

A dent came in this plan when a knee injury in the first game of the season sidelined Jeremiah for four weeks. This injury created an opening for sophomore redshirt Joe Burchette.

Burchette then took his chance and ran with it by stepping up in the key games for Appalachian State University, mainly in its victory over East Tennessee State University this past weekend.

Burchette proved to be more than a worthy quarterback by showing his accuracy and power in his right rocket arm, known to teammate and wide receiver Joey Gibson as the "gun-slinger."

Emerging as a savior to the offensive woes of the first half of the game against East Tennessee, Burchette has forced his way into the picture of starting quarterbacks.

What makes matters more complicated for Head Coach Jerry Moore is the fact that Jeremiah's sidelining days are over. He is now ready to play.

In the 2000 media guide before the season opener, Moore said, "If [Reaves] couldn't run the option, or if [Jeremiah] couldn't pass the ball, I wouldn't be comfortable with either of them at quarterback.

Each may have an edge in one facet or another, but each can do both, and they have proven they can run our offense effectively."

No comment from Moore was given in the 2000 media guide about Burchette, but obviously Burchette has come of age, saving the team, especially when Reaves could not run the option effectively against East Tennessee.

"[Burchette] gave us a huge lift," said Moore.

Moore, when faced with the question of how easy it is to juggle three quarterbacks, said, "It's a great problem."

When asked following the victory at East Tennessee whom he would name as the starter for their next game, Moore said, "I wouldn't name it right now. There are a lot of emotions. We'll look at the tape and evaluate that.

Obviously [Burchette] plays extremely well. He makes things happen, heÕs got good vision, he's strong and he's big." But on the flipside, Burchette gave a different answer after the game: "Coach Best said I will start against Furman next week." Rob Best is the team's offensive coordinator.

After Burchette's statement, he was then asked how he felt about going from number three on the depth chart to starting against Furman University.

"At the beginning, we were all equal," said Burchette. "I didn't play too well and the other two stepped it up, but I thought all along I could be on this team so it's really not that big of a surprise to me." At press time Moore had not yet announced a starter.

Receiver Daniel Wilcox said about the three quarterbacks, "WeÕve got three great guys. [Jeremiah's] back already. It's a hard decision. We now have three guys that can take us to a win." When asked whom he preferred as quarterback, Wilcox smiled and said, "No comment."

Whomever Wilcox prefers, there is still a newly created controversy with the three quarterbacks, especially with this being Jeremiah's, as well as Reaves's, final season.

Reaves and Jeremiah have to watch out for Burchette, a sophomore who has stepped up, jeopardizing their starting positions.

It promises to be lively in practice this week as Moore and staff decide who will be behind center when the Mountaineers and Paladins do battle Saturday.

Women Soccer Falls, 1-2

Costello scores early, but ASU can't keep lead

Andrea Barrows Sports Minor

The ASU women's soccer team played a close game against the Liberty University Flames Tuesday night at Kidd Brewer Stadium, but despite all efforts the Mountaineers came up short in overtime.

Appalachian's freshman, Kristen Costello, of Virginia Beach, VA, scored the team's first goal at the 32:44 mark of the first half by chipping the ball just to the right of the Flame's goalkeeper, Amy Moxley.

This goal was the only one scored in the half, giving Appalachian the 1-0 lead at halftime. The 1-0 lead was not enough to keep the Flames down. At 78:39 Liberty University's Breanna Jacinto scored her teamÕs first goal off a free kick to tie the game, 1-1.

Regulation time ran out and the game went into overtime. At 101:36 Liberty player Jenny Davis scored the team's second goal to lock up the victory for Liberty, 2-1.

The ASU women have a record of 4-7-1 after last night's match. They will play their next game at 7:30 p.m., Oct. 6, at Kidd Brewer Stadium against Southern Conference opponent Western Carolina University.

Mountaineers and a QB to be named later host Furman

Chris Boyce Varsity Sports

Images of burning vehicles and injured members of the Appalachian State University football family early Sunday morning sobered the coaching staff and team, fresh off of a win over East Tennessee State University, and changed a victory celebration into a scary situation.

The tragedy will certainly give the team something to think about this week in practice, but head coach Jerry Moore feels that the seventh-ranked Mountaineers (3-1, 2-0 in Southern Conference) are ready to focus on the Furman University Paladins, whom they will square off against this Saturday at noon.

"Our coaches and players did all they could do," said Moore. "There's nothing else left for them to do. It'd be like one of your parents being sick or close friends being sick; youÕre obviously concerned but you go about your business. ... Our focus, I think, from today on will be toward getting prepared for Furman."

Both coaches and players played critical roles in helping the injured persons in the van. ÒWe were actually the first people on the scene," said Moore.

"We were probably two or three minutes behind it. The coaches did a good job of getting those kids out of that van and the players did a good job getting them back to where our buses were and getting them to a safe spot."

The incident has put the coaches about one day behind schedule, going into a match against SoCon powerhouse Furman.

Furman (5-0, 2-0 in conference) comes to Kidd-Brewer Stadium as the only undefeated member of the conference, ranked fourth in the nation in Division I-AA.

"You donÕt ever overlook Furman," said Moore. "If you do, you're foolish. Furman, year in and year out, is one of the better teams in our league. ... TheyÕre always a hard team to contend with and it ought to bring out the best in you."

Leading the Paladins this season is running back Louis Ivory, the nationÕs leading rusher with 181.4 yards per game. Ivory has rushed for 907 yards and nine touchdowns through the Paladins first five games. Ivory's 8.2-yards per carry is also the best in the nation.

"He's a terrific back and he's the best back probably that we've played against since the kid from Troy [Demontray Carter]," said Moore. "HeÕs a lot like him. Given the two, I'd probably just as soon have Ivory."

The ASU defense will need to be up to the task, especially in the area of rushing defense. But after allowing East Tennessee only 73-yards rushing last Saturday, that should be no problem.

"We had two turnovers that gave them great field position and we held them to a total of six points," said Moore.

"Then the drive that Joe [Burchette] had that took us down, and we went ahead just before the half, 7-6. Ninety percent of that was a credit to our defense." The Mountaineers have certainly not forgotten the last time they played the Paladins, losing 31-25, and realize that reducing mistakes and penalties are keys to a victory.

"Down there [Greenville, S.C.] before, we made a lot of mistakes," said Moore. "Sometimes there were mistakes we made and sometimes there were mistakes that they caused us to make," Moore said.

"I think the number-one concern right now is to make sure that we eliminate mistakes because we know weÕre playing a very, very good football team."

The most consistent problem ASU has had this season stems from the kicking game, an area that still plagued Appalachian against East Tennessee.

Three missed field goals and a missed extra point on Saturday has left Coach Moore scratching his head.

"Right now one of our major concerns would be our kicking," said Moore. "ThereÕs not a big confidence level right there with us. Football-wise that's probably my biggest concern."

ASU must find a way to correct these problems, especially going into a two-week stretch that includes two of the best in the Southern Conference, Furman and Georgia Southern University.

"The only way I know to correct anything is to work at it,Ó said Moore. "If these two guys can't get it done then you find another kicker. Every other phase of the kicking game's been very solid," Moore said.

"Our kickoff returns and punt returns have been good and our punting's been good. It's just this one little part of it. I say little but it is very, very critical. You can't continue to miss short kicks and extra points."

Cross Country tears it up at Blue Ridge Open

Chris Boyce Varsity Sports

If there was any question as to who would contend this year for The Southern Conference Cross Country Championship going into Friday's Blue Ridge Open, any uncertainties should be cleared up by now.

The Appalachian State University men's cross country team placed first and the women's team finished second in the Boone event. The men were led by senior Ben Bissette, junior Alan Marion and freshmen Joe Halin and Kenan Demir.

Bissette finished first with a time of 25:23.5, while Halin took fifth place with a time of 25:44.6. Marion finished right after Halin in sixth with a time of 25:48.7. The women enjoyed similar success, with sophomore Sarah Primeau placing fifth with a time of 18:38.3 and freshman Chelsea Jacobs finishing 11th.

The men as a team scored 38, which was 14 points better than second place Eastern Kentucky University(52). Furman University finished third with a score of 92. The ASU women tied for second with Eastern Kentucky with a score of 71, which was 39 points behind Furman.

Furman dominated the women's race, taking four of the top-ten positions. The Paladin's Jill Bradley won the race with a time of 17:35.5.