6 - The _gan Daily - Kickoff 94-Friday, September 9,191 -- 0 The Michigan Daily - Ki Play speaks loudly for efficient Collins Fighting illini boast nation's bes On most teams the quarterback gets the most attention. He is the star. He gets theglory. Alookatalistof Heisman Trophy winners proves that the quarter- back dominates the limelight. However, quarterbacks at Michi- gan often take a backseat to other offensive stars. Ron Johnson ran all over the place in the late 1960s. An- thony Carter and Desmond Howard did everything in their respective time with the Wolverines. Now, Tyrone Wheatley makes the highlight films with his feats. Recently Michigan signal callers have been in the spotlight a little more. During his time, former Wolver- ine Elvis Grbac rewrote Michigan passing records. And beginning with last season Todd Collins has contin- ued much of that record setting. Collins played some in 1992 as Grbac's backup before assuming the starting role in 1993. The Walpole, Mass., native threw for 2,509 yards a season ago, the second best in Michi- gan history, setting season records for pass attempts (296) and completions (189) in the process. After his perfor- mance against Boston College in which he threw for over 250 yards, Collins is on pace to become the first Michigan quarterback to throw for 3,000 yards in a season. However, this will only occur if coach Gary Moeller abandons the run- ning game. So don't count on seeing Collins' name atop that record category. Don't count on his name being brought up when the top quarterbacks are mentioned either. Georgia's Eric Zeier, Southern Cal's Rob Johnson and Stanford's Steve Stenstrom get included in Heisman talk and pre- season All-America teams. Collins receives few headlines. He is just efficient (a category in which Collins was second in the Big Ten last year). "Michigan isn't renowned as a passing school," Collins says. "I think everybody wants to be listed among the top quarterbacks in the nation. My measure is wins. If we win the Rose Bowl, then I'll consider myself one of the best." A 6-foot-5, 229-pound senior, Collins brings poise and an accurate arm to the offense. He can go deep, as evinced by his 90-yard touchdown to Derrick Alexander against Illinois last year (the longest passing play in Michigan history). He can swing the ball to one of the running backs out of The award going to the best col- lege linebacker honors the greatest to play the position - Dick Butkus. Not only did he destroy players who came into his territory while playing with the Bears but did so while at Illinois Dana Howard seeks to bring the trophy to its rightful place in 1994. "The Butkus was one of the key reasons why I came back," Howard says. "I wanted to bring it back to Illinois, where it belongs." If the senior All-American does not tote the award back to Memorial Stadium, then one of his fellow line- backers may. The quartet of Howard, John Holecek, Simeon Rice and Kevin Hardy make up what Fighting Illini coach Lou Tepper calls, "the finest collection of linebackers I have ever been around." The foursome remains the heart on an Illinois defense that returns all 11 starters from a 5-6 campaign last season. Rice, Howard and Holecek earned spots on the all-conference first team in 1993 while Howard was named co-defensive player of the year (with Ohio State's Dan Wilkinson). Although Penn State has been dubbed, "Linebacker U.," for the many great players who played the position for the Nittany Lions, that title moves from State College to Champaign, at least for 1994. The quartet helped the Illini de- fense limit opponents to just under 310 yards per game, good enou 14th nationally in overall de Yet defensive success does n ways produce victories. For thelIllini to get into the po son, the offense must be more c tent. In its six losses last year, Il scored 52 points compared wit in its wins. The up-and-dowr can be traced to erratic but tal quarterback Johnny Johnson. Johnson led the Illini to vict five of his eight starts but comp just 47 percent of his passes (13 287) and threw 10 intercep Johnson proves troublesome wh roams outside the pocket. He scrambles more than ev cause of an average offensive Carr a '.4 Ai The UnivemLSy Program From Standard Fedral Bank COLLEGE FOOTBALL POLL- YOUR VOTE RANKS WOLVERINES 1-900-378-0319 $1.49 1st min., 4.99 each add'l min., avg. call 2 min., 18+, TT phone, Info-Dial, Altamonte Spgs., FL 407-682-5698 CLIP-SAVE MR YOUR COMPUTER DATA ON CD-ROM Archiving - Distribution Multi-Media One-Offs Maumee Data Consulting P.O. Box 975 Maumee, Ohio 43537 419-897-9916 Collins ,: _> : DISTINGUISHED LECTURE, SERIES N NATIONAL RESEARCH POLICY of- Get a no-annual-fee VISA* Classic Card and a low-cost Regular Checking Account including no per-check fees (and we even buy back your old checks*) with the University Program from Standard Federal. Use this financial aid to buy books, supplies, trips home and other essentials. Then obtain a Personal Identification Number (PIN) for your University Program VISA Card. It will help you access your account, without transaction fees, through more than 200 Standard Federal Cash Machine ATMs and Standard Federal's TeleBanking services. You can also use your card at thousands of CIRRUS" NetworkOne' MoneyMover* and MagicLine* ATM machines! Call or visit Standard Federal Bank today for more information about how you can enjoy the financial aid of the University Program. , .i ,. _ cecrad TUESDAY SEPTEMBER 13, 1994- 4:00 P.M* RACKHAM AMPHITHEATRE PANEL DISCUSSION AND RECEPTION TO FOLLOW. PANEL TO BE ANNOUNCED. PRESENTED BY THE OFFICE OF THE VICE PRESIDENT FOR RESEARCH THE UNIVEsRyY OF MICHIGAN the backfield with touch. See his game-clinching touchdown passes to Ch6 Foster against Penn State and Ohio State. Despite his fine skills as a passer, Collins remains a pure pocket quarter- back. He moves well behind the offen- sive line but once outside containment, he lacks the nimble feet of Colorado's Kordell Stewart or Illinois' Johnny Johnson, but so do many. Much of the success for this year's team depends on Collins' durability. The Wolverines possess plenty of other quarterbacks but none of them can match the senior's leadership or experience on the field. "I'm more relaxed and in more command this year," Collins reveals. "This year I'm trying to elevate ev- eryone else's play." Jason Carr, despite having thrown only six passes in his career before this season, begins the year as the No. 2 signal caller. "I've always been told it's a lot harder to be the backup than starting," Carr says. "You just don't have as much experience." Scott Loeffler offers plenty of ability at the third spot on the depth chart. He did not see any game action as a freshman in 1993 but may see some this year as Moeller looks for a quarterback to replace Collins in 1995. Freshman Scott Dreisbach, ranked No. 16 in the country by SuperPrep Illustrated as a senior at Penn High School in Mishawaka,Ind., and sophomore Brian Griese round out the quarterback list. - Chad A. 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