August 23, 1997
GREENVILLE -- Furman University head football coach Bobby Johnson emerged from Saturday's scrimmage in Paladin Stadium saying he was pleased with the improvement of his team's offense and, in particular, the execution of the squad's quarterbacks.
"I thought we got in a lot of good work, and offensively our execution was much more consistent than it was in our last two scrimmages," Johnson said following the nearly two-hour session. "I was pleased with the play of our quarterbacks and thought they all did a nice job leading our team and running the offense. We mixed things up a bit, but we weren't trying to be flashy. We just concentrated on execution and tried to get the ball to the right people."
Senior quarterback Chris Jonas (Birmingham, Ala.), the Paladins' projected starter, completed 5-of-8 passes for 69 yards, and also rushed three times for 41 yards to pace Furman's offense. Backup freshman quarterback Brent Rickman (Rome, Ga.) and redshirt freshman Justin Hill (Greer, S.C.) also saw action, with Rickman completing 7-of-15 passes for 65 yards and touchdown, and Hill completing 2-of-4 passes for 22 yards. Hill also rushed three times for 41 yards. Reserve sophomore quarterback Rick Addy (Chapin, S.C.) connected on 1-of-5 pass attempts for 16 yards.
The scrimmage marked the first notable work of the pre-season for Justin Hill, a former all-state performer at Greer High School who has been limited in the pre-season following shoulder surgery in the spring. Johnson refused to indicate whether Hill or Rickman would claim the Paladins' backup quarterback role, saying he was pleased with some of what he saw in both players Saturday.
"It was good to get Justin back out there, but it's early for him, and he hasn't had the reps. Still, we're encouraged by his progress and the play of Brent Rickman," Johnson added.
The Paladins came away from Saturday's scrimmage injury-free according to head athletic trainer Brian Reese, but several players did not participate part due to injury. They included junior tailback Ernest Crosby (Greenville, S.C.), sophomore tailback Quinton Burton (Hartwell, Ga.), redshirt freshman offensive tackle Josh Moore (Cross Anchor, S.C.), and junior cornerback Rico Perkins (Somerset, Ky.).
Sophomore placekicker Jason Wells (Lawton, Okla.) connected on field goal attempts from distances of 45, 32, and 47 yards to apparently solidify his role as the Paladins' placekicker for 1997. A year ago, he converted only 7-of-17 field goal attempts. Furman will take Sunday off before returning for twice daily practices on Monday. The Paladins, a consensus pre-season No. 1 pick to win the Southern Conference, open the 1997 season on Thursday, Sept. 4, against Samford in Birmingham, Ala.