August 16, 2001

JOHNSON PLEASED WITH PALADINS' FIRST DAY IN PADS;
BATTLE LOOMS AT FULLBACK; LINEBACKERS CONTINUE TO DRAW PRAISE

GREENVILLE -- Despite some expected sloppy play in Furman's first day of practice in full pads, Paladin head coach Bobby Johnson said he was satisfied with the effort of his team following an afternoon session that included an extended scrimmage session.

"I told the guys afterwards that being the first scrimmage was no excuse for being sloppy but that I was proud of the way they've practiced all week and the effort they've given," Johnson said. "A lot of good things happened, but we made some mistakes. The most important thing is we got all of it on film and will now sit down and show them what they did wrong and work on correcting it."

Preceded by work on special teams and other drills, the afternoon scrimmage session included virtually every player in the program. Among the few players unavailable for contact work were returning starting nose guard Ryan Spencer (back strain), flanker Isaac West (groin), and fullback Eric Emerson (bruised shoulder). All three are expected to be ready for Furman's next scrimmage session on Saturday in Paladin Stadium.

Emerson's expected return will give Johnson his first look at the highly regarded 5-foot-11, 230-pound freshman, who is looking to compete with a pair of redshirt freshmen, Corey Tant and Al Means, for the starting fullback job vacated by the graduation of three-year starter Derek Russell.

"Eric has a lot of ability. He's got good size, can run, and has shown us he can catch the ball out of the backfield, which is another dimension for us because it could allow us to spread the field more," Johnson added. "We're also pleased with Corey and Al. Corey can slip through there in a hurry like he did on one run, and Al has good size and can do a lot things. It may be fullback by committee this year."

On the defensive side, Johnson continued to heap praise on his linebacking corps headed up by All-America and reigning Southern Conference Defensive Player-of-the-Year Will Bouton.

"Will made a lot plays, but that doesn't surprise me at all. That's what we expect out of him. We think we've got a good set of linebackers. Cedrick Ritter, I think, has had an excellent preseason, and Keito Whetstone has made a lot of improvement. And Mike Killian has been working at linebacker and defensive end, so we're trying to find out what's best for him and for us in that situation. The challenge is getting the best combination on the field."

One position switch announced on Thursday was freshman Willis Sudderth, who moved from defensive end to tight end.

Furman's two Friday practices begin at 6:20 a.m. and 3:20 p.m. and are open to the public. Fan Day is scheduled for Saturday at 1:00 p.m. at Timmons Arena prior to Furman's scrimmage, which starts at approximately 2:30 p.m. at Paladin Stadium.

Furman, which opens the 2001 season at Wyoming on Sept. 1, returns 19 starters off a 2000 squad that posted a 9-3 record. The Paladins were ranked No. 6 in the Sports Network NCAA I-AA Preseason Football Poll, which was released on Monday.