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| From catching passes to throwing them, Taurice Scott has proven that he can do it all for the Purple Raiders offense. Photo by Kelsey Shewbridge |
Quarterback play has been a key component for Mount Union, especially the past three years.
Kevin Burke led the squad to three Stagg Bowls and one national championship in his time under center for the Purple Raiders. Along the way, he became the first two-time Gagliardi Trophy winner. His 5,011 yards of total offense set a program record last year.
When it came time to find Burke’s replacement, Mount Union looked to…a wide receiver? Taurice Scott seized the position this fall. The senior made a successful conversion from wide receiver, where he caught 82 passes for 1,112 yards and earned all-conference second-team honors a year ago.
While Scott was focused on catching footballs instead of throwing them last fall, he has plenty of experience as a signal-caller. He was a standout quarterback at Alliance High School and when he stayed in his hometown to attend Mount Union, he began his collegiate career at the position. He saw limited action his first two years before making the position switch to slot receiver.
“We had tried him at corner the spring before his junior year. We did that for the first eight practices and then tried him at wide receiver for the second eight,” Mount Union coach Vince Kehres said. “He is a great athlete. He proved to be very good in that position. That slot position gets a lot of targets in our offense, a lot of them are short, intermediate passes. He has the ability to slip a tackle and turn a short catch into 10 or 15 yards. He was our leading kick returner, too.”
While he thrived at receiver, Scott wanted to get back under center.
“I thought it was pretty easy making the change from QB to receiver because you only focus on yourself and your patterns or blocks,” he said. “When you are the quarterback, you are in control of the whole field and you have your teammates depending on you.
“I miss being quarterback. I enjoyed being a wide receiver, but there’s still the quarterback inside me.”
His teammates--and Burke--helped him with the transition.
“(Burke) told me to just keep my poise and realize I have 10 other guys out there helping me out (on offense),” Scott said. “He’s been a great person to have around and has made a world of difference for me. I’ve been very blessed by all of the support I’ve received since being here at Mount Union.”
Senior Roman Namdar also made the successful transition from quarterback to receiver last year for the Raiders. He had 70 catches for 1,287 yards. He has been Scott’s top target this year.
“I expected him to play well and I have high expectations for him so it would be tough for him to impress me because I know how good he is,” Namdar said.
Scott has excelled at throwing the ball as well as running with it. He passed for 383 yards and five touchdowns and no interceptions through the team’s first two games. He was the squad’s second leading rusher with 108 yards and two scores on 17 carries.
“He is still a work in progress and he seems to get better each day. We’re excited to see how we can do this year,” Kehres said. “I think his confidence gets higher every day and his timing gets better every day. If he can protect the football and make good decisions, I am optimistic we can have a good season.”
Like Scott and Namdar, Mount Union tries to utilize all of its athletes, regardless of position. Sophomore Collin Gilbert was a quarterback in high school, but transitioned to receiver. Sophomore Ernie Burkes could be the next quarterback to make an impact at receiver.
“The thing about our spread offense, we’re trying to recruit good athletes at the quarterback position and they can end up playing other positions,” Kehres said. “We have a sophomore in Ernie Burkes who split time as a backup quarterback and has been getting some reps at receiver. He is a really good athlete, too.”
It’s a successful formula as the Raiders have won their last 95 regular season games and their last 88 at home. Both streaks date back to 2005.
Game of the week
No. 10 John Carroll needed a rally to earn a triumph in its OAC opener. The Blue Streaks scored twice in less than two minutes late in the fourth quarter to beat Heidelberg, 23-16.
The game featured a rare blocked extra point attempt returned for a defensive two-point conversion. Those proved to be two huge points for John Carroll as it trimmed the deficit to 16-9 early in the third quarter.
The guests tied it at 16 with 5:20 left in the game. On Heidelberg’s first play following that TD, the Blue Streaks recovered a fumble. Three plays later, John Carroll cashed in for the go-ahead score.
Earlier in the clash, A.J. Morrison booted a 49-yard field goal in the game for a new Student Princes record.
Light up the scoreboard
Kalamazoo’s offense was firing in the team’s 61-15 win over Concordia-Chicago. The team racked up 637 yards of total offense, which ranks third in program history and was 14 away from the record.
Hornets quarterback Alex White tied a program mark with six touchdown passes. He completed 24 of 37 passes for 366 yards.
Light up the scoreboard 2
No. 13 Thomas More continued to roll. The Saints cruised past Thiel, 60-12, to open PAC play. Thomas More (3-0) leads the country in scoring with 192 points and is fifth in total offense at 599.3 yards per outing.
Saints senior receiver Goose Cohorn set a program single-game mark with 216 receiving yards. His ten catches tied a program record. Cohorn owns the program record for career receptions as well.
What to watch
No. 15 Wittenberg travels to No. 9 Wabash on Saturday for a huge NCAC game. Wittenberg has won the last two meetings and last year’s meeting was decided by a touchdown (21-16). Both teams are 2-0 and came off byes for wins last week. The Little Giants blitzed Allegheny, 54-0, while the Tigers rolled past Ohio Wesleyan, 42-21. It’s too bad this matchup is so early in the season because it serves as the conference championship game, essentially.
In the polls
No. 2 Mount Union opened OAC play with a 56-0 win over Muskingum. The Purple Raiders make their first road visit Saturday at Marietta.
No. 9 Wabash shut out Allegheny, 54-0. The Little Giants welcome No. 15 Wittenberg.
No. 10 John Carroll rallied to beat Heidelberg, 23-16, to begin OAC play. The Blue Streaks trek to Baldwin Wallace.
No. 13 Thomas More continues to rack up points. The Saints leapfrogged PAC rival Washington and Jefferson this week. The two square off on Oct. 3. This weekend, though, Thomas More visits Westminster.
No. 14 Washington and Jefferson opened PAC play with a 38-14 win at Carnegie Mellon. The Presidents are off this week, which gives them extra time to prepare for Thomas More.
No. 15 Wittenberg opened NCAC action with a 42-21 win over Ohio Wesleyan. The Tigers go to No. 9 Wabash this Saturday for a huge conference clash.
