blur2005
August 11th, 2005, 08:17 PM
Transfers A Crapshoot
By MIKE BARBER
Daily News-Record
Mike Parham has heard the stories of failure. He knows James Madison football coach Mickey Matthews believes that just one out of every five Division I-A transfers works out. But Parham isn’t worried.
"I’m going to do me, I’m going to do Mike Parham," the Virginia Tech transfer guard said after practice Wednesday. "If you ask anybody up at Tech, I bust my tail. That’s how I work. Yes, to answer the question, I’m going to be one of those ones. I’m going to be one who works out."
Say this for JMU’s I-A transfers – they’re not shy.
When Sen. George Allen visited the Dukes’ first football practice of the preseason Monday, he asked, "Who’s the best receiver here?" North Carolina State transfer Chris Hawkins, who has caught exactly zero passes for JMU, quickly jumped up to receive a pass from Allen, a former quarterback at Virginia.
Hawkins, Parham and Kent State transfer walk-on quarterback Joey Atkins are the three former I-A players joining the reigning I-AA champions this season. While the Dukes boast one very prominent success story via the transfer route, there are far more busts than stars.
"You’re just not going to make a living taking I-A transfers," Matthews said. "A lot of I-AA programs have tried and they’ve failed. You can supplement your program with the right ones."
Like Louisville’s Justin Rascati.
Rascati, stuck behind a senior and a highly touted freshman on the Cardinals’ depth chart, arrived at JMU before last season, won the starting job and led the Dukes to a 13-2 season and the national title, living up to the best-case scenario.
But the list of less-than-successful transfers is much longer. Duke’s Khary Sharpe, Virginia’s Stefan Orange and Robbie Catterton, and Virginia Tech’s Mike Brown joined JMU the same time Rascati did. None of those four panned out. Only Catterton is currently with the team.
That success rate is about right, Matthews said.
"We can probably be accused of taking too many, to be blunt with you," Matthews said. "The problem is, the public perception when someone like Justin plays so well, you think, well we need to take a lot of them. That’s not really what you need to do."
Since becoming the Dukes’ coach in 1999, Matthews has brought 16 I-A transfers to Harrisonburg.
Linebackers Mike Luckie (Georgia) and Derrick Pack (West Virginia) were outstanding performers for JMU. Guard Matt Magerko, a Virginia wrestler who transferred to Madison to play football, became an All-American last season.
But three others from lesser programs – defensive tackle Andrew Owen (Marshall), defensive back Eric Homa (Navy) and center Jeff Compton (Marshall) – were flops.
There can be any number of reasons a transfer fails.
Catterton, a former starter at safety at Virginia, couldn’t work his way onto the depth chart at JMU last season. Brown lost his scholarship after being ruled academically ineligible by the NCAA, and Orange quit the team after the 2004 spring practice, when he failed to impress.
Sharpe also disappointed, suffering a shoulder injury early and never coming back in his one season with JMU.
Matthews is hoping for more out of Hawkins, his latest former ACC wide-out.
"I’m pleasantly surprised," Matthews said. "We never expect a lot from our transfers early because of the transition factor. I think he’s had three good practices."
Hawkins caught six passes for 81 yards in 13 games for the Wolfpack last year. The highlight was a 34-yard touchdown against Virginia.
Both Hawkins and Parham are juniors with two years of eligibility remaining.
Parham will battle Scott Lemn for the starting right guard position in preseason practice. Wednesday, he took most of the snaps with the first-team offense.
During his first year in Blacksburg, Parham redshirted, then played sparingly the next two seasons. He said he left Tech because the school did not offer him a scholarship after last season and he wanted to take the financial burden off his father.
Atkins is trying to become the team’s third-string quarterback and make the travel squad. If neither Atkins nor freshman Matt Shawver can perform up to snuff, Matthews said punter Nick Englehart, an option quarterback in high school, will be the team’s No. 3 option under center.
"We’re just letting those guys practice," Matthews said. "They’re just lost right now."
The key to finding the right transfer is thorough investigation, Matthews said. Knowing the coaching staff the player is leaving behind and knowing why they’re leaving are important.
"We try to investigate them as much as you can," Matthews said. "The rule of thumb is if the guy can’t play [at] Virginia, he can’t play at JMU. The exception is like Justin. It was obvious they had two great quarterbacks. They were stacked up at that position. He could play at Louisville. That’s really what you want when you take a transfer. You don’t want a guy who wasn’t good enough to play at a I-A program."
NOTES: Freshman wide receiver Tommie Lawrence continued to impress in practice, making a number of flashy catches Wednesday. On one play, Lawrence out-jumped and out-wrestled safety Bruce Johnson on a seam route… Sophomore L.C. Baker was the toughest match-up for defensive backs Wednesday. Using his speed and great route-running ability, Baker rarely had a defender within a yard of him during one-on-one drills… Freshman linebacker Trae Kenney suffered a laceration on his right biceps and required eight stitches. Kenney is questionable for today.
Copyright 2005 Daily News-Record
Glad to see Mickey knows you can't rely solely on I-A transfers.
By MIKE BARBER
Daily News-Record
Mike Parham has heard the stories of failure. He knows James Madison football coach Mickey Matthews believes that just one out of every five Division I-A transfers works out. But Parham isn’t worried.
"I’m going to do me, I’m going to do Mike Parham," the Virginia Tech transfer guard said after practice Wednesday. "If you ask anybody up at Tech, I bust my tail. That’s how I work. Yes, to answer the question, I’m going to be one of those ones. I’m going to be one who works out."
Say this for JMU’s I-A transfers – they’re not shy.
When Sen. George Allen visited the Dukes’ first football practice of the preseason Monday, he asked, "Who’s the best receiver here?" North Carolina State transfer Chris Hawkins, who has caught exactly zero passes for JMU, quickly jumped up to receive a pass from Allen, a former quarterback at Virginia.
Hawkins, Parham and Kent State transfer walk-on quarterback Joey Atkins are the three former I-A players joining the reigning I-AA champions this season. While the Dukes boast one very prominent success story via the transfer route, there are far more busts than stars.
"You’re just not going to make a living taking I-A transfers," Matthews said. "A lot of I-AA programs have tried and they’ve failed. You can supplement your program with the right ones."
Like Louisville’s Justin Rascati.
Rascati, stuck behind a senior and a highly touted freshman on the Cardinals’ depth chart, arrived at JMU before last season, won the starting job and led the Dukes to a 13-2 season and the national title, living up to the best-case scenario.
But the list of less-than-successful transfers is much longer. Duke’s Khary Sharpe, Virginia’s Stefan Orange and Robbie Catterton, and Virginia Tech’s Mike Brown joined JMU the same time Rascati did. None of those four panned out. Only Catterton is currently with the team.
That success rate is about right, Matthews said.
"We can probably be accused of taking too many, to be blunt with you," Matthews said. "The problem is, the public perception when someone like Justin plays so well, you think, well we need to take a lot of them. That’s not really what you need to do."
Since becoming the Dukes’ coach in 1999, Matthews has brought 16 I-A transfers to Harrisonburg.
Linebackers Mike Luckie (Georgia) and Derrick Pack (West Virginia) were outstanding performers for JMU. Guard Matt Magerko, a Virginia wrestler who transferred to Madison to play football, became an All-American last season.
But three others from lesser programs – defensive tackle Andrew Owen (Marshall), defensive back Eric Homa (Navy) and center Jeff Compton (Marshall) – were flops.
There can be any number of reasons a transfer fails.
Catterton, a former starter at safety at Virginia, couldn’t work his way onto the depth chart at JMU last season. Brown lost his scholarship after being ruled academically ineligible by the NCAA, and Orange quit the team after the 2004 spring practice, when he failed to impress.
Sharpe also disappointed, suffering a shoulder injury early and never coming back in his one season with JMU.
Matthews is hoping for more out of Hawkins, his latest former ACC wide-out.
"I’m pleasantly surprised," Matthews said. "We never expect a lot from our transfers early because of the transition factor. I think he’s had three good practices."
Hawkins caught six passes for 81 yards in 13 games for the Wolfpack last year. The highlight was a 34-yard touchdown against Virginia.
Both Hawkins and Parham are juniors with two years of eligibility remaining.
Parham will battle Scott Lemn for the starting right guard position in preseason practice. Wednesday, he took most of the snaps with the first-team offense.
During his first year in Blacksburg, Parham redshirted, then played sparingly the next two seasons. He said he left Tech because the school did not offer him a scholarship after last season and he wanted to take the financial burden off his father.
Atkins is trying to become the team’s third-string quarterback and make the travel squad. If neither Atkins nor freshman Matt Shawver can perform up to snuff, Matthews said punter Nick Englehart, an option quarterback in high school, will be the team’s No. 3 option under center.
"We’re just letting those guys practice," Matthews said. "They’re just lost right now."
The key to finding the right transfer is thorough investigation, Matthews said. Knowing the coaching staff the player is leaving behind and knowing why they’re leaving are important.
"We try to investigate them as much as you can," Matthews said. "The rule of thumb is if the guy can’t play [at] Virginia, he can’t play at JMU. The exception is like Justin. It was obvious they had two great quarterbacks. They were stacked up at that position. He could play at Louisville. That’s really what you want when you take a transfer. You don’t want a guy who wasn’t good enough to play at a I-A program."
NOTES: Freshman wide receiver Tommie Lawrence continued to impress in practice, making a number of flashy catches Wednesday. On one play, Lawrence out-jumped and out-wrestled safety Bruce Johnson on a seam route… Sophomore L.C. Baker was the toughest match-up for defensive backs Wednesday. Using his speed and great route-running ability, Baker rarely had a defender within a yard of him during one-on-one drills… Freshman linebacker Trae Kenney suffered a laceration on his right biceps and required eight stitches. Kenney is questionable for today.
Copyright 2005 Daily News-Record
Glad to see Mickey knows you can't rely solely on I-A transfers.