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| Monday, August 13 Updated: August 14, 9:04 AM ET Eagles hope QB Crooks can steal a few wins By Rodney McKissic Special to ESPN.com |
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Eastern Michigan Eagles 2000 record: 3-8 (2-5). Coach: Jeff Woodruff (2nd year, 3-8 record). Starters returning: 7 offense, 7 defense. Outlook: After winning the first game of the season, the Eagles suffered through seven consecutive losses before winning the final two games. Now Woodruff has to break in a new quarterback, but he believes he has a winner in junior college transfer Jeff Crooks, who must play well until the running game matures. The top returning rusher is sophomore Ashantti Watson (353 yards), but the receiving corps is deep with Kenny Christian and Kevin Walter who combined to rank fourth in I-A with 133 receptions for 1,529 yards and eight scores. The line was wiped out by injuries and has more questions than answers. The defense is in decent shape with linebackers Kenny Philpot and Scott Russell, who combined for 10 sacks while the secondary returns seven key players. The rush defense, nevertheless, allowed 4.5 yards per carry, mainly because the line is not physical. Keep an eye on: Jeff Crooks. Woodruff, who was on the staff at Washington when the Huskies won the national title in the early 90s, said Crooks has one of the best arms he's ever seen and has Charlie Batch-type ability. Key game: The Eagles and Central Michigan will be two evenly matched teams when they meet on Nov. 10. It's a good year if... Crooks turns into Batch and the running game develops. Still, the offense has far too many questions to expect much from the Eagles this year. Rodney McKissic covers the MAC for the Buffalo News. |
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