The Daily Orange3rd gear: True freshman Nicely comes to Carrier Dome as Akron's 3rd quarterback this season
By Zach Brown
Posted: 10/22/09, 12:34 AM EST Section: Sports
Trailing, 3-0, late in the second quarter, the Akron football team appeared poised and ready heading into halftime with a lead against Ohio on Oct. 10. From the Bobcats' three-yard line, sophomore quarterback Matt Rodgers dropped back to pass and surveyed the field. Finding no one open, he scrambled to the left and headed for the goal line.
As he reached the line of scrimmage, three Ohio defenders converged on the young Zips quarterback, bringing him crashing to the ground. The contact from the collision popped the ball loose, and Ohio recovered in the end zone for a touchback.
But unlike every other prior play in the game, Rodgers didn't get up when the whistle blew. Instead, he stayed down on his back, clutching his left knee, writhing in pain.
Junior wide receiver Jeremy LaFrance was in the end zone, just 10 yards away from where Rodgers was hit. He knew right away that the quarterback was not getting up.
"I just knew we lost him, lost another quarterback. I saw the hit," he said. "It didn't look good. I saw him lying on the ground in pain. I just knew it wasn't good."
The sophomore quarterback tore three ligaments in his knee on the play, but he was not the first starting quarterback the Zips have lost this season. Senior Chris Jacquemain was suspended indefinitely after Akron's second game for violating team policy. Now, the team has to rally around true freshman Patrick Nicely.
Nicely will be under center Saturday, when Akron travels to the Carrier Dome to take on Syracuse (2-4, 0-2 Big East).
"It's not the ideal situation," Akron head coach J.D. Brookhart said. "It is what it is, and we've got to give (Nicely) the best chance to succeed."
Before Jacquemain's suspension, the senior had slowly been scaling the Akron record books. He ranks fourth in school history in all-time passing yards, touchdowns, completions and attempts.
But in Brookhart's mind, the toughest thing to replace after losing Jacquemain was not any statistics. It was his experience. The quarterback had started for the Zips in his sophomore and junior year, and had 23 games worth of experience.
As he reached the line of scrimmage, three Ohio defenders converged on the young Zips quarterback, bringing him crashing to the ground. The contact from the collision popped the ball loose, and Ohio recovered in the end zone for a touchback.
But unlike every other prior play in the game, Rodgers didn't get up when the whistle blew. Instead, he stayed down on his back, clutching his left knee, writhing in pain.
Junior wide receiver Jeremy LaFrance was in the end zone, just 10 yards away from where Rodgers was hit. He knew right away that the quarterback was not getting up.
"I just knew we lost him, lost another quarterback. I saw the hit," he said. "It didn't look good. I saw him lying on the ground in pain. I just knew it wasn't good."
The sophomore quarterback tore three ligaments in his knee on the play, but he was not the first starting quarterback the Zips have lost this season. Senior Chris Jacquemain was suspended indefinitely after Akron's second game for violating team policy. Now, the team has to rally around true freshman Patrick Nicely.
Nicely will be under center Saturday, when Akron travels to the Carrier Dome to take on Syracuse (2-4, 0-2 Big East).
"It's not the ideal situation," Akron head coach J.D. Brookhart said. "It is what it is, and we've got to give (Nicely) the best chance to succeed."
Before Jacquemain's suspension, the senior had slowly been scaling the Akron record books. He ranks fourth in school history in all-time passing yards, touchdowns, completions and attempts.
But in Brookhart's mind, the toughest thing to replace after losing Jacquemain was not any statistics. It was his experience. The quarterback had started for the Zips in his sophomore and junior year, and had 23 games worth of experience.
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