Colleges

Expect quick decision on QB

By BRIAN LANDMAN
Published November 6, 2006

TALLAHASSEE - It's not a game coach Bobby Bowden plays: staying noncommittal about who starts at quarterback.

"Some coaches don't want you to know because they think you'll prepare wrong," he said. "For some coaches, that is vital. It's just their nature. Their nature is to deceive you as much as they can."

That's not Bowden's style.

That's why you can expect him to announce as early as tonight whether Xavier Lee will get his third straight start or whether he'll go back to a now healthy Drew Weatherford on Saturday against No. 18 Wake Forest.

"I haven't always done that, though, because sometimes I wasn't even sure," Bowden said Sunday morning, still aglow from a 33-0 win against Virginia. "But if I do know, I feel like my guy needs to know that, 'Hey, son. You've got the ball this week.' And I want my team to know, 'This is the guy we've got to do it with.' "

He'll meet with his staff this morning to discuss that, but he's hinted it will be Lee, whom he sees as "more dangerous" with his running ability Lee led the team in rushing 49 yards and wasn't sacked, whereas he sees Weatherford as being "more consistent" with his execution.

STAYING SAFE: Bowden strategically positions himself a good distance away from the game action so he can avoid the kind of hit that Penn State's Joe Paterno took Saturday. "I want a 30-yard recognition a guy's coming at me; give me 30 yards," said Bowden, adding he's been knocked down three times in the last decade but been avoided the painful collisions. "One thing about Joe, he doesn't worry about golf knees; he don't play golf. I'm worried about golf knees. You can't swing a club without knees."

DON'T FALL ASLEEP ON WAKE: Although Wake Forest lacks pizzazz and much national acclaim, it is coming to Tallahassee with a far better record (8-1, 4-1 ACC). That includes wins against North Carolina State and Boston College, teams that beat the Seminoles (5-4, 3-4). That, and a history of surprisingly tough games against Wake, makes Bowden confident his team won't take the visitors for granted. "And then with our record," he said, "we sure can't afford to think we're something."

STAT CHAT: FSU didn't turn the ball over Saturday, the first time that had happened all season.

TIME SET: Perhaps in a nod of respect to Wake Forest's success, Saturday's game kicks off at 8 p.m. - prime time - on Ch. 28.

INJURY UPDATE: Safety Darius McClure dislocated his left shoulder against Virginia.

Brian Landman can be reached at landman@sptimes.com or at (813) 226-3347.

[Last modified November 6, 2006, 02:24:14]