Play Quarterback

The liquor board will allow a downtown nightclub's patrons to stay until 4 a.m. as long as they don't have any fun. Lake trout is neither trout nor from lakes, but you already knew that. The Redskins are going to pay Coach Spurrier so much money, he'll have to play quarterback, too. Since when is it news that a chief executive officer lied to employees about how well the company would do?

COLLEGE PARK - In March 2010, the boy's basketball coach at Eleanor Roosevelt High School in Prince George's County found himself suddenly shorthanded in double-overtime of a playoff game against Wise. His frontcourt thinned by injuries and foul trouble, coach Brendan O'Connell turned to a bulky sophomore backup - Shawn Petty - who had played little during the regular season. "I think most sophomores would have just panicked," O'Connell said. But what struck O'Connell is how unfazed Petty seemed.

Maryland improved its depth at quarterback yesterday when Malik Campbell, one of the top quarterback prospects in New York, announced he would play for the Terps.The letter of intent signing period begins Feb. 7, and Campbell became the 17th high school pupil, but the first quarterback, to commit to Maryland.Campbell, 6 feet 3 and 190 pounds, starred at Buffalo's Turner/Carroll High, rushing for 1,415 yards and 19 touchdowns LTC and passing for 464 yards and four touchdowns."Other schools were looking at me as an athlete, someone who could play anywhere," Campbell told the Buffalo News.

They share uncommon rookie success, powerful right arms and a proclivity for staying cool in the most intense moments. Joe Flacco has taken the January journey that made Ben Roethlisberger famous as a rookie in 2004, turning heads and defenses along the way. Heading into Sunday's AFC championship game in Pittsburgh, some have even portrayed Flacco, the Ravens' quarterbacking prodigy, as the second coming of Roethlisberger, the pulse of the Steelers' offense...

Shawn Jones flitted out of the NFL last month, eager to take his chances in the Canadian Football League as a reborn quarterback.Yesterday, he was rewarded for the risk.When the CFL Colts cut reserves Mike Pawlawski and Bobby Goodman, Jones assumed the role of third quarterback. That means he has a spot on the 10-man practice squad behind Tracy Ham and John Congemi. And it suits Jones just fine."At some point in life, you've got to pay dues," Jones, 24, said. "I'm paying my dues, so to speak."

Actor-comedian Bill Cosby says he's got "the body of Sonny Jurgensen, the arm of Terry Bradshaw, the brain of Warren Moon" and he's ready to play quarterback for his beloved, beleaguered Philadelphia Eagles.Knee injuries sidelined quarterback Randall Cunningham for the season and backup Jim McMahon for four weeks, and substitutes Brad Goebel and Jeff Kemp have both suffered concussions."I couldn't cover the nut when the city was about to go under," Cosby told the Philadelphia Daily News. "But I'm looking at the Eagles, looking at my hometown team, and this is what I can do."

Freshman Lamar Owens has an abundance of physical gifts. He has the speed to avoid tacklers and the toughness to make big plays in Navy's option offense. It's not hard to see why he was recruited out of Benedictine High in Savannah, Ga., to play quarterback at the academy. But can Owens help the Midshipmen now, instead of two years from now? That's the question Navy coach Paul Johnson is asking himself this week. Owens saw the first action of his college career against Air Force on Saturday, returning two kickoffs and playing quarterback during garbage time in a 48-7 loss.

Rick Mirer knew about the expectations.Play quarterback at a major university, and expectations are high. Play quarterback at Notre Dame and they go through the roof, or, in this case, the Golden Dome.Mirer knew because he grew up 40 miles from South Bend, Ind. He was an All-American quarterback at Goshen (Ind.) High, the most sought-after scholastic quarterback in the country in 1988.Four years later, he is either first or second in all the significant Notre Dame passing categories. He is a team captain.

There's this informal comedy group at the Naval Academy TTC known as the Eighth Wing Players. In a recent skit they dressed as Navy football players. "You play quarterback, you play quarterback," they all cried, pointing to one another.Funny guys, those Midshipmen, but yesterday Navy coach George Chaump wasn't laughing. At his weekly news conference, he acknowledged the possibility of using freshman Eddie Buckles as his sixth quarterback and defensive back Kevin Smart as his seventh.Chaump also revealed that fifth-string tailback Rob Edwards is nursing a sore ankle, miraculously creating spots on the depth chart for 5-foot-5 junior Jeff Williams, plebe Monty Williams, everyone but Vanessa Williams.

HE CAME TO Towson State to help lay the foundation for a solid Division I-AA football program. His contribution has been four school passing records, but Chris Goetz knows they are just a speck in the overall picture."

Garrett Weinhold played a major role in helping Fallston's football team earn the school's first postseason berth this year. The 5-foot-11, 170-pound senior had been a running back, but he moved to quarterback and guided the team's offense to success this season. Fallston went 7-3 in the regular season, and Weinhold had a hand in 22 touchdowns. He's also drawn a lot of interest from colleges, most of whom see him as a slotback because of his speed and good hands. Weinhold also wrestles and plays baseball for Fallston but mainly wants to play football in college, and possibly coach later on. Were you surprised when the coaches asked you to play quarterback for the first time?

As sports relics go, it is nondescript: a 3-inch vinyl wristband covered with tiny writing. Visitors to the Pro Football Hall of Fame are apt to walk right past it to gawk at the more inviting lore displayed nearby. Hey, Dad, check out the size 19 Hall of Fame ring worn by Bronko Nagurski! And look at this square-toed kicking shoe that belonged to some dude named Agajanian - it says here he had one toe on his right foot! Though a less obtrusive keepsake, the brown wristband represents a seminal moment in the rich history of the Baltimore Colts.

As bad as Florida State knocked around Maryland quarterback Scott McBrien on Saturday night in a 35-10 win, it was nothing compared to the way he beat himself up after the game when speaking to the media. "I just didn't do my job," said McBrien, who finished 6-for-18 for 61 yards against the Seminoles. "If I don't play well, we don't play well as an offense. Tonight should have been totally different. ... I've got to play. I can't go on performing like this. I put this all on my shoulders.

Freshman Lamar Owens has an abundance of physical gifts. He has the speed to avoid tacklers and the toughness to make big plays in Navy's option offense. It's not hard to see why he was recruited out of Benedictine High in Savannah, Ga., to play quarterback at the academy. But can Owens help the Midshipmen now, instead of two years from now? That's the question Navy coach Paul Johnson is asking himself this week. Owens saw the first action of his college career against Air Force on Saturday, returning two kickoffs and playing quarterback during garbage time in a 48-7 loss.

The liquor board will allow a downtown nightclub's patrons to stay until 4 a.m. as long as they don't have any fun. Lake trout is neither trout nor from lakes, but you already knew that. The Redskins are going to pay Coach Spurrier so much money, he'll have to play quarterback, too. Since when is it news that a chief executive officer lied to employees about how well the company would do?

Top performances There have been some real bonehead plays that I'm trying to eliminate. I'm just trying to play quarterback the way you are supposed to play it. Cardinals quarterback Jake Plummer, who has no interceptions in his past two games They didn't blitz at all. It was the exact opposite of what we had prepared for. I was expecting them to come after me all day, but they played exactly different. Browns quarterback Tim Couch, who completed 16 of 22 passes for 138 yards against the Cardinals The line put pressure on him. He made a bad decision.

Top performances There have been some real bonehead plays that I'm trying to eliminate. I'm just trying to play quarterback the way you are supposed to play it. Cardinals quarterback Jake Plummer, who has no interceptions in his past two games They didn't blitz at all. It was the exact opposite of what we had prepared for. I was expecting them to come after me all day, but they played exactly different. Browns quarterback Tim Couch, who completed 16 of 22 passes for 138 yards against the Cardinals The line put pressure on him. He made a bad decision.

COLLEGE PARK -- Fate played a dirty trick on Maryland sophomore quarterback/safety Randall Jones yesterday.The gifted athlete once again came to the rescue for the Terps on short notice at quarterback, and he played a mostly flawless game under a lot of pressure in the 34-30 loss to Virginia."

COLLEGE PARK -- Calvin McCall is receiving a crash course in the Atlantic Coast Conference. This time, however, it's without a helmet. Maryland's starting quarterback has had a rough introduction to what is possibly the nation's top basketball conference as a backup small forward for the No. 18 Terrapins, showing some rust on his shooting stroke and confusion in coach Gary Williams' system. But like every quarterback is taught, McCall gets right back up after getting sacked. Although his numbers have slumped, the 6-foot-3, 189-pound redshirt freshman has refused to do the same, continuing to be an emotional spark plug for a Maryland team that sometimes finds itself in neutral.

COLLEGE PARK -- Fate played a dirty trick on Maryland sophomore quarterback/safety Randall Jones yesterday.The gifted athlete once again came to the rescue for the Terps on short notice at quarterback, and he played a mostly flawless game under a lot of pressure in the 34-30 loss to Virginia."