ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1995, Roanoke Times
DATE: Saturday, December 9, 1995 TAG: 9512100007
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: DANIEL UTHMAN STAFF WRITER
Officials with the 23rd annual Amos Alonzo Stagg Bowl wouldn't mind at all if a little snow fell on Salem Stadium this morning.
After all, anything's better than freezing rain.
A forecast of sleet and other slippery wet stuff Friday had the Salem Civic Center staff and NCAA representatives biting their fingernails as the cold bit their noses.
``It's no problem if it just snows,'' said Jim Taliaferro, Salem's mayor. ``The biggest problem we could have would be freezing rain.''
Emergency crews have proven they can deal with the snow the past two days. The tarp at the stadium was clear all day Friday. But freezing rain they haven't had to deal with - yet.
The problem with freezing rain would be pulling it off the tarp and then pulling the tarp off the field. It's difficult to move a 300 by 150-foot sheet of ice and still keep the grass underneath intact.
Cleanup crews were to be on alert at the stadium beginning at 11 o'clock Friday night in order to monitor Mother Nature. If it snowed, they would merely brush it off every hour. But if it rained, they might have to pull up the tarp, leaving the field exposed. But a soggy field may be a better alternative than a field covered with plastic.
John Saunders, Salem's assistant director for civic facilities, said no decision on what to do with the tarp could be made until the weather revealed what it was going to do.
No matter what happens, the Stagg Bowl will go on today at 1 p.m. ``We're playing tomorrow, no matter what,'' the NCAA's assistant director of Division III championships, Wayne Burrow, said Friday. ``There is no plan B. This is where the game belongs.''
Team members from Rowan and Wisconsin-La Crosse said they didn't care where the game was played, just as long as they were in it. ``We'll park some Winnebagos out here and pitch some tents if that's what we have to do,'' said Rowan coach K.C. Keeler.
Keeler's idea of what the Profs have to do to win the Stagg Bowl is contain Eagles quarterback Craig Kusick. Kusick, a 6-6, 230-pound NFL prospect, has passed for 3,003 yards and 27 touchdowns against 11 interceptions this season. ``They need him to hurt us with their passing game,'' Keeler said.
Rowan has a defense that isn't likely to let that happen. The Profs have 50 sacks this season and 23 interceptions, including ten picks by junior cornerback Arnell Palmer. Their blitzes are what make things happen.
``One of the writers up north said they were big, fast, athletic and angry,'' Keeler said. ``Our defense is what got us here.''
But as good as the matchup is between La Crosse's offense and Rowan's defense, it's just as good when the ball changes hands. Rowan's offense is averaging 37 points in the playoffs. La Crosse's defense allowed just 8.5 points per game during the season, even better than the Profs' 8.7 average yield.
``Our defense has to play solid,'' said Eagles coach Roger Harring. ``If we don't, we'll be embarrassed.''
It has the makings of being a great game.
``I can't remember a better matchup in the Stagg Bowl,'' said Steve Bamford, chairman of the NCAA Division III football committee.
Both teams have championship experience. Seven players remain from Wisconsin-La Crosse's 1992 Stagg Bowl winner, while 15 current Profs were on their 1993 runner-up team.
``In '93 we were taking steps,'' said wide receiver Gantry Fox, who was a sophomore on Rowan's last Stagg Bowl entry. ``This is the last step we have to take. Now we want to take care of unfinished business.''
There is plenty of business to take care of if game officials are to beat the weather for the third straight year. But even though the weather has been a constant problem, the NCAA doesn't seem to mind. Bamford said the Division III coaches would talk about it at the American Football Coaches Association meeting Jan.6-10, but he added that they always talk about it.
Bamford stressed that he didn't think any locality could deal with the problems the weather has presented better than Salem. ``What they've done here is amazing,'' he said Friday afternoon as he surveyed the stadium field.
Meanwhile, game director Carey Harveycutter was shuttling between the stadium and the television in his office. And what was he watching? The Weather Channel, of course.
LENGTH: Medium: 81 lines ILLUSTRATION: GRAPHIC: Chart.by CNB