ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Sunday, November 10, 1996 TAG: 9611120013
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C-5 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: LEXINGTON
SOURCE: DANIEL UTHMAN STAFF WRITER
VMI LEARNS from last year's mistakes and surprises Richmond.
Last season, VMI rode down U.S. 64 and faced Richmond in the first game for its new head coach, Jim Reid. Reid, with a background as a defensive coordinator, and his players had the Keydets offensive line wondering what to do in a game in which star tailback Thomas Haskins had just 29 yards on 12 carries.
After a week of heavy film watching, VMI knew what to do and did it. The offensive line broke down the Spiders' defense, ranked eighth in Division I-AA, and Haskins ran for 210 yards on 27 carries. The Keydets beat Richmond 20-7 for only their second victory over their in-state rival since 1982.
``Thomas Haskins dominated us today,'' Reid said. ``Our effort was good, we played hard, but Thomas Haskins beat us, along with the VMI offensive line.''
So did VMI's defense, which allowed 320 yards (11 more than the Keydets offense amassed), but also made a big interception deep in its own territory and had a season-high five sacks.
Aside from the fact it didn't want to be upstaged on its own turf by Richmond's highly-ranked unit, the VMI defense had special motivation. During the pregame stretch, team members overheard some Spiders quoting the history books and saying a Richmond win would be ``automatic.''
Nothing, however, was as well-orchestrated as the VMI offense. Keydets coach Bill Stewart said he was trying to trick the Spiders (2-8) to keep them off balance. Often that resulted in plays for no gain. His fellow Keydets (2-7) advised him the best way to make the Richmond offense lose its balance was by knocking its defense backward.
``I get too cute,'' Stewart said. ``I jog out here at night and I get a chance to think and that pen starts jumping in your hand and you start inventing things.
``I started to take the headset off and I said, `Darn it fellas, I need your help.' They said, `Coach, do what we do best. Quit getting cute.'''
Ahead 10-7 at the half thanks to a 44-yard field goal with five seconds left, the Keydets took off in the second half. They ran for 163 yards after halftime, 128 of which came from Haskins. His longest was a 50-yarder that ended when he cut out of bounds at the Richmond 23. It appeared as if he was taking it easy on the Spiders by stepping out of bounds. In truth, he had been caught by all-Yankee Conference corner Winston October.
``That's something I've got to work on,'' Haskins said.
Haskins only had to concern himself with people chasing him from behind because his offensive line, which includes three freshmen, got rid of everything in front of him. His favorite path is the one to the left, provided by junior tackle Heath Edmiston and precocious freshman guard David Campbell.
Edmiston, VMI's largest player at 6-5, 280 pounds is known for his nervous chatter. Campbell is known for his boastful chatter. ``We seem to have pretty good chemistry,'' Edmiston said. ``This year we had some pretty good film on them, so we kind of knew what they were going to do.''
A week of practice and two hours of film study Friday let Haskins know he would get the ball many more times than in last year's game. He eclipsed last year's yardage total on his third carry of the day, a 34-yard touchdown run at the 6:35 mark of the first quarter.
That run also pushed him past the 1,000-yard rushing mark for the third time in his career, making him the first Keydet player to accomplish that feat.
``Last year didn't sit well with me,'' Haskins said. ``I decided earlier in the week that I would like to get the ball 30 times. But Coach said it before I could meet with him. He was thinking what I was thinking.''
And this year, unlike last, VMI knew what Richmond was thinking.
NOTE: Please see microfilm for scores.
LENGTH: Medium: 71 linesby CNB