THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Wednesday, August 31, 1994 TAG: 9408310545
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C1 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: College Football
SOURCE: BY STEVE CARLSON, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: BLACKSBURG LENGTH: Long : 122 lines
If Maurice DeShazo's appetite for success on the field rivals his appetite, Heisman Trophy talk could be food for thought this season at Virginia Tech.
At worst, DeShazo is the best quarterback in the Big East. At best, he could be among the nation's elite quarterbacks, which would validate the hype the Hokies are churning out about DeShazo as their best-ever Heisman hopeful.
DeShazo received at least passing mention as a Heisman candidate in many preseason publications. Inside Sports said DeShazo ``might be the best unknown Heisman candidate in the country.'' The senior is Tech's top candidate for a major individual award since Norfolk's Bruce Smith won the Outland Trophy in 1984.
DeShazo is rather non-plussed by all this. He discussed the Heisman, among other topics, during the Hokies' welcome-back dinner earlier this month. He spit out words while chewing up a meal of salad, a hefty steak, a pile of fried shrimp, three pieces of chicken, a bowl of corn, a large baked potato and three dinner rolls.
``Let me get some cookies,'' said DeShazo, who came back with five - chocolate chip.
Now chew on this:
DeShazo had a passing-efficiency rating last year of 157.5, slightly lower than Heisman winner Charlie Ward's 157.8.
He threw 22 touchdown passes against just seven interceptions.
He's the best quarterback in the Big East, which has been a notable distinction the last two seasons - Miami's Gino Torretta won the Heisman in 1992, and last year Boston College's Glenn Foley was fifth in the voting.
DeShazo has a strategy on how to cope mentally with Heisman hype: He puts it out of his mind.
``You've got to deal with it, but you've got to learn how to deal with it,'' DeShazo said. ``The best way is to just forget about it. I can forget about it. I try not to think about it because you can get yourself in trouble. You can be out of it in one game.''
DeShazo knows about the effect one game can have on you.
He still bristles at the memory of the 1992 West Virginia game, in which he was 3-for-9 passing for 13 yards, was booed by the hometown fans and was benched in the third quarter. After the game, DeShazo found the tires slashed on his car.
``That's something I'll never forget in my whole life, unless I get Alzheimer's,'' DeShazo said.
Now, as his college career spirals toward a close, DeShazo has come full circle. He has fulfilled the promise he had coming to Tech as a quarterback compared favorably to Virginia's Shawn Moore. And helping DeShazo complete the circle is new offensive coordinator Gary Tranquill, who, ironically, coached Moore at Virginia and almost successfully recruited DeShazo for the Cavaliers.
``I think he's enjoying all the attention he's had,'' receiver Antonio Freeman said of DeShazo. ``It's been a rough road for Maurice to get to where he is.''
DeShazo doesn't seem road-weary, but he's always wary. He likes to say the quarterback gets responsibility, blame and glory in exaggerated doses.
Although his senior season would seem destined to be DeShazo's glory days, he is scarred enough by what happened two years ago to expect criticism if it isn't.
``All it will take probably is for me to have one bad game - people are so fickle,'' DeShazo said.
To Tranquill, DeShazo is at his best when he is in a pickle. Tranquill said that is what makes him most similar to Moore. Both are capable of creating good things right at the point when everything seems to be in tatters.
``Maurice is kind of like a sax player,'' Tranquill said. ``He starts out playing a tune you recognize, then he takes off and pretty soon you don't recognize the tune any more, but it still sounds good. He's got those improvisational skills.''
Tranquill said that while DeShazo's productivity last year puts him in the upper echelon of quarterbacks, winning the Heisman at Virginia Tech would be almost impossible. The program doesn't have the notoriety enjoyed by the likes of Florida State, Miami or Michigan - producers of the last three Heisman winners.
For DeShazo to make a Heisman run, Tech would have to increase its national profile. To do that, the Hokies would have to be on TV, which they will have a better chance of achieving if DeShazo has a huge year. It's all intertwined.
Tech's game against West Virginia is already an ESPN Thursday night game, and the Oct. 29 date with Miami is being considered for broadcast by ABC.
``In his case, it really would be very helpful if we could get another national game,'' Tech coach Frank Beamer said. ``But it gets back to performance and how the team is doing. If we're at the top of the Big East, I think he'd have a shot at it.''
Beamer said he won't be swayed to leave DeShazo in a game for statistics-padding if Tech is pounding an opponent.
``I want Maurice to have a great year and great stats and all that, but I think he'd be the first to tell you winning is first and the team is first,'' Beamer said.
The one thing the guys regarded as the nation's top tier of quarterbacks - Georgia's Eric Zeier, Stanford's Steve Stenstrom, Southern Cal's Rob Johnson and Brigham Young's John Walsh - had on DeShazo last season was gaudy stats. Those four averaged 421 attempts and 3,541 yards last season, compared with DeShazo's 230 passes and 2,080 yards.
Beamer likes to call DeShazo the best option quarterback in the nation, although DeShazo totaled just 97 net yards rushing last season. But he reads the option well and has the passing ability of a pure dropback passer.
``There's not a quarterback that can read the option and throw with his efficiency in the country,'' Beamer said. ``If you've got a quarterback who can do all those things, you've got a way of attacking all the field.''
If Tech attacks the field like DeShazo attacks a hearty meal, he may get a nibble at the Heisman. ILLUSTRATION: Landmark News service color photo by Gene Dalton
Virginia Tech quarterback Maurice DeShazo ``might be the best
unknown Heisman candidate in the country,'' says one preseason
publication.
FILE
Maurice DeShazo has been called the best option quarterback in the
country, but he has the ability of a pure dropback passer.
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