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Friday, August 14, 1998
A&M's Stewart hopes to show QB creativity
By JOHN ADAMS
Scripps Howard News Service
Branndon Stewart has started 24 games for Texas A&M, but
quarterbacks coach Ray Dorr likes to talk about the one he didn't
start. It was against Texas Tech, the seventh game of the 1997
season.
The week before, quarterback Randy McCown had been more effective
than Stewart in a loss to Kansas State. Suddenly, the transfer
from the University of Tennessee was No. 2 again.
"I watched him very carefully in the (Texas Tech) game,"
Dorr said. "He stayed in the game and helped Randy when he
came to the sideline."
And when McCown faltered, Stewart came off the bench to complete
12 of 17 second-half passes, only to see the Aggies lose on a
47-yard field goal with 19 seconds to play.
"Branndon had started every game before that," Dorr
said. "The way he handled that is a real tribute to his character.
I told his parents after the game I thought he had made a significant
step."
Tennessee fans can appreciate the irony. Stewart lost the Vols
quarterback job to Peyton Manning when both were true freshmen
in 1994. Convinced he couldn't overtake Manning, Stewart transferred
to Texas A&M. Then, after starting 18 consecutive games for
the Aggies, Stewart was on the verge of losing another competition.
But in a last-minute loss to Texas Tech, Stewart won convincingly.
He started the rest of the season, leading the Aggies to the Big
12 South Division championship. Afterward, his teammates voted
him most valuable offensive player.
This season, more than the last one, might be the one in which
Stewart finally becomes the quarterback so many UT fans envisioned
when they clamored for the coaches to play him over Manning.
Last season, the Aggies wanted him to cut down on his mistakes
and improve his completion percentage. Now they want him to become
a playmaker.
"He's proved to us he can execute what we ask," Dorr
said. "Now, we want to try and let him go out and play on
his ability. We're asking him to get better, to become a higher-risk
individual."
Strong and fast, Stewart looked like a playmaker in his first
scrimmage at Tennessee. He looked like one in his first Texas
A&M start, too, completing 20 of 28 passes for 232 yards,
two touchdowns and no interceptions against Brigham Young in the
1996 Aggies' season opener.
But with the game on the line, and the Aggies trailing, Stewart
fumbled on a last-chance drive. In his next game, he threw four
interceptions in a stunning loss to Southwestern Louisiana. He
threw two more interceptions and completed only 10 of 26 passes
in an ugly loss to Kansas State.
"We were so close so many times," Stewart said. "But
nothing went our way."
The Aggies rebounded to win the South Division of the Big 12
last season. Stewart was a big reason for the turnaround. He completed
111 of 196 passes for 1,429 yards and 10 touchdowns. Moreover,
he went seven consecutive games without throwing an interception
and threw only four all season (two in the conference playoff
against Nebraska).
"I looked at every one of his tapes and I tried to build
on the positives that were there," Dorr said. "Branndon
had a good natural throwing motion."
But it wasn't without glitches.
"We worked extremely hard on developing a higher release
and generating more velocity on his throws by getting his shoulders,
chest and hips into the throw," Dorr said. "He also
had a tendency to pull and move his head (on throws)."
Dorr will provide consistency as well as details. Coach Steve
Kraigthorpe will be Stewart's fourth offensive coordinator in
five years of college.
"I'm making better decisions, I know what the defense
is doing and I understand coverages better," Stewart said.
"Two years ago (when he first started for the Aggies), I
hadn't been a starter in about two years. It was a change to go
out there and go right into it. There were a lot of expectations."
The expectations are still there. The Aggies are favored to
repeat as South Division champions, despite a daunting schedule.
The Aggies will play two national championship contenders -
Florida State and Nebraska - in the first five games. They also
must play another preseason top 25 pick, Southern Mississippi,
in Hattiesburg, Miss.
The Aug. 29 opener against Florida State had the Aggies' undivided
attention when they reported for preseason practice Friday.
"We have talked about that all summer," Stewart said.
"It's going to give us a chance for exposure against a team
that plays on television all the time. Texas A&M needs to
play games like this."
In a way, Stewart is fortunate to play against anybody this
fall. Originally, his transfer from Tennessee was going to cost
him two years of eligibility. But Texas A&M's NCAA compliance
officer recommended Stewart appeal for another year of eligibility.
The NCAA granted the request, giving the former high school
All-American from Stephenville, Texas, another year with the Aggies.
And a chance to become a playmaker.
(John Adams writes for Knoxville News Sentinel in Tennessee.)
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