Lehigh University Athletics
Quarterback battle continues into final week of camp
8/25/2010 9:42:00 PM | Football
BETHLEHEM, Pa. – The Lehigh football team has answered many questions through two weeks of preseason camp. As the Mountain Hawks begin the final week of camp, one question remains to be answered: who will be Lehigh's starting quarterback in 2010? “On Wednesday, we will hold our final scrimmage before we prepare for Drake,” said Lehigh head coach Andy Coen. “We like to have our last scrimmage ten days before our first game. We've had a physical camp and a productive camp where we've had many questions answered. Figuring out who our starting quarterback is going to be is the final piece of the puzzle.”
Camp opened with a three-way battle for the starting job, between senior JB Clark, junior Chris Lum and sophomore Michael Colvin. Following Lehigh's first scrimmage of camp on Friday, Coen and offensive coordinator Dave Cecchini evaluated all three quarterbacks and informed them of their status.
“Coming out of Friday's scrimmage, Chris Lum was in the lead,” Coen explained. “He had a good scrimmage and has been our most consistent quarterback throughout camp.
Coen continued, “Colvin has shown flashes of great play, but must continue to develop.”
Both Lum and Colvin saw time in Lehigh's lineup in 2009. Lum started three games under center for the Mountain Hawks and threw for 564 yards and five touchdowns. Colvin appeared in seven games before suffering a season-ending injury versus Bucknell. He was effective as a runner in Lehigh's wildcat offense, averaging six yards per carry, but attempted just two passes all year.
The emergence of both Lum and Colvin left Clark, who started all 11 games as a sophomore and eight games last year, third in the competition.
“As a coaching staff, we felt it was important to share with the quarterbacks their status after the scrimmage so they know where they stood heading into the final week,” Coen explained. “JB was third as he was outperformed by the other two quarterbacks on Friday. Upon being told the news, JB has unfortunately decided that he would like to leave Lehigh and find an institution where he can be a starting quarterback.”
Coen then offered his thoughts on Clark's departure, “While I am obviously disappointed in his decision, I will support JB because I think highly of him as a person. He's a tremendous competitor and he wants to be out there playing on Saturday afternoons. I appreciate the hard work and dedication he has given to our football program and wish him nothing but success moving forward.”
“From a leadership standpoint, we're sad to see JB go,” added senior co-captain Will Rackley. “But there's no negativity towards him, and I don't think he has any towards us. As a team, we haven't missed a beat. We still have the same goal, to win a championship, and we're going to go out every day and work with Chris, Mike and Trace (Cisneros) and try to make that happen.”
Lehigh will hold its final scrimmage of preseason camp on Wednesday, and Coen is expected to name his starter for the September 4 season opener at Drake on Thursday.
“I know our football team will rally around Chris and Mike,” Coen said. “We have a focused team. This will not affect how we go about our goal of winning a Patriot League Championship.”
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