Football: FAU quarterbacks struggle in scrimmage
By Marcus Nelson

Palm Beach Post Staff Writer

Sunday, April 09, 2006

BOCA RATON ? The three-way battle for quarterback never materialized during Florida Atlantic's first scrimmage of the spring Saturday.

All the candidates struggled during what Owls coach Howard Schnellenberger called a "fiasco," adding that the Owls have a long way to go this spring.


"There are so many things that are going to get better but weren't better today," Schnellenberger said. "It's disappointing we couldn't get our act together."

Quarterbacks Sean Clayton, McKinson Souverain and Rusty Smith are being given a shot to win the starting job.

After starting two games last season, Clayton has the edge and started the scrimmage. Souverain, an Atlantic graduate, split his time between receiver and quarterback and Smith ran the final 30 plays of the 90-play scrimmage, first with the third-team offense but also with the first team, with which he had more success.

"We had a lot of firepower when we were fresh," said Smith, who was 11-for-18 for 103 yards and ran for a touchdown. "When we got tired, we struggled. When I was with the 1s (first team), I got some real protection and was able to get some things done."

Clayton was 6-for-10 for 41 yards and Souverain was 4-for-7 with a 33-yard touchdown pass to Frantz Simeon.

It wasn't all bad for the Owls.

While the first scrimmages usually are dominated by the defense, the Owls' offense showed signs of improvement and won the scrimmage 24-22.

"Everybody's doing what they need to be doing," said sophomore running back DiIvory Edgecomb, who gained 72 yards on 11 carries. "We are getting holes to run through, which is nice."

FAU's defense ? a young unit which has been hit hard by injuries ? struggled, but also came up with some big plays including three interceptions.

"We'll get some payback," said linebacker Andre Clark, who had an interception. "We have a lot of things to work on and we'll get them done in practice."

Noteworthy: Starting receiver Casey McGahee will miss the rest of spring drills and some of the fall with a torn ACL suffered this week in practice. … The Owls will return to the practice field Monday and hold their second scrimmage at 2 p.m. Saturday.