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Friday, August 30, 2002

By Phil Axelrod, Post-Gazette Sports Writer

Duquesne Coach Greg Gattuso can't predict what kind of football team he's going to have this season because he doesn't know if Josh Rue will be on it.

	Duquesne quarterback Niel Loebig threw for 2,112 yards last year. (John Beale, Post-Gazette)

The Dukes are waiting for the NCAA to rule on their petition for an academic waiver that would give Rue a fourth season of eligibility. Rue, a punishing running back who doubles as a defensive end, sat out as a freshman under Proposition 48.

"We knew it would come down this way," Gattuso said. "We'd like to know by Sept. 6. We're practicing him like he's going to play."

Duquesne, seeking its fourth consecutive Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference championship, opens at home against Bucknell on Sept. 7. The Dukes, whose brutal non-league schedule also includes Dayton and Lafayette, should be pushed in the league by St. Peter's, Fairfield and possibly Marist.

Although the Dukes are expected to remain among the elite in NCAA Division I-AA mid-major with 18 starters returning from an 8-3 team that lost to Sacred Heart in the ECAC Bowl, Gattuso said they wouldn't be the same without Rue. "We'd be a more finesse-oriented football team if he doesn't play," Gattuso said of Rue, a 6-foot-3, 245-pound graduate of Gateway High School with 4.61 speed. "We'd go to more of a spread attack. Josh is a physical specimen. No question he has NFL potential."

Rue is one of three Duquesne players the pro scouts are curious about. The others are cornerback Leigh Bodden and wide receiver Jeremy Conley.

Bodden, called by Gattuso "our best overall pure athlete," is 6-1, 210, runs a 4.61 and holds the school record with 21 career interceptions. He is the Atlantic 10 Conference champion in the long jump. Conley (6-2, 215) led the Dukes with 41 catches, 766 yards and 11 touchdowns.

"We're very skilled," Gattuso said. "We have some super talent. The strength of this team is at wide receiver."

In addition to Conley, there is Yardon Brantley (35 catches, 719 yards, 7 TDs) and Randy Vulakovich (21 catches, 313 yards, 1 TD).

Duquesne's offense will rely on the pass even more if Rue isn't around to fill the hole in the backfield left by the loss of Dante Small, the school's all-time rusher.

"Small was tough in big games," Gattuso said. "He gave us a physical presence."

Gattuso plans to use Rue as the workhorse, giving him the ball 20 to 25 times per game. Rue carried about 11 times a game last season and rushed for 916 yards and 12 touchdowns.

"We're going to put the burden on offense with Rue," Gattuso said. "If he's going to run the ball 25 times, I doubt he'll get much time at defensive end."

When the Dukes employ a two-back system, Rue and Mike Hilliard will be in the lineup together. Hilliard, a 5-11, 195-pound junior, missed almost all of last season because of a thumb injury in the opener against VMI.

The quarterback will Niel Loebig, a 6-3, 215-pound sophomore whose freshman season was filled with exhilarating highs and excruciating lows. He completed 50 percent of his passes for 2,112 yards and 22 touchdowns, but threw 19 interceptions.

"He has to understand the importance of protecting the football. We probably asked him to do a little too much last year. This year he's ready to handle the burden. We get a little too high-flying at times.

"But we've got to get the ball to our receivers."

The only experienced backup for Loebig is Chris Siegle, who completed 5 of 11 passes for 90 yards and rushed for 25 yards on nine carries last season.

One of Gattuso's priorities is to get some young players ready to provide depth up front, where veterans Richard Greer (6-4, 265), Hakim Carroll (6-2, 299), Robert Bowser (6-2, 270) and Bill Chester (6-6, 315) return.

The Dukes return eight starters on defense, led by Bodden at cornerback, Trent Wissner and Mitchell Zobb at linebacker and Bill Arbogast at end. The key, according to Gattuso, will be the development of Jason Fizzarotti at middle linebacker.

"Someone needs to step up to be a great linebacker," Gattuso said. "We've got to have a tough middle linebacker to make the 4-3 work."

Duquesne allowed 15.2 points and 267.6 yards per game last season to complement a high-octane attack that averaged 35.5 points and 423.8 yards. They scored in the 50s twice and 60s once on the way to their eighth consecutive winning season in Gattuso's nine years as head coach. His overall record of 71-25 includes five MAAC titles, three ECAC Bowl games and a 19-game winning streak during 1995-96.

Gattuso named three freshmen he anticipates will make immediate contributions on defense -- linebackers Harry Carter and Jovan Bradley (Rochester, Pa.) and cornerback Gary Postell.

"We have a lot of talented athletes on this team," Gattuso said, "but talent alone doesn't guarantee you're going to win. We have to come together as a team as quickly as we can because we play a very difficult early schedule."

Phil Axelrod can be reached at paxelrod@post-gazette.com or 412-263-1967.

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