McNabb looks to limit Blue's defensive options

By Mark Snyder

Daily Sports Editor

Weaving, bouncing and swaying are Donovan McNabb's fortes. He moves around the football field as easily as he dodges the Heisman hype that has plagued him since the preseason.

But his ability to skirt tacklers in Syracuse's multi-faceted offense places him in a class by himself - as a man with unlimited options but serious burdens of leadership as well.

On Saturday, he carries the weight of upstate New York - not to mention his Orangemen teammates - into Michigan Stadium.

And, as with any time he steps onto the field, the glare of the opposing players eyes will be focused on his blue number five and his shiftiness.

Earlier this week, Michigan nose tackle Rob Renes said that there are not too may variations on the option attack. Notre Dame ran one version last week behind the sharp cuts of Jarious Jackson, and Michigan was dumbfounded.

Jackson's ability to scramble befuddled the Wolverines, but, after adjustments, preparing for McNabb should be easy, right? Not a chance.

The Notre Dame attack revolved around using the runs of Autry Denson to set up an occasional pass by Jackson. McNabb, on the other hand, unveiled a whole new attack last week, throwing the ball at his leisure, but with remarkable accuracy, completing 22 of 28 passes.

AP PHOTO Heisman hopeful Donovan McNabb and the Syracuse Orangeman invade the newly renovated Michigan Stadium this weekend. McNabb will give the Wolverines fits with his deadly combination of quick feet and a strong arm.

McNabb refuses to classify his brand of the option attack as any different than others around the nation, but the variation is obvious - it's McNabb himself.

"I just try to go out and play Donovan McNabb-style of football," he said, referring to his improvisational technique.

Standing 6-foot-3, 220 pounds, McNabb sports an athletic physique, especially from a defensive lineman's point of view.

"He looks like he could play any sport he wanted to," Renes said. "It doesn't matter what offense they run, as long as he's running it" they'll have success.

Whether he knew or not, Renes was correct about McNabb's athletic prowess.

The roots of his quick thinking could come from a number of sources, but the most likely it is his penchant for roundball that allows him to shift on the fly.

Despite starting at quarterback in each of his first two falls in Syracuse, his athletic skills blossomed on the Syracuse basketball team under Jim Boeheim, where he spent his freshman and sophomore seasons in the gym, before taking last season off to "focus on football."

A four-year starter at quarterback, McNabb always had talent and versatility to lead - he was a unanimous selection as Big East freshman of the year in 1995. It was just a matter of improving himself.

This year "I've been taking care of the little things," he said. "I focus on different spots on the body of receivers."

Now, he's at the point where he strikes fear into coaches, even before they're playing him.

When asked about McNabb, Lloyd Carr sounds like a man afraid of what he has seen - or even what he hasn't.

"I don't think it's ever an advantage to play a guy like McNabb who can hurt you so many ways," Carr said. "There isn't any way he doesn't test you."

Last weekend's Battle of the Orange taught Tennessee that valuable lesson - McNabb alone can bring his team to the brink of victory.

The senior star passed for 300 yards as the game of cat-and-mouse ensued. Tennessee would score, then McNabb would answer. He placed Syracuse in a position to win when he left after his final drive, departing the field with a 33-31 lead and an apparent victory in hand. Unfortunately for McNabb, the 'Cuse defense didn't hold the lead, but McNabb gave coaches throughout the Big East - in addition to Carr - nightmares.

His versatility - he threw for two touchdowns and ran for one on an option play - keeps opponents off guard. Complimenting the opposition is rarely a practice Carr indulges in, but when it come to McNabb, the positives flow like Notre Dame's second-half offense.

"I don't think there's a greater threat at quarterback in the country," Carr said. "It's going to be a busy afternoon for our defense" on Saturday.

One Michigan veteran can attest to McNabb's skills. Wide receiver Tai Streets grew up with McNabb in Illinois.

"I went to the same grade school," Streets said of their time at Dirksen Junior High. "He was a star even then."

The two continue to cross paths during their summers off from college, often working out together at Bloom High School outside of Chicago.

"It's convenient for both of us," McNabb said. "We're both seniors trying to get our name out there."

While that's hardly a problem for McNabb anymore, he is reluctant to give in to the mounting Heisman trophy candidacy.

"I don't think about that at all," he said. "It's a particular accolade given to a team first, based on their success."

As goes McNabb, so go the Orangemen.

And until Saturday, that means more sleepless nights for Lloyd Carr.

09-10-98