Freshman QB to lead Bearkats vs. Gardner-Webb
9/25/2010 6:11:00 AM | Football
By Cody Stark Huntsville Item
Around this time a year ago, Brian Bell was enjoying his senior season playing quarterback for his father, Mike, at China Spring High School. Several months later, Bell solidified his future by signing a letter of intent to play for Sam Houston State and new head coach Willie Fritz.
As most coaches do with potential recruits, Fritz told Bell that he would have the opportunity to play as a true freshman if he showed up for preseason camp in shape and ready to go.
Fritz was inheriting a young team with just as many newcomers as returning players, so the coach was going to open up competition battles at each position and see how things unfolded.
"I told every kid that I recruited that if you want to play next year, you have the opportunity," Fritz said. "I knew we were going to be a young ballclub. We are wanting to win this year even if that meant playing a bunch of true freshmen."
While it's not uncommon for first-year players to see the field immediately at the collegiate level, it is rare for a true freshman to be handed the reins of the offense. After all, it's a lot to ask a young man to deal with the pressure that comes with being a starting college quarterback.
It is the nature of football that when things are going good or bad, the spotlight is always on the guy driving the bus - the quarterback - whether is he playing well or not.
With senior Bryan Randolph and Auburn transfer Tyrik Rollison at the front of the Bearkat starting quarterback battle when fall camp rolled around, Bell figured his first season would be spent running the scout team offense while learning the ropes.
After Rollison went down before the start of the season with a broken wrist and a slow start by the offense in a pair of losses to Baylor and Western Illinois, Bell is getting his shot.
When the Bearkats take the field today against Gardner-Webb in Sam Houston's home opener, Bell will be the guy breaking the huddle, trying to light a spark under the offense.
"They told me to be ready, but I didn't think anything was going to happen," Bell said. "I was going to redshirt at first, but when Ty came down with an injury, Coach told me to be ready and I have been from there on out."
Bell saw his first action of the season coming off the bench in the Bearkats' 56-14 loss at Western Illinois on Sept. 18. His numbers weren't eye-popping, 4-of-12 for 75 yards and an interception, but he did lead two touchdown drives and came close to hitting a couple of big pass plays that were dropped.
But Bell has shown enough in practice and the flashes of potential he had at Western Illinois warranted the Sam Houston coaches usher him onto the stage.
"We evaluate every single day. We have had close to 40 practices and we are going to give guys opportunity based on how they perform in practice and how they perform in games," Fritz said. "We think right now that Brian gives us the best opportunity to win games based on what we have seen from him."
Bell doesn't have the prototypical college quarterback frame, yet. He has the desired height at 6-foot-3, but he is listed at a generous 170 pounds on the roster.
He does have the arm, however, to make all the throws, and better yet, he makes smart decisions with the ball. That can be contributed to growing up as the son of a football coach.
Around the time most kids are learning how to read and write, Bell was already breaking down opposing defenses.
"Being around the game my entire life is very beneficial," Bell said. "I feel like if I hadn't done that, there is no way I would be where I am today. Growing up around the game has shown me different situations like what is going to happen in different coverages. I knew what Cover 2 was when I was 5 years old."
Playing quarterback runs in the Bell family. Brian's older brother, Shawn, who is now the head coach at Magnolia West High School, was a record-setting quarterback at Baylor.
Leading up to his first college start, Brian Bell didn't hesitate to ask his brother for advice.
"I called him and he gave me great advice. He told me just to have fun," Bell said. "He said football is a game that is all fun and to just go out there and play like he knows I can play."
Bell might not bring a lot of college experience to the field, but his teammates believe that he can get the job done. Believing could be just what the Bearkats need to get over the hump.
"I think we are all confident in him because he knows how to improvise," guard Riley Smith said. "If he doesn't see a receiver open down field, he will take off and run the ball even if he looks like he weighs 105 pounds. That gives us a lot of confidence because he knows how to make something out of nothing."
The 6 p.m. Bearkat Family Weekend game at Bowers Stadium will feature a special guest appearance by the Houston Texans cheerleaders, a postgame fireworks extravaganza presented by Magic in the Sky of San Antonio, a fly-over by U.S. Army helicopters, the Bearkat band's march from the SHSU Mall to the biggest Bearkat Alley tailgate ever and the "Hillcrest Ford Heroes" halftime salute to military veterans and Walker County police and fire department emergency service personnel.
Bearkat single game tickets are on sale at the Sam Houston athletic ticket office in the Ron Mafrige Field House south of Bowers Stadium from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Fans can purchase Bearkat Family Weekend football game tickets online or by calling the Sam Houston Athletic Ticket Office at 936 294-1729. Sam Houston students are admitted free to Bearkat home athletic events on presentation of their BearkatOne ID card.
Individual game tickets for Sam Houston's other three home games at Bowers also are onsale online. The next home event following the Gardner-Webb game will be Homecoming Saturday October 16 at 2 p.m. against Southeastern Louisiana.
| Family Weekend Events - Saturday September 25, 2010 | ||
| Morning Activities | ||
| 8:30 a.m. | Check-In | Lowman Student Center Atrium |
| 9 a.m. | Coffee with SHSU Administrators | LSC Paw Print |
| 10 a.m. | Campus tours | Visitor Center |
| 10 a.m. | Parents' Association meeting | LSC Theater |
| 11:30 a.m. | Honors Program parents luncheon | LSC Ballroom |
| 12 noon | Bearkat Fiesta (Group 1) | Johnson Coliseum |
| 12 noon | Carnival on the Concourse | Johnson Coliseum |
| 1 p.m. | Bearkat Fiesta (Group 2) | Johnson Coliseum |
| 1 p.m. | Bearkat Learning Community social | Vick House |
| Open Houses | ||
| 10 a.m. | College of Education | TEC Building 279 |
| 10 a.m. | Estill Building | Estill Building |
| 10 a.m. | Alumni Association | Alumni & Visitor Center |
| 11 a.m. | College of Business Administration | Smith-Hutson |
| 1 p.m. | College of Criminal Justice | C J Foyer |
| Pregame at Bowers Stadium | ||
| 2 p.m. | US Army helicopters land | Intramural Fields |
| 3:30 p.m. | Classic Car Cruise-In | Bowers Stadium North Lot |
| 4 p.m. | Bearkat Alley Pregame Tailgate | Bowers Stadium North Lot |
| U.S. Army 18-wheeler tour | ||
| Veterans Resource Center display | ||
| ROTC Rock Wall | ||
| Food and music | ||
| 4:15 p.m. | Bearkat Band march to tailgate | SHSU Mall to Bowers Stadium |
| 4:30 p.m. | Bowers Stadium gates open | |
| Houston Texans Cheerleader | Inside north Bowers entrance | |
| autograph session | ||
| 5:40 p.m. | Family Weekend pregame show | |
| Sam Houston vs. Gardner-Webb | ||
| 6 p.m. | Kickoff | |
| Halftime | "Hillcrest Ford Heroes" celebration | |
| Bearkat Marching Band performance | ||
| Post-Game | Magic In The Sky fireworks display | |
