Saturday, October 05, 2002
SEC's top QBs meet when Gators travel to Ole Miss
By RALPH D. RUSSO
AP Sports Writer
OXFORD, Miss. — Mississippi quarterback Eli Manning is a big Rex Grossman fan.
“He's an exciting player,” Manning said of Florida's star QB. “He's probably one of my favorite players to watch in college football right now. Because he competes, they throw the ball a lot and he's had some great success at Florida. He's a fun player to watch.”
Grossman, however, has only gotten a glimpse of Manning's stellar work.
“Honestly, I haven't seen too many games of his, but I have seen some highlights in one or two games,” Grossman said.
The two most popular — and probably most talented — passers in the Southeastern Conference will get their first live look at each other Saturday when No. 6 Florida (4-1, 2-0) plays Ole Miss (3-1, 1-0) for the first time in seven years.
Grossman threw for 3,896 yards and 34 touchdowns in 2001, while Manning was setting 17 school records in his first season as a starter.
Coming into this season, the two juniors were on nearly every list of Heisman Trophy hopefuls — Grossman as one of the favorites after finishing as runner-up to Eric Crouch for the award last season. Manning was considered more of a long shot.
So far, neither has been quite as accurate or efficient this season as they were last, but both have been getting better every week.
Grossman's Heisman hopes seemed to fade away when he was battered by No. 1 Miami in a 41-16 loss. But he's becoming more comfortable with Florida's new offense, and probably jumped back into the Heisman race with 324 yards and three touchdowns in a win over Tennessee.
Manning began the season with consecutive sub-200-yard games. He bounced back by setting a career high in passing yards each of the next two games.
Grossman ranks first in the SEC, averaging 285.5 yards per game. Manning is second at 281.5.
“They're both excellent quarterbacks, they both have great releases, they both have great accuracy, they both are leaders, they both are winners,” Florida coach Ron Zook said. “But I think their styles are a little bit different.”
Manning's laid-back attitude has earned the New Orleans native the nickname “Big Easy.” As the son of Ole Miss' most beloved football hero, Archie Manning, greatness has been expected of Eli Manning since he was a teen.
“I don't think his personality allows it to weigh on him,” Ole Miss coach David Cutcliffe said.
Grossman's confidence borders on cockiness. How else to describe the Indiana native who, when not recruited by Florida, showed up in Gainesville with his high school game tapes and sold himself to former Gators coach Steve Spurrier?
Last week, as the Gators were sweating out a 41-34 victory over Kentucky, Grossman was enjoying himself.
“If you saw Rex in the fourth quarter, he was laughing,” Zook said. “I just looked at Rex and said, “Rex, this ain't funny to me.' But I mean, that's what you love about Rex.”
At 6-foot-1 and 215 pounds, Grossman is thicker and more mobile than the 6-5 Manning.
While Grossman is more likely to go deep, Manning directs an offense that relies heavily on short and mid-range throws.
They also take a different approach to being pitted against each other.
“It's always fun to play another team that has a really good quarterback,” Grossman said.
Manning, on the other hand, said matching passes with the SEC's top gun provides him no extra incentive.
“It's going to be a fun game to play against Florida, just because they've had a tradition of success the past few years,” Manning said. “I'm not really as worried about Rex as I am the Florida defense.”
Manning's not out to avenge his brother, either. Peyton Manning was 0-4 against the Gators while at Tennessee.
“Really I'm just trying to go out there and win this game for Ole Miss and for our season this year,” Manning said.
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SEC's top QBs meet when Gators travel to Ole Miss
