USF's Daniels scrambles to keep foes off-balance

The official statistics had University of South Florida redshirt freshman quarterback B.J. Daniels with a team-high 74 rushing yards in last week's 34-17 loss against Cincinnati.

In reality, Daniels' legs probably covered about a mile if you account for his scrambling - his perpetual weaving, spinning, ducking and darting tendencies as he tried to make plays, while constantly frustrating the Bearcat pass-rushers.

"Some of them said, 'Man, we're tired of chasing you,'" Daniels said Tuesday.

The ESPN broadcast crew compared Daniels' escape act to the "Mad Scrambler'' himself, Fran Tarkenton, the Pro Football Hall of Famer.

A dated reference, perhaps.

"I'm not sure who that is,'' Daniels said. "My dad might know.''

One thing is certain: Daniels is not your father's traditional pocket passer. Although Daniels says he "really doesn't like to run,'' he is USF's leading rusher (365 yards, four touchdowns as the Bulls (5-1, 1-1) head to No. 20-ranked Pittsburgh (6-1, 3-0) for Saturday afternoon's Big East Conference game.

The Panthers won't be taken by surprise.

"You better keep an eye on him because he's fast,'' Pittsburgh coach Dave Wannstedt said. "He's responsible for about half of their big plays, run and pass. They put a lot of pressure on the defense from the quarterback position. ... So we've got to be very, very disciplined on defense.''

That should be the motto of Daniels, who is starting his fourth college game after taking over for the injured Matt Grothe.

"We've talked about staying more poised, not taking off too soon, maybe stepping up in the pocket,'' USF offensive coordinator Mike Canales said. "Sometimes, the pocket collapses and you've got to go. We understand that.

"He's trying to extend the play. There are times when you have to stay with it, let it happen, let it develop. But we don't want to take away from what he can do in scrambling. A lot of big plays have come from that.''

It's another step in the maturation of B.J. Daniels, who will face the nation's 20th-best rushing defense in Pittsburgh.

Daniels said for most of last week's game, Cincinnati rushed three and dropped the rest into pass coverage. He had time to create and find the right receiver, although the Bulls were haunted by five dropped passes. Overall, Daniels was 15 of 32 for 208 yards.

"There's a couple of times when I could've just thrown the ball away, but I was out there trying to make a play,'' Daniels said. "I was trying to put the ball in the hands of my receivers and that's why I kept my eyes downfield.

"It was a little bit (like I was in high school at Tallahassee Lincoln). But I didn't run as much and I was never a 1,000-yard rusher. It was more like I would run 100 yards sideways (back and forth, trying to make a play).''

For USF center Kevin McCaskill, a graduate of rival Tallahassee Godby, it was a flashback.

"I remember very well competing against B.J. in high school and you could just never bring the guy down,'' McCaskill said. "It frustrates you as a team. You're trying to contain this one person and he's running freely. You come up on him and he beats you over the top.

"As an offensive lineman, you've just got to stay with your block as long as you can. The average play last four or five seconds. At USF, I think the average play lasts eight seconds. You've got to develop a sixth sense of where B.J. is, what he's doing. You know he's back there trying to do something.''

Spinning into the open area.

Breaking tackles.

Trying to create a big play.

We have only gotten a sneak preview. Canales said Daniels' decision-making ability will improve each week.

Pittsburgh is trying to go 7-1 for the first time since 1982, when Dan Marino was the program's senior quarterback. To do that, Wannstedt said the Panthers must contain Daniels.

"You're going to end up in a lot of one-on-one situations,'' Wannstedt said. "That's what the spread offense is all about. It comes down to athleticism vs. athleticism.''