Trailing, 3-0, late in the second quarter, the Akron football team appeared poised and ready heading into halftime with a lead against Ohio on Oct. 10. From the Bobcats’ three-yard line, sophomore quarterback Matt Rodgers dropped back to pass and surveyed the field. Finding no one open, he scrambled to the left and headed for the goal line.As he reached the line of scrimmage, three Ohio defenders converged on the young Zips quarterback, bringing him crashing to the ground. The contact from the collision popped the ball loose, and Ohio recovered in the end zone for a touchback.But unlike every other prior play in the game, Rodgers didn’t get up when the whistle blew. Instead, he stayed down on his back, clutching his left knee, writhing in pain.Junior wide receiver Jeremy LaFrance was in the end zone, just 10 yards away from where Rodgers was hit. He knew right away that the quarterback was not getting up.’I just knew we lost him, lost another quarterback. I saw the hit,’ he said. ‘It didn’t look good. I saw him lying on the ground in pain. I just knew it wasn’t good.’The sophomore quarterback tore three ligaments in his knee on the play, but he was not the first starting quarterback the Zips have lost this season. Senior Chris Jacquemain was suspended indefinitely after Akron’s second game for violating team policy. Now, the team has to rally around true freshman Patrick Nicely.Nicely will be under center Saturday, when Akron travels to the Carrier Dome to take on Syracuse (2-4, 0-2 Big East).’It’s not the ideal situation,’ Akron head coach J.D. Brookhart said. ‘It is what it is, and we’ve got to give (Nicely) the best chance to succeed.’Before Jacquemain’s suspension, the senior had slowly been scaling the Akron record books. He ranks fourth in school history in all-time passing yards, touchdowns, completions and attempts.But in Brookhart’s mind, the toughest thing to replace after losing Jacquemain was not any statistics. It was his experience. The quarterback had started for the Zips in his sophomore and junior year, and had 23 games worth of experience. LaFrance said the receivers also had developed good timing with Jacquemain after working with him the previous two seasons. The coach would need time to develop the new connection, and grow with a new quarterback at the helm.In Akron’s first game after the suspension, Rodgers’ lack of experience was on display. Against Indiana on Sept. 19, he threw four interceptions and was sacked three times. He made a number of what Brookhart described as ‘first-year starter mistakes.’Then two games later, in Rodgers’ third start, he appeared to turn a corner in the second quarter against Ohio. Despite only completing nine passes, the sophomore showed off his athleticism, scrambling for 80 yards in the first half. His final run, just before halftime, ended in a fumble, and a season-ending injury.So the next time the Zips had the ball, Nicely trotted out onto the field. He surprised his teammates with just how relaxed he stayed after being forced into action.’Actually, (Nicely) was pretty calm,’ LaFrance said. ‘I was impressed by how calm he was. He told everybody on the offense not to worry about it and that he was going to come in and do the best he can.’

When Nicely came into training camp over the summer, the coaches told him he would redshirt to give him a year to adapt to the college game. Those plans were quickly thwarted, though, when the projected second-string quarterback was deemed academically ineligible and would not be able play.With Jacquemain’s suspension and Rodgers’ injury, Nicely, a true freshman who was not supposed to play a down this year, suddenly became Akron’s starting quarterback.Thus far, Brookhart believes the team has responded pretty well to this adversity. Of course, it helps that Nicely walks around with a swagger.’He carries himself that way,’ Brookhart said. ‘He kind of has that attitude that you want your quarterback to have, and whether it’s cockiness or confidence, you kind of see it in him.’Despite the praise and confidence, Nicely is still just a freshman. He still has not run or thrown for a touchdown. The coaches had to change their game plan to take pressure off of the inexperienced quarterback.’We can’t do much. We have to simplify,’ Brookhart said. ‘We’ve got to run the football and up our game on defense and special teams. We can’t ask him to do too much, and that’s what we have to be careful about.’The transition from Jacquemain to Rodgers was different than the transition from Rodgers to Nicely. Rodgers had been with the team for two and a half years after redshirting his freshman year. Nicely is coming in with no college experience, and less than a year’s worth of playbook knowledge.But Brookhart said he thought Nicely played well for a true freshman quarterback in his first full game as a starter against Buffalo. The coach added that if Nicely were a veteran, it would be a different story, but for a freshman, he did a good job. On Akron’s final drive, Nicely led the Zips from their own 10-yard line to the Bulls’ 35. From there, Nicely found an open receiver but threw the ball behind him. The pass got tipped and intercepted, cementing Akron’s fifth loss this season.The freshman has shown flashes of brilliance, but he still has a lot to learn. Brookhart believes Nicely is beginning to understand more of the playbook and is picking up on all of the studying and preparation that goes in to being a Division I quarterback.And for now, the rest of the Zips are trying to rally around their young leader and simply play their game.’I think we’ve responded pretty well,’ LaFrance said. ‘The record might not show that but we’ve got a good mindset. Everybody is focused and we’re ready to play no matter what quarterback is in. We’re just ready to play.’

zjbrown@syr.edu