Nov. 15, 2002

Charleston, SC - Statistically speaking, Jeff Klein is having one of the finest seasons ever by a Citadel quarterback.

With two games left, the graduate student from Auburn is only the third Bulldogs QB to reach the 2,000-yard mark for passing yards in a single season, ranking No. 3 on the all-time list with 2,147 yards. He needs just 313 yards against VMI and Charleston Southern to break the school record.

And yet the Bulldogs still are only 2-8.

That prompts the question - What will The Citadel do next season for a quarterback?

The answers can be seen standing on The Citadel sidelines on game day, wearing No. 11 and No. 4.

Odds are that either of two freshmen - James Reiter or Brian Starnes - will be the starting quarterback for The Citadel next season. Neither has played in a game this season, and neither will appear in the final two games, barring some unforeseen catastrophe.

"You don't want to play them now, this late in the season, and waste a year," Citadel football coach Ellis Johnson said. "They've both got four good years ahead of them."

Perhaps Klein's most valuable service this season has been enabling the Bulldogs to break out of the cycle of playing quarterbacks who weren't ready to play. Last season, The Citadel rode a 3-7 rollercoaster with true freshman Mazzie Drummond starting every game, and could have faced the same situation this season without Klein and fifth-year backup Joe Call.

Drummond played unevenly last year and struggled in the classroom before transferring to Division II Pikeville (Ky.) College.

Reiter and Starnes will at least have their knob years behind them before being asked to handle the pressures of starting at quarterback.

"I can't imagine coming in here and starting as a freshman," said Reiter, a 6-1, 196-pounder from Bay Minette, Ala., near Mobile. "That would be a whole pile of bricks on you. I can't imagine what Mazzie must have gone through last year."

Said Johnson, "The best thing James and Brian have going for them is they are mature, bright kids who can handle this environment very well. That will help them develop better as players. I don't see them on a rollercoaster ride like Mazzie was. As a result, they will get better and better.

"I'll be glad when we've got somebody who's been in the program for a couple of years taking over, so that when he steps in that huddle, everybody knows who he is," Johnson said.

"As good a job as Jeff has done this year, he's taken on a tremendous load. It hasn't been easy for him or the players."

Reiter, who went 29-1 with a state championship his last two seasons at Daphne High School, has been listed as Klein's backup along with Call for most of the season. Citadel coaches had hoped to get him into some games, but a series of close games to start the season halted that idea.

"We wanted to make a push to make one of the freshmen the backup," Johnson said. "We tried to push Reiter in that direction, but we never got in a ball game he could play in. He didn't know the offense when we played LSU, and the rest of the games were dogfights that we had a chance to win."

Without game experience, Reiter and Starnes have been limited to scout-team work and drills in practice, and the occasional "Bulldog Bowl," a Thursday scrimmage between backups and reserves who don't play much in games.

"That's about all we've been able to do," Johnson said. "You don't have time to get them in with the game plan and let them execute on the practice field. Spring practice will help, but the NCAA has killed spring practice. That's where they are going to have to develop, in the spring and in preseason practice next year."

Reiter probably has the edge over the 6-2, 199-pound Starnes, because he ran a more diverse offense in high school, passing for 1,300 yards and 10 touchdowns as a senior.

Starnes was a three-year starter at Norcross (Ga.) High School, where he ran for 665 yards and six touchdowns and passed for 650 yards and eight touchdowns as a senior.

"There's not a lot of difference in talent level," Johnson said. "I think it will be a battle for the job."

Meanwhile, the two knobs have tried to learn what they can from watching Klein.

"He's taught me a lot," Reiter said.

"To stay calm, that's the main thing, to realize you have to take it easy, don't try to be so fast in everything. Take your time, make your read and make the play."