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Starting QB 'an open competition'
Junior Raudabaugh and redshirt freshman Belton will battle into the fall for the job.
Wednesday, April 02, 2008
OXFORD — Miami University football coach Shane Montgomery faces a choice between solid experience and unlimited potential, between a strong right-handed arm and a strong left-handed arm, between Daniel Raudabaugh and Clay Belton.
One of them will be the RedHawks' starting quarterback this season, but Montgomery doesn't expect to make his decision until this fall.
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"It's an open competition," the fourth-year Miami coach said Tuesday at Yager Stadium following his team's third day of spring practice, the first with pads. "We're giving them both reps with the (first string)."
Montgomery added that the competition "probably will go all the way through fall camp. We want to see how they compete."
Raudabaugh, a 6-foot-4. 216-pound junior from Coppell, Texas, started seven games in 2007 after senior Mike Kokal got hurt. The results were a little inconsistent.
Raudabaugh completed 54.7 percent of his passes with 12 touchdowns and 12 interceptions. His 209 completions were the seventh-highest single-season total in school history, but his 112.25 pass-efficiency rating was only 10th-best in the Mid-American Conference.
Belton, a 6-5, 236-pound redshirt freshman from Dayton, totaled more than 4,400 yards and 44 touchdowns in his junior and senior seasons at Northmont High School. His physical abilities already have been compared to those of Ben Roethlisberger.
"I feel really good about those two," Montgomery said. "If we had to play a game tomorrow I'd feel comfortable with either one of those two guys."
The Miami coach said he has seen improvement in Raudabaugh, who at times last fall made questionable decisions about when and where to throw the ball, a common ailment among rookie starters.
"A lot of it is mental," Montgomery said. "He's always had the physical talent. I've seen the difference in three days. And a lot of it is leadership.
"I've really been pleased with both of them," he reiterated.
Miami's spring season will conclude with the annual Spring Game at 8 p.m. April 25.
Contact this reporter at (513) 820-2197 or pconrad@coxohio.com.ccc
