Show m 3 it’ 1 u s £ Weber State relyingon senior QB Cook should keep i Cats flying high LAKE CITY (AP) — If you want n toSALT see this yearls Weber State football & pro- gram la microcosm fix your gaze upon ti Wildcats quarterback Roger Cook More importaatly says coach Dave seaior Arslanian focus oa the pasKr’s work ethic especially his accomplishments under trying circumstances last t-5 both him and us He gained some valuable experience and we put some wins oa tbc board” la 1995 Weber's rd 4-3 conference record was good for second place behind league aad NCAA Division I-- champion With Cook finishing up at the Wildcats ended up third nationally in passing yards per game (33091) and sixth in total offense (4475) “1 am very proud of what last year’s team accomplished” Arslanian sail “We played the strongest schedule in Division and held our own This year’s team will know how to play through any situ I-- Cook took over for injured starter Bryan Martin in the seventh game leading the Wildcats to three straight Big Sky Gonfer-victorie- s M that salvaged a winning sea-6-- 5 f:i W m t'Hj We had expected him to be our starter this year we didn’t know it would happen halfway through last year” Arslanian 'But it turned out to be a plus for Cook hitting 57A percent of his for 1241 yards and six touchdowns in of a season made sure roughly one-thi- The coach also credits a bori-agai- n defense for his strong finish last season After giving up 347 points per game through the first seven games Weber’s ”D” found itself Over the remainder of the schedule the Wildcats surrendered 187ppg those defensive stops did not go for s's a great asset for ns — very smart a very accurate passer good work ethic la tremendous competitor” The backfield duties Clemente Saintea a seaior looks to improve on a six-Tperformance last year Marlin Pierre a Junior transfer from Mesa College makes his university 625-ya- rd D Com-runi- ty Arslanian also returns veteran front lines Right tackle Kyle Stephens at 6-- 7 295 pounds anchors the offensive front in Utah While the Wildcats retpra 12 starters his fourth season Oa defense senior overall none of them are in the wide Brandon Smith (6-- 4 265) is back at end receiver corps Gone are Weber's top three joined by classmate Weston Weaver a 5 6-- pass catchers from 1995: Pokey Eckfotd Novell Young aad Joel Fklagio-WilliaThe task of getting under Cook’s throws now will belong to wide receivers Ihurus McGhee a junior who had 16 catches for 270 yards and two TDs last year Kyhauna Woods a senior coming off 10 catches for 113 yards-anone score and junior lyier Harlan a transfer who had 20 receptions at Dixie College in 1995 Tvo seasooed running backs will share d tackle Senior Ian Franklin with three interceptions in 1995 returns at cometback He’s oined fry Max Mitchell who played in ust one game last season due to a neck njury A transfer from Stanford senior Jamie Webb also should see lots of action “We really like our secondary a lot” Arslanian boasted “We feel that it could 280-pou- be the strongest group since I’ve been head coach (beginning in 1989)” -- fla 29 laoe |