BY LOU SOMOGYI
T
his September, head
coach Brian Kelly
and his staff have felt
like a driving instructor
whose two-month course
was condensed into two
weeks.
Numerous freshmen
trying to obtain their
learner 's permit find
themselves thrust into
heavy and sometimes
dangerous football traffic
flow.
With six season-end-
ing injuries to starters or
primary figures through
the first three games, the
learning curve for this
year's freshman class has
had to be accelerated —
ready or not.
A primary example is
freshman quarterback
Brandon Wimbush, who
as of early September was
going to be redshirted as
the third option behind
Malik Zaire and DeShone
Kizer. With Zaire side-
lined for the season be-
cause of a fractured ankle,
Wimbush, instead, is one
snap away from becom-
ing the man behind the
wheel.
Kelly wanted to insert
Wimbush for a few snaps
Sept. 19 against then-
No. 14 Georgia Tech,
and even told him to be
prepared for it … but he
couldn't just yet hand
him the car keys.
"He asked about four
times, 'I'm going in,
right? I'm going in?'"
noted Kelly with a laugh
about Wimbush's anxiety
during the Georgia Tech
game.
In the end, Kelly and
Co. didn't want to take
any chances, especially
after Georgia Tech scored
two touchdowns in the
closing minute to make
the final score a respect-
able 30-22.
"I didn't want to put
UNDER THE DOME
READY OR NOT …
Force-feeding freshmen
is more necessary because
of the litany of injuries
Freshman running back Dexter Williams saw action on only 12 snaps
through the first three games, but will play more as the season pro-
gresses due to the attrition at his position.
PHOTO BY BILL PANZICA
