Sorta continues our conversation from last night...
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Prothro has potential to produce The problem is Alabama's QBs have had a hard time getting him the football
http://www.al.com/alabama/huntsvilletimes/index.ssf?/base/sports/1099304138287270.xml
Monday, November 01, 2004 By PAUL GATTIS Times Sports Staff [EMAIL PROTECTED]
TUSCALOOSA - You can almost hear the wheels of creativity grinding each week, the Alabama coaching staff ceaselessly trying to unite playmaking receiver Tyrone Prothro with the football.
The problem is that a playmaking receiver is fairly useless without a quarterback who can deliver him the ball to make those plays in the first place.
Sort of like the dilemma the Crimson Tide has been facing since losing quarterback Brodie Croyle to a knee injury in September.
"I always enjoy getting my hands on the ball because it lets me do what I know I can do," Prothro said. "At the level I'm at, it's very exciting."
It's exciting for Prothro to have the ball in his hands. And it's exciting for Alabama for Prothro to have the ball in his hands.
Still, it seems to happen about as often as the Red Sox win the World Series.
The problems have been numerous.
First, Prothro was slowed early in the season with a sore ankle that limited his effectiveness. Then Croyle went down and the Tide's passing game has completed by far the fewest passes in the SEC this season (91, which is 16 fewer than 11th-place Arkansas) and ranks 113th nationally.
Finally, it's become apparent to opponents that Alabama needs to incorporate Prothro into the offense more.
It all adds up to these modest numbers for the 5-foot-8 sophomore from Heflin: 15 receptions in eight games for 192 yards and a touchdown.
"We want to get him the ball," Alabama coach Mike Shula said. "But teams know that, too."
So the Tide has tried unconventional approaches to allow Prothro to see the ball more frequently.
He's returning kickoffs - including one for 100 yards against Kentucky - and his average of 35.4 yards per return would be good enough to lead the nation.
But, as a testimony to his underused season, he hasn't had enough returns to qualify.
The reverse to Prothro has become a staple in the Tide offense. Alabama has run the Prothro reverse in four of the last five games and will probably run it again Saturday against Mississippi State.
"Right now, that's a play they have for me," Prothro said.
There's even been chatter among fans about the idea of lining Prothro up at quarterback as a second-generation David Palmer - the former Tide receiver who found a niche taking the snap directly in short-yardage situations.
But it's not going to happen.
"To me, it probably takes so long," Shula said. "If you do it, you've really got to work on it. We're still working on some things with (the other quarterbacks) that we're trying to get better at."
Indeed, the thing about Prothro is that he's a race car who, in the current state of the Tide offense, is left sitting in the garage. Occasionally, the engine revs but it seldom goes anywhere.
And, yes, Prothro wishes it were different. But he's not complaining.
"It has been frustrating," he said. "Whatever we've got to do to help the team win, that's what I'm for. Our whole receiving group, we're not selfish at all. Whatever we've got to do to win, that's what we're going to do."
He caught 16 passes in nine games last year as a true freshman despite being well down the pecking order of receivers. Prothro averaged 11.9 yards per catch.
This year, however, he's caught only one pass in four of Alabama's eight games and two passes in three of the others.
Not until the Tide's last game - the 17-13 loss at Tennessee - did Prothro become a prominent part of the offense.
He caught five passes against the Vols for 71 yards - more than twice as many receiving yards as he's had in any game this season.
So all that's left for Prothro is to hope that he and quarterback Spencer Pennington are finally starting to find a rhythm together.
"I think we are, each game and each practice," Prothro said. "The more we practice together, the more confidence he's going to have in me and the more confidence I'm going to have in him."
-- RDTR!! Rick
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