A bold call

Sporting News, The, Feb 19, 1996 by Michael Bradley

When Tim Couch arrived one month ago at the Hyatt Hotel in Lexington, Ky., for a big recruiting weekend, he sounded more like an assistant coach than a high-school quarterback. Don't go to another school and become the latest name on a list of whatevers, he told the visiting prospects. Come to Kentucky and chase immortality.

On December 23, Couch, a 6-foot-5, 215-pound record-setting passer from the hills of Hyden, Ky., had thrilled Wildcats fans by announcing -- in dramatic fashion before the annual Kentucky-Louisviue basketball war -- that he would help Coach Bill Curry rejuvenate a program that had bumbled to a 5-17 record the previous two seasons. Three weeks later at the Hyatt, his mission was to persuade more standouts to join him.

"I told them they had a chance to be part of something special," Couch says. They could go somewhere else and be part of a long line or come to Kentucky and be remembered forever."

Even if Couch doesn't complete a pass for the Wildcats, his high-school exploits will guarantee him some form of everlasting celebrity, at least in the Appalachian foothills. In his four years as a starter at Leslie County High School, Couch set national career records for completions (872), yards (12,104) and touchdowns (133) while leading the Eagles to a 38-13 record, including 11-3 in 1995. "Coach Curry and the Wildcats have been waiting for Tim to graduate for three years," writes Bluechip Illustrated, which ranks Couch as the nation's top quarterback prospect. "Never in Wildcat history has a player of this caliber headed to Lexington."

As one might expect, Couch received tremendous pressure from Kentucky residents to stay home and help Curry rebuild the Wildcats. Although Couch considered Tennessee and made an informal visit to Knoxville, he was a Wildcats fan who had grown up attending Kentucky games. He just couldn't disappoint the legion (dare we call them "Couch Potatoes?") who had flooded him with phone calls and letters and had flocked to Leslie County games for four years to watch him, as Couch puts it, "do something unbelievable." The impact of his decision already is being felt at Kentucky, which was forced to conduct a special one-week, season-ticket sales period earlier this month.

"The fact that he handled everything and still maintained his manners and equilibrium is shocking," Curry says. "Anybody who can weather the kind of praise and idolatry that Tim did and still keep their dignity is something special."

It would appear the hysteria is justified. While at Leslie County, Couch demonstrated all the traits a successful college quarterback needs. Operating from an offense which resembles Florida State's "fastbreak" attack, he made every kind of throw, showed surprising agility for a player his size be has been timed at 4.7 in the 40) and blossomed into the undisputed leader of a young team during his senior season. When Curry went to watch him, he saw Couch call 75 percent of the plays at the line in the no-huddle system, deliver crisp passes under pressure and run the ball. "It was a one-man show," Curry says. "He's like no high-school quarterback I've seen."

Couch is perfectly suited to thrive in Kentucky's one-back system, which offensive coordinator Elliot Uzelac brought to Lexington last year from Colorado. The Wildcats lacked balance last season, because injuries and inexperience forced them to rely heavily on tailback Moe Williams (1,600 yards rushing), who declared for the NFL draft earlier this year. But there were signs of encouragement when Kentucky scored 64 points in its final two games -- including 31 against Tennessee.

Don't assume Couch will be an instant starter, no matter how fervently Kentucky fans believe in his capabilities. Hell find plenty of competition at quarterback, including returning starter Billy Jack Haskins and redshirt freshmen Jeff Snedegar and Greg Hergott.

"I told Billy Jack that he was our starting quarterback, and that takes some pressure off of Tim," Curry says. "He doesn't have be under center for our first game."

Should Kentucky start slow -- visits to Florida and Alabama at the outset of its Southeastern Conference schedule could ensure that -- fans' calls for Couch will become more insistent. If he is installed, neither coach nor quarterback will be worried.

"I can get the people around me to play at a level higher than they think they're capable of," Couch says. "I can get them to believe."

At a school that has struggled as mightily as Kentucky, that's a good start.