Quote:Weatherford Shows Maturity Beyond Years
Tampa Tribune
JOEY JOHNSTON

Published: Oct 9, 2005

TALLAHASSEE Bobby Bowden has had two dozen starting quarterbacks at Florida State. But rarely has he seen a young one with the disarming qualities of freshman Drew Weatherford.

"I'm really amazed by him," Bowden said.

And it's not necessarily because of Weatherford's numbers. Saturday afternoon, in a 41-24 win against Wake Forest, Weatherford, a five-game veteran, set a career-high for passing yards with 351. Already, he has accounted for 12 touchdowns (10 passing, two rushing) -- the same number produced all of last season by Wyatt Sexton and Chris Rix.

That's nice. But Bowden is more impressed by what Weatherford hasn't done. Weatherford hasn't tried to force things. He hasn't tried to make plays by himself. He hasn't made game-losing decisions.

"He's not making dumb mistakes," Bowden said. "He has a lot to learn, but he isn't doing foolish things."

Weatherford, the former Land O' Lakes High standout, is playing in the manner of FSU's best quarterbacks. He is identifying the proper call and getting it into the hands of playmakers. Then he is stepping out of the way.

In the fourth quarter, when Wake Forest still was making a game of it, Weatherford threw a swing pass (almost a lateral) to running back Leon Washington, who did the work, motoring 61 yards down the sideline for a touchdown.

"My favorite play in the playbook," Weatherford said. "That [type of] play has been my philosophy since I've been here."

Old-School Seminoles
This is FSU football. It's what the Seminoles have needed, probably since the 2000 season, when Chris Weinke won the Heisman Trophy.

Get it in the hands of receivers. If there's a physical mismatch, try the jump-ball pass.

Let the running backs take over. Protect the quarterback. Dominate with defense. And if the defense isn't having its best day (such as Saturday), pile up the points.

"Drew isn't beating himself," Bowden said. "Isn't that what young guys do all the time? I know we've seen that around here for several years now. He's not like that."

The Seminoles are 5-0 (3-0 in the ACC) and probably won't face another ranked team until Nov. 26 at Florida. Unless there's an unexpected blowup -- ACC road games remain at Virginia and Clemson -- it's hard to imagine FSU not qualifying for the league's inaugural championship game at Jacksonville.

FSU vs. Virginia Tech. A battle of unbeatens? More and more, it's looking that way.

So is USC vs. Texas in the Rose Bowl.

Still, the No. 4-ranked Seminoles have positioned themselves as contenders for Pasadena. Who would've envisioned that with a first-year quarterback? But as Bowden said, Weatherford isn't playing like a freshman.

He's Gaining Confidence
Weatherford's teammates aren't surprised.

"Everybody keeps saying we have an inexperienced quarterback," Seminoles center David Castillo said. "First of all, he's not inexperienced any more. Drew is extremely mature for his age. I've always seen him as confident. He's a leader out there."

"I feel like every game, every snap, I'm just getting better," Weatherford said. "The comfort level is definitely there. It keeps rising."

It seems like light years away from the opener against Miami, when Weatherford was 7-for-24. FSU's defense won it that night. Now Weatherford is doing his part.

Already, he has seemed to learn the two most important characteristics for an FSU quarterback. Get it to the playmakers. Don't beat yourself.

"And it ain't like Drew has maxed out," Bowden said. "He's just getting started."