Pitt's Furman switches from receiver to tailback again
Forgive Marcus Furman if his head is spinning faster than a compact disc at warp speed.
The sophomore from Connellsville made a position switch at Pitt. Again.
Furman was moved Thursday from wide receiver to tailback due to a lack of depth at the running back position. The only tailback available for practice yesterday was returning sophomore starter Raymond Kirkley.
Missing in action were freshman Jawan Walker, Alabama transfer Brandon Miree and redshirt freshman Abdur Abdullah.
Walker is out for an extended period with a torn medial collateral ligament and a partially torn anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee. He sustained the injury at the end of an intrasquad scrimmage Wednesday at Heinz Field and won't know if surgery is necessary until the swelling goes down. Coach Walt Harris said a decision will be made in two weeks.
Miree is day-to-day with a slight knee injury sustained at an intrasquad scrimmage Saturday. And, Abdullah, who had been as low as fifth on the depth chart, missed practice yesterday with an unspecified injury.
All of which brings us back to Furman, the Panthers' man with many helmets.
The Pitt coaching staff concluded that Furman was the logical choice to move to tailback. Harris asked Furman if he was willing to accept the switch and the latter agreed to do so.
"They gave me the option and I thought it was best," Furman said. "We'll see."
Furman, 5-foot-8, 180 pounds, received assurances that he would be given a chance to earn the starting job. He played tailback last season and rushed for 243 yards on 42 carries for an average of 5.8 per rush.
"I told Marcus that we wouldn't have called on him if we didn't think he could come over and fight for the starting position," running backs coach Shawn Simms said. "I said, 'Listen, I don't know who the starter is right now, it's open. All I know is that you're going to play."
Furman has bounced around like a Superball since arriving at Pitt last year. To wit:
He came into training camp 2001 as a tailback; moved to wide receiver at his behest two days later; moved back to tailback at the end of training camp at Harris' request; moved back to wide receiver at the end of spring drills 2002 at Harris' request; and moved back to tailback yesterday at Harris' suggestion.
If you're scoring at home, here's the tally for Furman: tailback 3, wide receiver 2.
"It's kind of flattering that when they're in trouble, I'm the guy they go to for help at a position," Furman said. "But I'd like to hopefully find one position and learn my role. If it's going to be running back, I want to know it the best I can. Or, if it's wide receiver, I want to know that position."
Furman, who missed nine days of training camp with a hip flexor injury, might have been caught in a numbers game at wide receiver. The top four wideouts appear to be senior Lamar Slade, sophomore Roosevelt Bynes, freshman Larry Fitzgerald and freshman Billy Gaines.
Gaines and Fitzgerald had yet to join the team when Furman was asked to switch to wideout at spring drills in April. At the time, the numbers were low and questions lingered about the incoming freshmen.
Now, the wideout position looks relatively solid, unlike the tailback position.
"I thought I could play at wide receiver and I think I can play at tailback," said Furman, who rushed for more than 5,000 career yards at Connellsville and 455 in a single game. "The numbers never really worried me. I came here last year and there were six guys fighting for the starting running back spot. There's always going to be competition, you just have to be ready to handle it."
A WPIAL sprint champion in high school, Furman started Pitt's final two games last season for the injured Kirkley. He rushed for 71 yards on 17 attempts against UAB in the regular-season finale and 33 yards on seven carries in a victory over North Carolina State in the Tangerine Bowl that culminated a six-game winning streak.
His other highlights: rushing for 72 yards on nine carries against West Virginia, including a 44-yard run and a 13-yard halfback pass for a touchdown; catching three passes for 30 yards against UAB; and pulling in a 32-yard reception against North Carolina State.
"I feel I can do it and I feel I can fight for that starting job," Furman said. "I don't see it as a competition between me and (Kirkley), I see it as both of us going for the same thing. He was my roommate last year and I'm sure he'll help me if I need to know something. I just want to get settled and try to focus on this."
Furman's position coach, Simms, was asked if the young back is being asked to focus on too much, if he's a kid without a home.
"I don't think so. I think he's a man with many homes," Simms said. "Hey, the rich have many homes. This man can go to many places. We think we have a nice one for him at tailback."
