GREAT SCOTT! PINGEL SNAGS MANNY NCAA RECORDS

Everything Scott Pingel the athlete is composed of, one can find at the local hardware store.

(Hands like) glue. (Nerves of) steele. (Tough as) nails.

Put those contents together and one gets more than a 6-foot-1, 190-pound football player. In this case, the final product is the nation's all-time leading college receiver.

Pingel, who went from a second-team all-state quarterback at St. Vincent High School to a receiver at NCAA Division III Westminster College, smashed every major collegiate receiving record this past year.

He left Jerry Rice -- the best receiver who has ever lived -- in the dust in the receptions category, breaking Rice's record of 301 catches in his first game of his senior year on Sept. 5.

The next week, Pingel established a new career record for receiving yards in a career, snapping Division III's Scott Hvistendahl's old mark and the following week, he broke the NCAA record for most touchdown receptions.

When this issue went to press, Pingel still had six more games to play. At that time, he had 353 catches for 5,146 yards and 59 touchdowns.

Over his career, Pingel has averaged 14.6 catches for 155.9 yards per game. In 1998, Pingel average 215.7 yards per game, a Division III record.

Prior to his senior year, Pingel was a two-time All-American and was a 1998 Gagliardi Finalist, which singles out the Division III Player of the Year.

In one game his junior year, Pingel had 395 receiving yards, an NCAA record. He has caught passes in all 33 games he has played and has 25 games of more than 100 yards.

Pingel, who also played basketball at Westminster, runs his routes to the inch and his hands were as good as anyone who has ever played the game.

Pingel has a knack for coming down with a ball even if there were three defenders draped over him. He always seems to want the ball more than the other guy.

In fact, in one game his junior year, Pingel was inserted as a deep safety in a prevent package on the last play of the game. He was in for one play. He got one interception.