J.J. THE TIGER QB: ERLACKER SPARKS CAPE CENTRAL OFFENSE

There's just something about T.J. Erlacker.

He's not the fastest, the strongest nor the most talented Cape Central Tiger.

He isn't going to throw the ball 50 yards down field.

He's not a team captain nor a vocal leader.

At 5-foot-10, 170 pounds, he's not going to intimidate anybody.

He wasn't even his team's starting quarterback at the beginning of the season.

Then why is he so vital to Cape Central's success?

Because there's just something about T.J. Erlacker.

Erlacker, probably more than anyone on the team, has given Central (4-4) an extra boost heading into the Tigers' final two regular-season games of the year and the Tigers are more confident than ever that a district title and a winning season are in the works.

Over the last three games, the nifty, shifty senior has thrown for 431 yards and has transformed the Tiger passing game from one of the team's glaring weaknesses into one of its strengths. Against Sikeston last week, he threw for 106 yards despite having two receiving threats injured in wideout J.P. Limbaugh and tight end Justin Welker.

And he ran for 44 yards, too.

Perhaps assistant coach Bob Haggerty described Erlacker best: "He's our little Doug Flutie."

Just doing his job

By no means has Erlacker been a one-man show for the Tigers.

Though Erlacker has made his share of big plays at quarterback, the Tigers' strength on offense is their multitude of weapons. The Tigers have several receivers with good speed along with a solid backfield.

But the key is getting the ball to all those weapons. That's something Erlacker has done particularly well the last three weeks, dating back to Central's 34-24 loss to heavily favored Jackson.

Though he has found a go-to receiver in Zac Fidler (22 catches, 351 yards), Erlacker has thrown to 10 different receivers this season. After six complete games, Erlacker has completed 56 of 100 attempts for 689 yards.

"Spreading the ball out has really helped us," said Erlacker. "You can't key on one guy."

"You want to put the ball in the hands of the guys who can do the most with it," said Cape Central offensive coordinator Steve Williams. "That's T.J.'s job and he's doing a good job at it. At the same time, we're not trying to get the ball out of his hands. He can make plays too."

Gaining confidence

Cape Central pretty much knew it would put a tough defense on the field this year and that defense has lived up to the billing, holding opponents to 11.5 points per game. The only question heading in was if the Tiger offense could move the chains, put up some points and give the defense a rest.

The Tiger offense is doing that now and the entire team seems to be playing with more confidence.

Despite a dominating 35-0, season-opening win against St. Charles West in which Cape Central ran for more than 300 yards, the Tigers did not throw well early this season.

Looking for a spark, Central elected to go with Erlacker -- who started out as a receiver -- as the starting quarterback in the third game. No. 81 promptly threw for 138 yards and led the Tigers to a win over Blytheville.

But during the next two games, Erlacker struggled. And so did the Tigers.

Central managed just 130 cumulative passing yards in losses to Poplar Bluff and Graves County and the Tigers scored only one touchdown on offense.

How vital is Erlacker and the passing game?

The Tigers are 1-4 when they pass for less than 100 yards and 3-1 when they throw for more than 100.

If the Tigers win their district and advance to the state playoffs, they may look back at their loss to Jackson -- now ranked third in 5A -- as a turning point.

In that game -- after coming off two losses in which a lethargic Tiger offense scored just seven points -- Erlacker took Cape Girardeau County by surprise, throwing for 179 yards, burning Jackson for a couple long runs and nearly leading his team to one of the state's biggest upsests of the season. With each completed pass, it seemed, the Tigers' confidence grew not only in Erlacker, but in themselves.

It was definitely a breakout game for Erlacker and the Tigers.

"To tell you the truth, we expected to win that game," Erlacker said. "Everybody thought it was going to be a blowout. We didn't win, but we played very well that game. We earned some respect."

"We found out that Jackson game that we can set things up," said Cape Central center Eric Niswonger. "I think now we know that we have different ways to attack. If something doesn't work, we have something else to go to."

That's a long way from where Central stood last year en route to a 1-9 season.

"I think as a whole we're becoming more confident," said Williams. "Partly because the defense has played so well that the offense knows it doesn't have to score a lot of points and partly because the offense is scoring now and taking some pressure off the defense and that leads back to T.J."

Accentuate the positives

Erlacker is the first to admit he's not the prototypical quarterback.

He's well aware that his size puts him at a disadvantage and that he doesn't whiz the ball like John Elway.

And he seemed almost embarassed when admitting he runs the 40-yard dash in 4.9 seconds.

But he has more than once left his opponent embarassed, routinely dodging would-be sackers and sometimes turning quarterback sneaks and draws into huge gains. Often, Erlacker, by design, throws on the run because at his height he can see the field better that way.

"I run around a lot and that helps me out," Erlacker said. "I move around and my receivers help me out there. The coaches do a great job of calling plays and set up the offense to help me out."

"He's very mobile," Williams said. "He can move around inside and outside of the pocket which allows him and his receivers to make plays. He's quick. He's not real fast, but he's not slow either. But he has great vision. But he's mobile and he's accurate. In high school football, that's a great thing to have."

Over the last three weeks, Erlacker has made as many big plays as anybody. His rushing stats (59 yards on 31 carries) are a bit deceiving because sacks are factored in. But the Tigers use him as a rushing threat as was evidence last week when Erlacker ran four straight quarterback draws out of the no-huddle for 37 yards to get Sikeston out of a 3-5 defense. Central, once ousting the Bulldogs from that defense, went back to throwing the ball.

Been there before

One reason that Erlacker seems to handle the pressure of game situations, say his coaches, is that he has been in the spotlight before. As a sophomore, he was a spot starter as the varsity basketball team's point guard and he has been the starting shortstop on the varsity baseball team since his sophomore year.

That would partially explain why Erlacker keeps his composure on the field even though he didn't play varsity football until last year.

"T.J. plays a couple of other sports and that plays into his success," said Central head coach Lawrence Brookins. "He plays thinking positions and at quarterback you have to be a thinker on your feet at all times."

"He's an experienced competitor," Williams said. "He's been in some big games in baseball and basketball so it's not going to get to his head when he's in front of big crowds."

Said Niswonger, "He's always real calm. He comes in, calls the play, and goes about his business."