Passing grades
Reports: Ohio State's Katzenmoyer eligible to play
Posted: Wednesday September 02, 1998 10:16 PM
| |
Katzenmoyer, winner of the 1997 Butkus Award, had to pass three classes this summer AP |
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) -- Ohio State linebacker Andy Katzenmoyer and offensive lineman Rob Murphy are academically eligible for the upcoming football season, according to broadcast reports Wednesday.
Both Katzenmoyer and Murphy have pushed their overall grade-point averages to a "C," WCMH-TV, WTVN-AM and WBNS-TV reported Wednesday.
WTVN said there was no word on defensive back Damon Moore, whose eligibility was also in question for the second straight season. The radio station said that Moore reportedly failed to turn in an assignment that could affect his eligibility.
The top-ranked Buckeyes open the season Saturday at No. 11 West Virginia.
Ohio State coach John Cooper said Wednesday night he had not
heard anything from his players concerning their eligibility. He
said any official comment would have to come from the university.
Ohio State spokesman Dan Jones said the school had not received
any word regarding the eligibility of the three.
Ohio St. athletic director Andy Geiger also calls the reports premature. "All this is rumor. No one at Ohio State has announced anything," Geiger said Wednesday night.
Geiger said it would be Thursday at the earliest before the school could confirm reports that Katzenmoyer and Murphy had achieved C averages.
The Buckeyes, ranked No. 1 in the AP preseason poll and the USA Today/ESPN coaches' poll were also the top pick in Sports Illustrated's college football preview -- provided Katzenmoyer was eligible.
The 6-foot-4, 245-pound junior, who won the Butkus Award last year as the nation's top linebacker, took music, golf and AIDS awareness during the summer quarter.
Katzenmoyer, Moore and Murphy, a second-team All-Big Ten guard, are key starters for the Buckeyes.
Ohio State coach John Cooper said the three would start against the Mountaineers if they were eligible.
Katzenmoyer and Murphy said several times over the summer that they expected to be playing this fall.
Cooper said at his weekly news conference Monday that the Buckeyes will be prepared with or without the 5-foot-11, 200-pound Moore, a first-team All-Big Ten selection who is one of the Buckeyes' top run defenders. Moore led Ohio State in tackles two years ago with 89. Last season, when he had to pass a Swahili course before he could be declared eligible just days before the season opener against Wyoming, Moore made 67 tackles.
Moore would be a huge loss for the Buckeyes as they prepare for West Virginia tailback Amos Zereoue, a 5-10, 200-pound junior who rushed for 1,589 yards last season and has already been mentioned as a Heisman Trophy contender.
"We've been practicing other people at that position [strong safety] all fall," Cooper said.
Either senior Central McLellion or junior Percy King, listed as a free safety, would start for Moore if he is not eligible, Cooper said.
Murphy, a 6-foot-5, 300-pound junior, had knee surgery in January and battled a sore back throughout training camp. Cooper said he expected Murphy to play Saturday if he's eligible.
"Murph's practicing and he's fit," Cooper said.
Copyright 2003 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
|
MULTIMEDIA
