OPPONENT SPOTLIGHT: Foote stands tall in Elias's shadow

Say what you will about Princeton's super tailback, senior Keith Elias. He's rushed for a zillion yards, and scored a million touchdowns. When football teams set out to win games, though, the key man is always the quarterback. For the Tigers, that man is senior Joel Foote, and his 14-1 record as a starter means a great deal more than anyone's rushing totals. With just three games left in their careers, it is unlikely that Foote will ever escape the shadow of his more famous teammate. But while Elias gets the headlines, Foote simply gets the job done. "Keith is a real emotional, motivational leader," Foote said. "He comes out on the field and gets everyone fired up. My role is basically to keep everyone focused. I'm very comfortable with that." In fact, Foote is having a splendid season, completing 60 percent of his passes for 1,171 yards thus far. While his touchdown total of four is unimpressive at best, that is partially accounted for by Elias's scoring prowess. After all, why risk an interception when Elias can score 15 touchdowns on the ground? In any event, Foote is currently ranked 18th in Division I-AA in passing efficiency. "Having those numbers there," Foote said, "I can say I'm not just a guy who turns around and hands the ball off to Keith." Foote's most important numbers, though, are the same as Princeton's: 7-0, the longest Tiger streak to open a season since 1968. He has also given Princeton a solid shot at the Ivy League title it tied for in 1992. Winning is not a new thing for Foote. At Lancaster High in Ohio, Foote led his team to a 10-2 record and its first-ever playoff appearance. Playing in a run-and-shoot offense, he threw for over 30 touchdowns and led the state in passing yards with 2,305. While putting up those stellar numbers, Foote was recruited by a number of scholarship schools, including Minnesota of the Big Ten and, especially, Mid-American Conference schools. The Ivy League, though, appealed to him from the start. "In the Ivy League, there's no mandatory focus on football," Foote said. "That was important to me...At a scholarship school there are certain things you owe the school. In the Ivy League you can decide how much effort you want to put into academics as well as football." Ironically, Penn was one Ivy League team interested in Foote. Its efforts to win his services, though, were hampered by external factors, and Princeton eventually won out. "Penn sent someone to talk to me but they were in the middle of changing coaches at the time," Foote explained. "They actually had one guy recruit me who was fired, and by the time they got back to me, I had decided. "Princeton pursued me as much as an Ivy League school can," Foote continued. "They can't offer money, they can't offer cars. But I really liked the school and I liked what the coaches had to say." Since then it's been pretty smooth sailing. In 1990 Foote led the freshman team to a 5-1 record, and he's only gotten better. "The thing he has excelled in is his ability to be a winner," Tiger coach Steve Tosches said. "He's a big part of that senior class. They feel very confident with him. They respect his toughness as a quarterback and know he's going to make some plays." That confidence was earned last season, as Foote finished second in the Ivy League in passing efficiency behind Dartmouth star Jay Fiedler. Although inexperienced, Foote won this year's starting job before the season began. In the Tigers' third game of the year, though, Foote suffered a separated shoulder. After missing two games, he came back to start Princeton's final five contests. When all was said and done, Foote had thrown five touchdowns against just one interception and earned the praise of his coach. "I think his throwing ability was suspect early," Tosches said. "But I think he's really made some nice strides over the last couple of years. He's smart. He's ready. He's very poised. He's confident. Maybe his statistics are not nation-leading, but yet when you put it all together he's a good quarterback." This success is largely the result of hard work, Foote said, and the driving force behind this hard work is simple: "Winning." With a history to match his goal, you can't overlook Joel Foote – even if he isn't the most famous player on his team.

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