Six-Season Sewell Springs To Action
With each sudden burst past a startled defensive lineman, each helmet-to-helmet collision with a linebacker and each unbridled shout of triumph after dancing away from a free safety’s tackle, Eastern Washington’s Joe Sewell made it clear Wednesday that he plans to make his final spring practice something special.
It is, after all, 15 days of college football no one could have expected the senior running back to experience - not with the NCAA being as stingy as it is about granting a sixth year of eligibility.
But last January, the governing body of college athletics ruled favorably on Eastern’s request to restore one of the two seasons Sewell missed because of serious knee injuries.
Sewell seems ecstatic over the opportunity to make amends for last year’s disappointing 3-8 finish.
“It felt really good to be out here again,” the 5-foot-9, 203-pounder said following a 2-hour workout that kicked off spring drills. “It’s going to be fun this year, because we’re going to be a good team.
“We did a lot of good things last year, but we were kind of young. This year, we’re stronger, faster and more together as a team.”
Sewell was one of 36 letter winners and 17 starters among the 81-plus who suited up for full-contact drills.
He has put on 8 pounds since last season, when he rushed for a team-high 1,025 yards and 11 touchdowns.
Sewell, a former prep star at Centralia, enrolled at Walla Walla Community College in September 1991, where he played two seasons and sat another after undergoing knee surgery.
He transferred to EWU in the fall of 1994 and was expected to make an immediate impact. But he blew his other knee in the Eagles’ first preseason scrimmage and sat out the year before returning last fall.
Sewell talked all along like the NCAA would give in and grant him an additional year of eligibility. But Eagles coach Mike Kramer held a more pessimistic view, based on the way the NCAA has acted upon such matters in the past.
“Absolutely not,” Kramer said when asked if he expected to have Sewell again this year. “We won the lottery, I swear to God, because the NCAA’s history of granting six years is pretty finite.”
Throw in the terrible luck Kramer has had with injuries since taking over the program two years ago and it’s easy to understand the doubts he had about Sewell’s return.
“We’ve been bitten by every bad-luck bug you can have,” Kramer said, “so I just figured, ‘Nah, he’s done. There’s no way.’ “In fact, I was worried (the NCAA) would come back and say it was a violation because he played a fifth year.”
Sewell said his knees are fine and he’s anxious for the next three weeks.
“We have a lot of good young players,” he said. “And now that we have these extra days together before school’s out, we should be on a roll as soon as we get back next fall.”
Kramer, too, is optimistic about the 1996 season. Especially with the way his team responded to the first day of spring drills, which conclude May 11 with the Red-White game.
Because of the vast number of veterans, the Eagles did not spend much time on the basics.
About the only spot where the Eagles are unsettled is under center, where juniors Brian Sherrick and Harry Leons, and redshirt freshman Griffin Garske are battling for the starting quarterback job.
Sherrick split time with Leons last fall, but will avoid all spring contact drills while rehabilitating his injured left knee.
, DataTimes