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Paus at the top and some déjà vu By: Richard Linde, Posted 3 November 2003
This is the twenty-first century, the late Jim Murray might have written. "That mawkish script won't even play in Peoria, and certainly not in any episode of 'Playmakers', which is in high definition. It's for 10-inch, black-and-white screens," the sports editor of the Celestial Daily News writes. Adding to the incredulity, the kid was written out of next season's script by a members of the local press who thought the coach would use two other quarterbacks in an option attack. On Saturday night, virtual reality turned into real reality. Imagine this. With the Huskies trailing 10-7, reserve quarterback Casey Paus, with the rain washing the cobwebs off his lantern jaw, comes off the bench to lead the UW to a 42-10 victory over Oregon. Prior to Saturday night, Paus plays in three games this season, throwing 8 passes, completing 3, while surrendering one pick. On Saturday, Paus is more effective, completing 5 of 8 for 117 yards and 3 touchdowns. More than that, he shows poise and leadership seldom seen in a backup quarterback. On the cold, miserable night, he throws a tight spiral with uncommon accuracy. Playing with enthusiasm, he leads an end-around play by throwing a block, and, on the sidelines, he rallies the defense with some inspirational words. He throws a fade to Reggie Williams with so much accuracy that its tight spiral could have blown a gene out of the corner back's DNA as the ball whistled by. Then, on a skinny post to Williams for a 63-yard touchdown, ensures that the guys in the Oxydol-white uniforms--right out of a Ma Perkins' commercial--won't be dancing on the "W". Is it true that Phil Knight and Ma Perkins once had an affair on that ancient soap? Thanks to Paus’ performance, the UW has now beaten its northwest rivals in six consecutive meetings, and fans owe former coach Rick Neuheisel, who recruited Paus and the rest of the team, a debt of gratitude. According to past recruiting rankings, the beleaguered Neuheisel out-recruited the other northwest teams, while steering the best players in the state of Washington to the UW. Neu's recruiting efforts have paid big dividends, and in this age of parity, fans shouldn’t expect much more of the Huskies, other than being northwest champs—at least until Pete Carroll and his Trojans take a pratfall and flounder with all the rest. So, with more time on my hands because of a few less-than-stellar football games to write about, seemingly I should have more time for my golf game. But my golf instructor tells me to pause at the top, which are haunting words for a high handicapper with little dexterity. So, back to writing about a different kind of Paus, to overwork a pun and finish the script for the mawkish movie. The dexterous Paus was at the top of his game Saturday night, leaving some déjà vu lingering about the Washington campus. Two years ago, after starting QB Cody Pickett suffered a shoulder separation against USC and his backup, Taylor Barton, was injured the following week against UCLA, Paus was ready to start against the Arizona Wildcats. As it turned out, Pickett came back to play against the Wildcats, leading the UW to a 31-28 comeback win. Suffering from the effects of a concussion, Pickett is questionable for Saturday’s game against Arizona; once more Paus could give the ‘Cats pause for concern. He’s that good, and cerebral himself. Before committing to Washington, Paus, who is from New Lenox, Illinois, played quarterback at Lincoln-Way high school. He was the Gatorade Illinois State Player of the Year, throwing for 1,702 yards, 18 touchdowns, with just 5 interceptions. He finished his career for the Lincoln-Way Knights with 5,734 yards passing and 51 touchdowns. He was a Sporting News, PrepStar, Student Sports, and SuperPrep All-American. Rvials.com ranked him as the sixth best quarterback in the nation. He was recruited by Colorado, Arizona State, Miami, Purdue, Michigan and Illinois but chose Washington because of the opportunity to play immediately. Playing immediately didn't quite work out for the redshirt sophomore, who is in his third year at Washington. As far as going to UCLA was concerned, "I wanted to do my own thing," Casey has been quoted as saying. "I've always been known as Cory's little brother." Two seasons ago, his brother Cory, pictured below, played quarterback for the UCLA Bruins under Coach Bob Toledo. Casey is 6-5, 200 pounds, three inches taller than his brother--three inches Cory says he would kill for. Casey got mostly A’s in high school, some in advanced placement classes, and is interested in art and photography.
Casey Paus is the second of three siblings. His mother, Nancy, teaches school and his father, Rick, is a contractor. Casey was born on March 27, 1983 in Hinsdale, Ill. Nancy Paus says that her son Casey is deep-thinking but doesn't always show it. In any case, the Dawgs' Paus could give the 'Cats Paus for thought. Richard Linde (a.k.a., Malamute) can be reached at malamute@4malamute.com |
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A
seldom used quarterback leading his team to a comeback victory is for cornball
movies or a Madden 2004 thriller. The star quarterback goes down with his team
trailing 10-7 and then this green kid comes off the bench to lead his team in a 35-point barrage? Take that script and shove it. It’s for lovers of Haratio Alger stories, for objectivists like Ayn Rand, for Rudy writers. 
More
than just a dabbler in the arts, he has taken a keen interest in art and
photography since the eighth grade. He is proficient in oil paints, pencil,
chalk and ink and is interested in graphic design. In high school, Paus was a
member of the Chicago Tribune Scholar-Athlete Team. "He has the size, speed, arm
and the smarts to take his game to any level," one recruiting analyst said
of him.
"Both Paus's have NFL potential."