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By PAUL SOKOLOSKI; Times Leader Sports Writer
Sunday, April 24, 1994     Page: 16C QUICK WORDS: WOODRUFF IS HIGH ON
WVU’S KELCHNER

As a veteran from some of pro football’s greatest teams, Dwayne Woodruff
knows what it takes to make it in the NFL.
   
And the former Pittsburgh Steelers defensive back says he sees that
potential in Jake Kelchner.
    “I definitely do,” said Woodruff, who was hired as Kelchner’s agent last
month. “Jake has the size, he has the arm strength, he moves good in and out
of the pocket.”
   
All those things, Woodruff said, made up the qualities he found most
difficult to defend when the All-Pro was part of a Steelers secondary that
dominated the 1970s with four Super Bowl championships in six years.
   
Both Kelchner and Woodruff expect the West Virginia quarterback to be
picked late in the NFL draft. The first two rounds are today; the final five
rounds are Monday.
   
“Really, I think, from the fourth round on,” said Kelchner, the former
Berwick High School star who finished three attempts short of officially
winning the NCAA’s Division I top efficiency rating.
   
Woodruff said as many as nine NFL teams could be interested in drafting
Kelchner, and the West Virginia star himself is hoping to be picked by San
Diego, Houston or Philadelphia — all of which have needs for a quarterback.
   
Kelchner’s rating of 176 this past year was the highest in the nation, as
the 23-year-old completed 110 of 174 attempts for 1,688 yards and 12
touchdowns. He threw just three interceptions this season while leading the
Mountaineers to an 11-0 regular season and a berth in the Sugar Bowl.
   
“He reads openings and he can get the ball there,” Woodruff said. “That’s
what sets him apart. Some quarterbacks know what’s going on, where to throw
the ball, but they can’t get it there. Jake has the physical ability to make
it happen. His having the arm strength is a big plus.”
   
If there is a weak point in Kelchner’s game, Woodruff said, it may have
more to do with what NFL scouts haven’t seen him do, rather than what he
cannot do.
   
“He had an opportunity to play on a super football team this year,”
Woodruff said. “Because of that, the scouts haven’t seen him carry the total
load yet. And there may be some games where he’s going to have to carry the
load himself. He’s going to have to show that week in and week out.”
   
Most experts are projecting Tennessee’s Heath Shuler and Fresno State’s
Trent Dilfer to go in the first round, but Kelchner’s senior year with West
Virginia isn’t likely to go overlooked.
   
After an injury-plagued 1992 junior season that saw Kelchner battle through
a bursor on his right (throwing) elbow to complete 66 of 199 passes for 901
yards, Kelchner set Mountaineer records for pass efficiency (151.2) and
completion percentage (.601).
   
He also ran for five touchdowns as a senior, and was an honorable mention
UPI All-America, a second-team All-Big East selection, a Davey O’Brien Award
nominee and one of six finalists for the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award. The
6-2, 215-pound Kelchner also played in the Hula Bowl, and his intense desire
to win earned him WVU’s Gridiron Gladiator Award as the Mountaineers’ most
passionate player. Among his weekly honors as a senior were awards for the
team’s offensive champion (in five of West Virginia’s 11 regular-season
games), the team’s offensive hustler (vs. Missouri) and the Big East Player of
the Week (vs. Maryland).
   
“And I think he’s going to grow some more,” Woodruff said, “put on some
more weight.”