Anderson steps from sideline to spotlight

It was less than 10 days until the Tigers’ season opener, and the two-minute offense had stalled at the 30-yard line.

After senior quarterback Brian Anderson overlooked a wide open receiver on fourth and two, Hughes had seen enough, stopping practice with an enraged outburst that reminded everyone on the field that no one, not even the quarterback, is safe from critique.

Anderson absorbed the criticism and got back under center. They ran the play again. This time Anderson delivered a perfect ball to his man in the flats for a four-yard gain. First down.

Anderson is no stranger to any of it — the successes, the mistakes and the tirades — but one thing is different this season. After three years of watching other signal callers make the perfect throws, commit the mental errors and earn the Hughes tongue-lashings, this is Anderson’s year. One season to exhibit the culmination of 10 years of football training; one season to prove to the rest of the Ivy League what most of his teammates and coaches have already concluded: that Brian Anderson is the perfect man to lead the Tigers.

“He is a natural leader and a student of the game,” Hughes said of the first-year starter. “He is the son of a coach, so he knows how coaches think and what a team needs from its players to be successful. He is very introspective and demanding of himself — he wants to be the best example on the team with regard to his performance and work ethic.”

It would be easy to think that being a coach’s son entails hours of extra work and constant quizzing on the game’s intricacies, but Anderson insists that his father never coached at home. Instead, his father’s biggest influence has been on Anderson’s work ethic, one of the principal reasons he is starting Saturday against The Citadel.

Hughes describes him as “hungry and humble”: Anderson exhibits the unrelenting desire to better himself and his teammates as well as the humility to know exactly where to focus that drive. He is also tailored for the Princeton spread offense, which requires its quarterbacks to be simultaneously accurate with their arms and deadly with their feet.

Princeton has had its fair share of solid quarterbacks over the last few seasons. In 2006, Jeff Terrell ’07 led the Tigers to an Ivy League title and earned an NFL tryout, and last season Greg Mroz ’08 and Bill Foran ’08 split duties, but Anderson’s teammates insist that the man under center this year is unique.

“One thing that is different about Brian than other quarterbacks I’ve played with is his versatility,” said senior tight end Billy Mitchell, who has caught passes from Terrell, Mroz and Foran. “Not only is Brian a great passer, but he also has the ability to scramble out of the pocket or run the option on the perimeter. He has a great sense of the field, and he can use his athleticism to beat opponents with both his arm and his feet.”

A quick glance at Anderson’s career stats reveals the biggest ammunition for his critics: Anderson has only played in three games and made only one career start. But experience has shades of gray, and Anderson has studied the game like a starter since he arrived on campus in 2005.

“Three years is a long time to wait,” Anderson said. “But I got to observe and learn a lot — sometimes what to do, sometimes what not to do — and hopefully those things that I learned will help me out this year.”

“I envisioned a learning curve last year in the Dartmouth game,” Hughes said of his quarterback’s lone career start, an overtime victory in which Anderson went 16-21 for 186 yards passing and a team-high 94 yards rushing. “But what we saw was Brian completing his first 11 passes and leading scoring drives on the initial two drives of the game. Clearly there is no substitute for experience, but my hope is his learning curve, if any, is exponential.”

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What may play into that minimal adjustment time is the confidence that comes from the obvious respect and admiration Anderson’s teammates have for him.

Junior right tackle Mark Paski, who will protect Anderson’s blind side, cites Anderson’s overall confidence and intelligent decision making as his greatest strengths in the pocket.

“I think Brian is very confident because he’s a natural leader who understands his role is one that entatils confidence,” Paski said.

That confidence isn’t soley inborn, however.

“The fact that my teammates are behind me, the fact that they believe in me and that they support me makes me ready to lead,” Anderson said.

The feelings are mutual. Anderson can’t stop extolling the other 112 men in orange and black, and they can’t stop lauding him. Anderson was voted one of the team’s three captains at the end of spring practice, a move that shows just how confident the Tigers are in their new signal caller.

“Brian is a natural leader, so it is not a surprise that he was elected as a captain,” Mitchell said. “He has the ability to make the players around him better and always keeps a positive outlook no matter what the situation.”

Talk about Anderson with his coaches and teammates, and the same words are inevitably spoken: “humble,” “hard-working,” “versatile” and most importantly, “leader.”

“Inexperienced?” Not only is it never mentioned, but it isn’t even an afterthought. Sure, Anderson has only attempted 29 passes in his career — with a 70 percent completion rate — but what he brings to the Tigers runs deeper than just time on the field.

When the two-minute drill finally ends, Anderson makes his usual rounds, high-fiving and congratulating every member of his offense as they trot off the field.

For three years Brian Anderson observed and learned; took mental notes and prepared. This season, equipped with a quiet confidence and the backing of his teammates, the mobile lefty with a golden arm is ready to lead.