Ball leads Tech in victory over Syracuse

ORLANDO, Fla. - Reggie Ball listened to the debate about his future as Georgia Tech's quarterback for nearly a month.

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Ball's inconsistency and decision making throughout the regular season prompted head coach Chan Gailey to announce the starting quarterback job would be open next season.

So of course Ball played like a quarterback no coach would dream of replacing in Tuesday's Champs Sports Bowl.

The sophomore with a reputation for playing his best when facing adversity starred against Syracuse at the Citrus Bowl Stadium. He completed 12 of 19 passes for 207 yards and three touchdowns - two passing, one running - in the Yellow Jackets' 51-14 victory.

He threw the ball away when pressured. He rolled out of the pocket to give receivers extra time to get open and looked sharp on both short outs and long routes.

He played like a savvy veteran - not a quarterback who inadvertently ran out of the back of the end zone in one game earlier this year and threw the ball away on fourth down in the waning seconds of another.

"What I found out about Reggie is when somebody steps up behind him at quarterback, Reggie's not having it," backup quarterback Damarius Bilbo said earlier this week.

Gailey said he will evaluate Ball's play after the bowl game.

"Will we discount the fact that Reggie has started 25 or 26 games? No," Gailey said. "It would be easy to say, 'You're done,' but the guy is 20 years old. Who knows, maybe his best days are ahead of him."

Ball showed what he can do with a healthy P.J. Daniels behind him. Daniels played in his first game since October and rushed for 74 yards and a touchdown before halftime.

Reach Adam Van Brimmer at (404) 589-8424 or adam.vanbrimmer@morris.com.