On a football team that some may view as a Division III championship contender, the only thing that Bridgewater coach Mike Clark knows about his quarterback situation is that the starter will be from the Roanoke Valley.

Barring injury to both players, Clark will choose between former Cave Spring quarterback Jacob Lewis and ex-William Byrd standout Jeff Highfill.

“We’ve won [Old Dominion Athletic Conference] titles with three different quarterbacks,” Clark said Wednesday. “On a talent basis, these two are equal to the three we’ve won a lot of games with.

“We’ve got 31 seniors, OK? We return an experienced offensive line. I think we’ve got a pretty good stable of running backs. We’re in a position where the quarterback doesn’t have to be a magic man.”

Lewis (6-1, 180) was the first-team All-Timesland quarterback in 2000 and Highfill made first-team All-Timesland in 2003 as an all-purpose player. Lewis originally signed with William and Mary but never played for the Tribe.

Lewis is on schedule to graduate this year, although Division III rules might allow him to return in 2006. Highfill (6-2, 205) has three years of remaining eligibility, but Clark says that will not be a consideration in his decision.

“I’m one of those guys whose vision only goes to [the season opener] Sept. 3,” Clark said. “I’m going to take whoever gives us the best chance to win Sept. 3.

“We’ve been on a great run here since we made the big turn in 2000 and we’ve been blessed to have our quarterbacks miss two quarters of time due to injury. You can’t assume that’s always going to be the case.”

Lewis played in five games last year and completed 10 of 18 passes as a backup to senior Brandon Wakefield. Highfill played in one varsity game and completed all three of his pass attempts.

“You do what’s best for the team,” Clark said. “In 2001, we played two quarterbacks, but, if I had my preference, I’d rather be able to say, ‘This is the guy,’ and let one of them know, ‘This is your game to win or lose.’

“I want to defend an ODAC championship. You don’t get to Point B before you get to Point A, but I’d like nothing better to come back to Salem [for the Division III title game] with a Roanoke quarterback leading the charge.”

Center Troy Burnett, a senior from Martinsville High School, will be one of the Eagles’ co-captains this year.

On the move again

Salem native Mark Byington will have a third home in three months after accepting a position as an assistant coach at College of Charleston, where he coached previously from 2002-04.

Byington, after one year as the director of basketball operations at Virginia, had taken a position at Eastern Kentucky before old boss Tommy Herrion came calling. A position had opened at College of Charleston when native New Englander Pat Skerry resigned to join the staff at Rhode Island.

Another former member of the Virginia staff, seven-year Pete Gillen assistant Walt Fuller, has returned to his native Philadelphia to take a position on the staff at LaSalle. That job came open when new Virginia head coach Dave Leitao hired ex-LaSalle assistant Steve Seymour.

Around the ACC

Whoever set up North Carolina’s football schedule didn’t do fifth-year head coach John Bunting any favors by arranging nonconference games this year with Wisconsin, Utah and Louisville.

“That’s a tough stretch year in and year out, particularly with the way the conference is now,” Bunting said. “A lot of teams want to play North Carolina; we never have any problems getting games, but we want to have some sensibility in the future.

“We want to have a marquee game out of conference every year, [but] I like going to play South Florida, I like going to Rutgers.”

Much has been made of Boston College’s decision to move defensive back Will Blackmon to wide receiver, but coach Tom O’Brien also is considering the use of 6-1, 233-pound linebacker Greg Toal as a short-yardage back.

“I tell him, ‘Pick up a couple of first downs and that’s two or three more minutes you get to rest on defense,’ ” O’Brien said.

Local update

Cave Spring graduate Robert Mills, a first-team All-Timesland selection as an infielder, will play at Lynchburg College. Mills also pitched for the Knights, with a 5-1 record and an ERA of slightly over 1.00 as a senior, and will get a chance on the mound for the Hornets.