While most of the conference has been developing new quarterbacks, Rob Curley has been a consistent figure for the Lafayette Leopards the past three years. Now a senior, Curley made his first start midway through his sophomore year and finished his season with 929 yards, seven touchdowns, and only four interceptions. As a starter his junior year, he played well for the entire season with 1,424 yards and nine touchdowns versus four interceptions, but was injured with a concussion the last few games. Four games into this season, Lafayette is 3-1 and a big reason for its fast start can be credited to Curley’s stellar production, even relative to his last two seasons.
This year Curley has been tearing up the conference with 924 yards and eight touchdown passes. Perhaps even more impressive than those numbers has been his dependability. Curley has thrown just two picks—one coming off a tip—for the entire season, has completed almost two-thirds of his passes, and has only been sacked seven times so far.
Leopard head coach Frank Tavani believes that much of Curley’s success this year is derived from the two-and-a-half years of experience he gained, which has allowed him to see the field much better. He said that Curley’s experience “allows Lafayette to do a variety of things on offense.” One thing in particular Tavani pointed out is that “Lafayette is asking him to make many decisions on the line of scrimmage,” which Curley can do because of his familiarity with the Leopard offense.
In addition, Tavani described his quarterback as a “loose guy who doesn’t panic and is a very tough competitor.” Curley has many of the ideal traits in a quarterback—mobility to avoid sacks, a powerful arm to throw touchdowns, and experience to pick apart a defense from the line of scrimmage—which does not bode well for the Lions defense this weekend.
However, although Curley’s experience allows the Leopards to run many diverse packages on offense, one thing that won’t be seen is many designed quarterback runs. It would be a stretch to call that a weakness in his game, however, since Curley is such an efficient passer from the pocket. Still, given Columbia’s difficulties stopping scrambling quarterbacks in its last two games, it would be a slight relief not having to worry about that option or quarterback draws. In order for the Light Blue to win, its defense will have to contain the potent Leopard passing game led by Curley.
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