Chapman’s Robinson Set to Take On Azusa Pacific

Chapman’s murky quarterback situation cleared up a bit Thursday night when Curtis Robinson got in a full practice.

Robinson, who suffered a serious scratch on his right eye in the first quarter against Redlands last week, is expected to start today in the 1 p.m. game at Azusa Pacific, Chapman Coach Ken Visser said Friday.

That’s good news for the Panthers. Robinson is best suited for Chapman’s modified wishbone offense, the I-bone. At the start of the week, the Panthers basically had one healthy quarterback, freshman Jacob Galasso. Now they have two.

Todd Gragnano, who relieved Robinson against Redlands only to injure a finger on a botched field-goal attempt, is still hurting. Galasso, a Trabuco Hills graduate who has been playing tailback for Chapman, took most of the snaps early in the week.

Robinson, who said he suffered a tear in his cornea, was cleared for contact drills Wednesday and practiced lightly. He said he can still feel the scratch when he blinks but that his vision, doubled and blurry immediately after the injury, is OK.

“It’s healing real fast,” Robinson said. “My pain tolerance is extremely high, which is a good thing.”

Robinson still is bothered by the mildly separated shoulder he suffered in the season opener against Whittier.

The way the offensive line has been blocking for Panther backs, the quarterback position is almost an afterthought. Chapman (2-0-1) rushed for 185 yards against Redlands and it didn’t seem to matter who was getting the ball. Juan Garcia rushed for 53 yards, Darnell Morgan (in limited time because of a sore knee) gained 43 and Galasso and Oscar Ford each gained 33.

Azusa Pacific (1-3) won its first game of the season last week, beating Whittier, 24-17. Tailback Marcus Slaten rushed for 203 yards in 37 carries. It was the first 200-yard performance for an Azusa Pacific back since Christian Okoye set the single-game record of 248 in 1986.

But Chapman’s defense has been strong against the run. It gave up only 109 yards rushing to Redlands, then the Southern California Intercollegiate Conference’s leading rushing team with a 304-yard average.