Hilger Is No. 3 Again After Scrimmage : Young Quarterback Holds His Own, but Wilson, Plunkett Arrive

The young Raider quarterback, Rusty Hilger, in his last chance to show something before the veterans arrive, had an OK day against the Dallas Cowboys in Sunday’s scrimmage.

He did some things well, he did some less than that, and his receivers dropped several passes. More important, Hilger seemed to impress the man he needs to impress, Coach Tom Flores.

“I thought Rusty did pretty well, to be honest with you, in all the things he did,” Flores said after the Cowboys’ 13-6 victory.

“He was pretty accurate. We must have dropped half a dozen.”

Hilger was 9 for 20 for 138 yards. How impressive was that? What did that mean for his possible candidacy? Flores said it’s too soon to tell.

Meanwhile, Hilger’s older competition arrived in camp Sunday in the persons of Marc Wilson and Jim Plunkett, who are still listed 1-2 on the depth chart.

The Raider star of the scrimmage was Vance Mueller, the halfback from little Occidental College, who gained 21 yards in 4 carries, including a four-yard sweep for the Raider touchdown. He also caught 3 passes for 56 yards, including a 42-yarder from Hilger that set up the touchdown.

Chuck McSweyn, a free agent once with the Cowboys, led Raider rushers with 26 yards in 4 carries. Zeph Lee, the No. 9 pick out of USC, rushed for 18 yards in 5 carries, caught 2 passes for 17 yards and looked good.

The big name? Napoleon McCallum rushed only three times, for seven yards.

Flores: “Napoleon is coming. His legs aren’t there yet and he’s playing a different position (fullback). He made some nice blocks.”