For Starters, There’s No Bench in QB Corner : Herrmann Steps Up in Respect

Most of the Chargers are content with the wooden benches built into their dressing stalls in the locker room. The quarterback is a notable exception. The quarterback traditionally occupies a big, brown recliner.

For years, Dan Fouts and his comfortable padded chair have been inseparable.

As usual, there was a quarterback in a recliner in a corner of the locker room this week. Fouts, however, was nowhere to be seen. The quarterback was Mark Herrmann, who only recently acquired his new chair.

The symbolism seems fitting. Herrmann, who starts this week’s game against Philadelphia because of a concussion suffered by Fouts, has arrived as a respectable professional quarterback.

Herrmann, who is basically a polite, unassuming individual, clearly is feeling more sure of himself these days.

A man generally regarded as lacking in color, Herrmann keeps so much inside that only the outlines of his personality can be discerned.

But consider his taste in clothing, which runs to bright pastel sweaters and madras shorts that all but glow in the dark. He could hardly be a more colorful dresser, within the bounds of his Midwestern Preppy style.

Further success may bring out other hidden layers in this reserved man.

After six seasons in the National Football League, he would like to be the established No. 1 quarterback for the Chargers--or somebody--but he isn’t likely to openly campaign for the job.

Even though Fouts has struggled much of the year--as indicated by his 19 interceptions in seven games--he is likely to reclaim the starting role once he recovers.

In the interim, Herrmann will try to stake his claim to the job.

Herrmann replaced Fouts on short notice last week and gave a solid accounting of himself.

Fouts had played 1 1/2 quarters with a head injury that wasn’t diagnosed until halftime. As the team prepared to take the field again, Herrmann was notified Fouts couldn’t continue and he would have to step in.

With time only for a few warmup throws, he went on to complete 18 of 32 passes for 181 yards and led the Chargers to the brink of their first victory in six weeks. A missed field goal in the final minute left the Chargers with a 42-41 defeat--but with renewed faith in their offense in general, and in Herrmann, as well.

“I feel I performed well this year n the preseason and in last week’s game,” Herrmann said. “On any other team, I’d likely be considered the starter.

“It will be difficult if, or when, I have to go back to the bench, but I’ll have to accept it and just feel good about my performance when I’m in there. I don’t want to put any pressure on myself this week. I just want to play well and let the coaches make the decisions about the future.”

Offensive coordinator Ernie Zampese reflected the general level of confidence the Chargers have in Herrmann.

“He’s proven he can get us in the end zone,” Zampese said. “He’s done a good job all along, last year when Dan was hurt, and again this year in the exhibitions and at Kansas City.

“The players certainly expect him to do well whenever he goes in the game, and he’s absorbed enough of our offense by now that we don’t have to limit ourselves when we’re putting together a game plan with Mark as the starter.”

Herrmann said he has detected a big difference in the response of teammates since his first fill-in role against Cleveland early last season.

“I don’t see any long faces when I go in the game now,” Herrmann said. “It’s a lot better atmosphere now than it was in that Cleveland game. I think there was some apprehension with Dan out then. I didn’t know what I could do, and neither did the other guys.”

Receiver Charlie Joiner said it’s hard to gauge the difference in expectations, but he agreed there is a difference.

“We all know he is a very capable quarterback,” Joiner said. “He’s such a quiet guy, it’s hard to tell if he’s up or down, but I know we always hustle as hard for him as we do for Dan.”

Joiner made it plain, however, that he expects Fouts to reclaim the job when he’s healthy.

“Dan is still the man on this team,” Joiner said. “Mark’s a very good quarterback, but Dan is still our starter, even though he’s been having a tough time. He’s getting a deserved rest right now, but we expect him to come back and be fine.”

That anyone would even bring up a question about who the eventual starter illustrates how far Herrmann has come with the Chargers.

It was only a little more than a year ago that Herrmann’s career seemed at a dead end. Denied a chance to prove himself through much of training camp in 1985, Herrmann had little reason to think he had a future that included the respect denoted by an overstuffed chair next to that of No. 14, Fouts.

Herrmann earned a spot on the roster last year because he played well the only chance he got, which was in the second half of the final exhibition game. With little preparation, he beat out Bruce Mathison, who had been groomed for the job for six months and was the coaches’ favorite to be Fouts’ backup.

Herrmann has been doing it the same way ever since. With little training, and often with no advance warning, he has stepped in and played well when Fouts was ailing.

Knowing he would be the starter Sunday, Herrmann spent an extra hour or two each day on his playbook and film study.

“I want to do well and prove to people I am capable of starting and winning,” Herrmann said. “I was fortunate to play as well as I did last week, and I can’t understand it after not playing for five or six weeks. You’d think I would have been rusty.

“But I felt real well, and the offense was clicking, and I was seeing their coverages real well. I got into a rhythm and my delivery felt good.”

In a way, Herrmann said, it may be easier for him to come off the bench than to start.

“From a mental standpoint, that might be better,” he said. “I know I want to get off to a good start this week. I don’t want to get tense. I just want to keep a low-key approach and not try to do it all by myself. I’m expecting us to have a great game.”