Quarterbacks in Short Supply for Titans : Football: And they won’t exactly be overstocked with defenders, either, when they play Utah State.

Cal State Fullerton has something of a quarterback crisis entering today’s homecoming game against Utah State.

Starter Paul Schulte, who suffered bruised ribs and a kidney last week at San Jose, won’t play. Redshirt freshman Terry Payne will start, and kicker-punter Phil Nevin, who played quarterback at El Dorado High School, will be the backup.

Freshman quarterback Mike Simmons is academically ineligible, and Coach Gene Murphy won’t play freshman Chad May because May would lose his redshirt year. In an emergency, Murphy would have to turn to receiver Kerry Reed and third-string running back Danny Pasquil, who have virtually no quarterbacking experience.

But all of this is nothing compared to the Titans’ defensive shortcomings. And the play of the defense might be a bigger factor in today’s Big West Conference game.

Fullerton will be without injured starting defensive linemen Dave Dorf, Jamal Jones and J.C. Farrow, linebacker Stan Breland and cornerback Nuygen Pendleton. Dorf, Jones, Breland and Pendleton have been out for at least four weeks, and Farrow is missing his second game in a row.

The line suffered another blow Wednesday when end Chad Lindsay, who replaced Farrow, broke a finger in practice. Lindsay is doubtful for today’s game, and Murphy has had several reserve offensive linemen practicing with the defense in case they’re needed.

To compound the Titans’ problems, they are facing a team that is more than capable of exploiting a thinned-out defensive line. Utah State has a huge, physical offensive line and the conference’s leading rusher, Roger Grant.

They’re a Big West rarity: a team that would rather run than pass. In fact, in Utah State’s past two games, victories over Nevada Las Vegas and New Mexico State, quarterback Ron Lopez threw just 22 passes.

Most conference quarterbacks throw 22 times a half.

“Utah State has the best running offense in the conference,” Murphy said. “They always get the biggest kids in Utah, line up and hammer you. And Grant fits right into their offense. He’s the best-kept secret in the conference.”

Grant, a 5-foot-8, 190-pound junior, was not heavily recruited out of Butte College last season. He’s not very big and doesn’t have outstanding speed. Oregon State wanted him to play fullback, and Utah State Coach Chuck Shelton wanted him as a tailback, but he received no other Division I-A scholarship offers.

“We didn’t think we could get him because he played so well in junior college,” Shelton said. “We were shocked because we got him so easily.”

Grant, who relies on deception and sharp cuts, is 10th in the nation in rushing with an average of 118.8 yards a game. His best game was 292 yards against Cal State Long Beach.

“The first guy usually misses him, and he anticipates things well,” Shelton said. “He’s one of the better broken-field runners I’ve been around.”

The Titans will probably bring eight or nine defenders close to the line of scrimmage in hopes of stuffing the run. That still might not help.

“Fresno State played nine or 10 guys up--their strong safety was two yards behind the line of scrimmage--and they still ran on them,” Murphy said. “They have an outstanding offensive line.”

Their quarterback isn’t too bad, either. Though the Aggies would rather run, Lopez, a 6-foot-5, 220-pound junior, has shown an ability to pass. He has completed 84 of 165 attempts for 1,148 yards and seven touchdowns. In a 34-27 loss to conference leader San Jose State, Lopez completed 28 of 49 passes for 348 yards.

And he’ll be facing a Fullerton defense that has made most opposing quarterbacks look like Heisman Trophy candidates. The Titans allow an average of 309.8 passing yards a game.

Asked if the Aggies will throw more today, Shelton simply replied, “Yes.”

Titan Notes

Utah State has not had much success playing in Southern California. The Aggies are 0-3 in Santa Ana Stadium and last year closed their season with a 31-18 loss at Cal State Long Beach. “I don’t know what the problem is, I just know we have one,” said Chuck Shelton, in his fifth year as Utah State’s coach. “Some of our poorest outings have come when we’ve gone to Southern California.” Fullerton Coach Gene Murphy has an explanation for the Aggies’ Southland shortcomings. “That has to do with personnel more than anything else,” Murphy said. “But it’s different this year. This is the best team Shelton has had at Utah State.” . . . If Utah State defeats Fullerton and University of the Pacific next week, the Aggies, who close against Brigham Young Nov. 24, will finish with their first .500 season since 1981, when they went 5-5-1. They haven’t had a winning season since going 6-5 in 1980.