The Philadelphia Inquirer from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania • Page 25

Saturday, July 28, 2001 THE PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER CC3 Eagles Notes Frank, a year later, likes his second chance with Eagles By Phil Sheridan INQUIRER STAFF WRITER BETHLEHEM, Pa. He made it this time. "I got over the hump," John Frank said after his first NFL training camp practices. "I felt good out there." The Eagles drafted Frank, a defensive end from Utah, last year. He signed a contract.

He Frank followed the Eagles last year. He said he tried to watch every game, which wasn't always easy in Utah. "People thought I must have some animosity toward the team," Frank said. "But no, not at all. It was just the opposite, in fact.

They had a great year and I was happy for them." Frank contacted the team and went to minicamps. He reported to Lehigh University on time. The next morning, he was gone without a word to anyone. "I'm going to say it was right or wrong at the time," Frank said yesterday. "There were a lot of personal things involved.

There was sickness in my family, things like that. I guess the time off was therapeutic for me." asked for a second chance. He wanted to play. The birth of his first child, son Jackson, had something to do with it The Eagles, who'd been embarrassed when Frank bolted last year, agreed to bring him back. No hard feelings.

He signed a contract. He went to the minicamps. He reported to Lehigh again, just as he had the year before. Birds' draft choices sealed, delivered crowds, though, with several hundred showing up to see Donovan McNabb, Duce Staley and Freddie Mitchell. Sightings.

There are some changes at Lehigh. The Eagles added a cold tub, a kiddie pool-sized tub full of icy water for post-practice cool-down. There are new signs posted for visitors, listing rules about where they can stand and prohibiting, among other things, use of stop watches. The VIP tents, which are used for hosting corporate guests, were moved from one end of the fields to the side. Moves.

The Eagles released defensive tackle Giradie Mercer and re-signed first-year wide receiver Steve Vagedes. Vagades was with the team in the spring, but was released after a mini-camp session in June. Today. The team will conduct workouts today at 10:30 a.m. and 3:05 p.m.

Staley will be featured in the autograph tent after the morning session (approximately along with draft picks Mitchell, Quinton Caver, Derrick Burgess and Tony "It was a strong feeling of deja vu," Frank said. "I was joking with people about it. I told them they'd better keep a lookout this time." It wasn't necessary this time. Frank, a 6-foot-4, 280-pounder, knows the odds in this camp. Last year, he would have been on hand to start at left end when Greg Jefferson got hurt.

Instead, the Eagles moved Brandon Whiting from tackle to end. This year, Frank is in a field crowded by free-agent addition Ndukwe Kalu and third-round pick Derrick Burgess. "I have my work cut out for me," Frank said. "I know that. We have a lot of good ends here.

But I really believe I can contribute to this team if I get a chance." He has one. This time, he's determined to make the most of it. Day one. The first sessions of the camp were conducted in warm weather under dazzling blue skies. "The first year we were here, we had a drought," offensive coordinator Rod Dowhower said.

"The second year, we had a flood. So this is great." With 38 players in camp rookies, quarterbacks and a handful of other veterans the fields look sparsely populated. The Eagles drew decent lection. The Eagles were expected to focus on their offense in the draft. After selecting wide receiver Freddie Mitchell in the first round, they went with two defensive players, even trading up to get Burgess.

The idea: to get quicker and deeper on defense while continuing to develop offensive players. Caver was at all the minicamps. He is looking forward to next week, when the veterans will be here and the real football gets under way. "You can't show what you can do physically without pads on," Caver said. "You can show what you can do mentally, but not physically." CAMP from CI starting all 18 games last year, including the playoffs.

Not only -that, he signed a contract extension during the regular season. Williams was inactive for every game. He could recover this season, but unless someone is injured, it won't be easy. Coach-, es like to keep lines together, and Williams will have to be significantly better than Mayberry or left guard John Welbourn to get a chance. By signing in time, Caver avoided putting himself in a similar bind.

"It's not a one-man team," he said. "If you're not here, they can easily replace you with someone else." But if you are here, you have a chance to win a starting job. That's the reality for Caver at weakside linebacker. He has a very real shot. "I'm not thinking about that now," Caver said.

"If I start thinking like that, I'll mess up my plays. I just have to concentrate on learning my plays and doing the best I can." Barry Gardner, last year's starter at position, is being moved inside as a backup and potential replacement for Jeremiah Trotter, who is in the final year of his contract. As camp opens, Ike Reese is No. 1 on the depth chart on the weak side. Reese, a fourth-year veteran who has played mostly on special teams, won't be easy to beat out.

He's smart and tough and has waited a long time for this opportunity. But coach Andy Reid has established a pattern for such competitions. Rookies aren't handed starting jobs, no matter where they are drafted. They must earn their spots, but logic suggests the team would like its second-round pick to win such a competition. At 6-foot-4 and 230 pounds, Caver is bigger than the 6-2, 220-pound Reese.

He is fast enough that his college coach, called him "Land Rover" for covering so much ground. The Eagles took him with the 55th pick of the draft, but they might have gotten lucky. Caver's stock dropped a bit because of a poor showing at the Senior Bowl. But he was asked to play defensive end in Mobile, not his natural position. Caver was a little bit of a surprise pick.

So was defensive end Derrick Burgess, a third-round se Phil Sheridan's e-mail address is psheridanphillynews.com. Phil Sheridan's e-mail address is psheridanphillynews.com. NFL Rams, Seahawks sign top draft picks '99 CADILLAC SEDAN CEYU1E BALANCE OF 4 YR.SO.00O BUMPER TO BUMPER FACTORY WARRANTY, Dual Air Bags. Anti-Lock Brakes, AMFM Stereo Cass Cruse, TA. Rear ufttroaw.

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Coach Bill Belichick said the team had no information on Katzenmoyer's whereabouts or reasons for leaving. Elsewhere: The Minnesota Vikings signed second-round draft pick Willie Howard of Stanford for undisclosed terms. Cornerback Nate Clements, the Buffalo Bills' first-round draft pick, signed for undisclosed terms. Veteran linebacker Sean Harris told Chicago Bears coach Dick Jauron that he is retiring, Brandon Spoon missed the second day of Buffalo's training camp with a sprained knee. All-pro corner-back Samari Rolle reported to Tennessee's camp and signed a one-year contract with the promise of a longer deal soon.

ByMikeBruton INQUIRER STAFF WRITER MACOMB, 111. Damione Lewis, the St. Louis Rams' top draft choice, signed a five-year contract yesterday, leaving the teani with two other unsigned first-round picks. Lewis, a Miami product projected as a starter, actually signed a four-year, $7.5 million deal with an option for a fifth year. If he fulfills all the incentive clauses, the deal, with the fifth year, is worth $10 million.

The contract is worth $8.5 million without the incentives. The package includes a $5.4 million signing bonus. The 6-foot-2, 301-pound rookie is a crucial part of a major restructuring of the Rams' defense, which gave up 471 points last season. St. Louis, with new defensive coordinator Lovie Dolphins.

Offensive tackle Brent Smith will be lost for the season after suffering a torn left knee ligament in Miami's morning practice, four plays into its first full-squad workout. Colts. The team lost a pair of projected starters on the defensive line when tackle Ellis Johnson was placed on the phys-ically-unable-to-perform list with a sore right knee and end Shawn King retired. Patriots. New England also lost two projected starters.

Joe Pa-nos, an eight-year veteran expected to contend for a starting guard spot, retired. And third-year linebacker Andy Katzen-moyer left camp. Katzenmoyer, who had practiced on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, had breakfast with his Smith, could have as many as eight new starters on defense this season. The Cardinals open their season against the Eagles in Veterans Stadium on Sept. 9.

Safety. Adam Archuleta, the 20th overall player taken in the draft and also a projected starter, and defensive tackle Ryan Pickett (29th) remain unsigned but, according to Rams coach Mike Mar-tz, not for long. "There's just so much money left," Martz said. "There's probably an increase in urgency with those other guys." Seahawks. First-round draft pick Koren Robinson, a wide receiver from North Carolina State drafted ninth overall, signed a six-year, $10.1 million contract, his agent said.

HI 0EVILLE 9,000 MILES '00 DEVILLE Ml sJMM WHEELS '99 SEVILLE STS WHITE, SUNROOF '99 ELDORADO ETC BLACK, SUNROOF 99 CATER WHEELS, SUNROOF '98 ONLY 35,000 MILES '97 SEVILLE ONLY 19,800 MILES '98 DEVIUE CONCOURSE CHfl0M WHEELS '97 ELDORADO ONLY 34,000 MILES This article contains information from the Associated Press. Sanders retiring from football Large Selection 1 00 Ma as the Redskins failed to live up to their Super Bowl billing. He acknowledged that his season was not up to his usual standard and perhaps not worthy of the money he was getting paid. During the World Series, he stood in front of his football locker and pined for baseball. Sanders was upset when the Redskins overhauled their coaching staff during the offseason.

He said he should have been involved when defensive coordinator Ray Rhodes left the team, and he said he did not trust Schottenheimer. He could either report to the Redskins, a team he had disavowed, or refuse to report and risk losing up to $6.86 million of his signing bonus. seven-year, $56 million contract he signed last year obligated him to report to training camp tomorrow unless he was playing major-league baseball. Sanders was in the majors earlier this year with the Cincinnati Reds, but he was cut July 17 after batting just .173. Sanders' abrupt retirement, coupled with his baseball failure, would appear to bring to a sudden end the two-sport career of one of the most dynamic showmen in sports in the last decade.

Sanders combined flair with talent: He is considered one of the greatest cornerbacks of all time, and he is the only person to play in the World Series and the Super Bowl. But Sanders, 33, Was disenchanted and restless last year SANDERS from CI portion of his $8 million signing bonus up to $2.5 million and that the Redskins would receive salary-cap relief next season for the returned portion. The announcement came one day after Sanders left the Syracuse SkyChiefs, a minor-league baseball team. "I've got to really get my head together and figure out what I'm going to do and what I want to accomplish," Sanders said Thursday night after hitting a home run in his final game. Attempts to reach Sander and Parker were not immediately successful.

Sanders previously had said he did not want to play for the Redskins this season, but the STARMARK Pre-Owned Mercedes-Benz Drexel coach Flint recruits two more 2000ML430 STP2387, White, 31k mi $39,900. 1999 ML430 STP2355, Ruby, 29 kmi $39,900. 1999 ML430 STP2341, Silver, 23 kmi $39,900. Even Martelli, who has watched Nelson play since he was at Chester High School, Delaware County, said he was "astounded" by the guard's strength and quickness on the national level. "He's played better at the trials in Colorado and this week here in Dallas than he played for us all year at St.

Joe," he said. Also selected were Troy Bell of Boston College, Carlos Boozer of Duke, Caron Butler of Connecticut, Nick Collison of Kansas, Brian Cook of Illinois, Chris Du-hon of Duke, Reggie Evans of Iowa, Dahntay Jones of Duke, Jason Kapono of UCLA, Michael Sweetney of Georgetown, and Marcus Taylor of Michigan State. Jim Boeheim of Syracuse is the head coach. Ernie Kent of Oregon and Martelli are assistants. Competition is set for Aug.

3-12 in Saitama, Japan. IECNAN MOTORS In another development for the Dragons, swingman Julius Williams has decided to return for his senior season. Williams, who attended Germantown Academy, played sparingly as a freshman and sophomore. As a junior, he left the team in the 1999-2000 season and then sat out last season. Hawks' Nelson named.

St. Joseph's sophomore Jameer Nelson was one of 12 players selected yesterday by USA Basketball to represent the United States in the World Championships for Young Men in Japan next month. The decision was not a surprise to Hawks coach Phil Martelli. Nelson, 19, led the team in minutes played, averaging 19, in exhibition wins in Dallas this week over Lithuania and Yugoslavia. "What separated him here is that he's the only guy who plays just point guard," said Martelli, an assistant coach for the U.S.

team. "But more than that, he plays it the way the people who invented the position thought it should' be played." By Kevin Tatum INQUIRER STAFF WRITER New Drexel coach Bruiser Flint has signed 6-foot-8 center Anthony Lalor of DeWitt Clinton in the Bronx, N.Y., and received an early commitment from 6-5 guardforward Kenell Sanchez of Bishop Eustace. Lalor will be eligible to play next season. Sanchez will be a senior this fall at the high school in Pennsauken, Camden County. Statistics on both players were unavailable yesterday.

Lalor will join 6-2 guard Jeremiah King of Paterson, N.J., and 6-6 guardforward Danny Hinds of Bethlehem, in Flint's 2001 recruiting class. Those players were preceded into the Drexel fold by 6-9 center Steve Showers of New Tripoli, and 6-1 guard Phil Goss of Temple Hills, who were recruited by former coach Steve Seymour. Seymour, who was fired after Drexel finished 15-12 last season to run his two-year record to 28-29, is an assistant at Siena under first-year coach Rob Lanier. Mercedes Benz 215.348.0800 856 N. Easton Road, DOYLESTOWN, PA www.keenanrnotors.com Kevin Tatum's e-mail address is ktatumphillynews.com.

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