Make no mistake, though, Mike Stuntz is a quarterback at heart.

"I like being able to really put your mark on a game, really be able to control things and have things go through you and have the ball in your hands,"said Stuntz, a 6-foot-2, 185-pound sophomore-to-be from Council Bluffs, Iowa. "That's a big part of the game. It's fun for me."

After a season at receiver, Stuntz has returned to quarterback this spring, ostensibly to compete for Nebraska's starting job, though he acknowledged Friday that, at this early stage, he's among a pack chasing the leader, junior Jammal Lord.

"Everybody wants to start, but … that's Jammal's job,"Stuntz said following the second of 15 spring practices. "So we're going to have to push him for it and see where we end up."

Other principals in the pack include senior Joe Chrisman, a walk-on from Longmont, Colo.; Mike McLaughlin, a redshirted freshman from Omaha and Stuntz's roommate; Chris Giacone, a sophomore transfer from Mississippi State; and Curt Dukes, a true freshman from Stony Point, N.C., who graduated from high school in December in order to participate this spring.

Beside Lord, Chrisman is the only returning letterwinner at quarterback, and he's never completed a pass in college.

So Stuntz, in that regard, is one up on the pack, having completed perhaps the most memorable pass of the 2001 season. The left-hander took a reverse pitch from I-back Thunder Collins and tossed a strike to quarterback Eric Crouch for a 63-yard touchdown that put away Oklahoma.

Yes, it was a memorable moment, one he cherishes, Stuntz said. He was elated, but he said it's time to move on.

Beside that play, Stuntz was mostly a bit player in Nebraska's 11-2 season, catching not a single pass but making a 25-yard run against Rice. His playing time waned late in the season.

But the experience Stuntz gained last season will help him this coming season, Nebraska quarterbacks coach Turner Gill said Friday.

Stuntz, who had been a quarterback since seventh grade, agreed.

"It's kind of a different level (than high school), especially the games,"he said. "It's something you have to get used to, the crowd noise, what you should do on the sideline, keeping your head in the game, stuff like that."

As a senior at Council Bluffs St. Albert, Stuntz threw for 425 yards and six touchdowns and rushed for 1,065 yards and 18 TDs. In his last three seasons, his team was 30-4.

Gill watched Stuntz in high school and liked the way the young QB carried himself. Gill struggled to put a finger on it. It was something about the way Stuntz walked and interacted with his teammates. It's a quality that continues to impress Gill.

"He's just a confident guy,"Gill said. "At any position, you have to have confidence, but particularly at quarterback, when people are looking up to you. You have to have a confident demeanor, a walk, even the way you talk. People are going to cling to you and look up to you."

His monumental pass to Crouch last season ensured that Nebraska fans will probably always hold Stuntz in high regard. He's handled the notoriety well, Gill said.

"He has great poise,"Gill said."That really explains it all."

Stuntz, however, said he wants to be defined by more than one play. Someday, he wants to be the starting quarterback and make several big plays in every game. Remember, he wants the ball in his hands. That's when he enjoys playing football the most.

"It was a pretty big deal,"Stuntz said of his pass to Crouch. "At the same time, there were 20 or 30 other guys who were on the field for about 100 more plays than I was. I mean, it wasn't like I was the most important thing ever.

"As much as people might make it out to be, it really wasn't. You just have to keep things in perspective. It was fun. But you have to move on."

Reach Steven M. Sipple at 473-7440 or ssipple@@journalstar.com.