Reno Gazette-Journall
There are a number of intangibles that can be worked, tweaked, practiced and changed to make a football team get better.
But there is no amount of effort that can force chemistry, that special something that allows two or more players to perform at a higher level. It is the kind of bond that exists between Nevada quarterback Jeff Rowe and receiver Caleb Spencer.
"You can't command chemistry," Wolf Pack coach Chris Ault said. "That just happens. And I think those two have it."
The bond began two years ago when Spencer arrived in Reno after a year at Palomar College in Southern California. He was a first-team All-Western Athletic Conference receiver last year, but most forget that he was a quarterback throughout his high school career at Kamehameha Schools in Honolulu, up until that first year at Palomar when a shortage of receivers led to a position switch.
The fact that Spencer used to be the guy in Rowe's shoes, the leader of the offense, the most high-profile position in football, might be part of it, too.
"Caleb is a very smart football player," said Scott Baumgartner, Nevada's receivers coach who was the quarterbacks coach two seasons ago. "He understands defenses and coverages. But he also understands the job the quarterback has to do. He can relate to what Jeff goes through. They have that chemistry.
"Those two, man, peas in a pod. They can just look at each other and each knows what the other is going to do and it gets done."
When Spencer married his wife, Megan, back in June in his native Hawaii, Rowe was there. No Pack coaches or other members of the team made the journey to the middle of the Pacific Ocean. But the quarterback did.
"Everybody had summer school and all that," Spencer said. "Jeff had summer school, too. But he made the trip. That was awesome."
Rowe said being friends with Spencer comes easily because of the receiver's laid-back nature.
"He is just a likeable guy, an easy-going guy," Rowe said. "What can I say, he's Hawaiian. Nothing seems to bother him."
Spencer has been the consistent one the past two seasons, catching 67 passes in 2004 and another 67 last year. Nearly every one of his receptions has come from Rowe, who battled inconsistency two years ago before excelling in the new pistol scheme last year.
"You start catching that many balls from the same quarterback, there is a bond," Ault said. "There is something special. It has turned out that you have two guys who have a great feel for each other. They are very comfortable and very confident in each other. They are both very passionate about this game.
"I think the chemistry between the two in what we try to do offensively is very, very strong."
Off the field, the friendship is more than just football.
"It started off slowly during my first year here," Spencer said. "That offseason, we just started hanging out together. I started hanging out with his family and he started hanging out with my family. We really got close.
"This year, we are even tighter off the field. We just have that bond."
On the field, the Pack is counting on Rowe and Spencer to do more than they did last year. The production is one thing, but the coaching staff is expecting more from a leadership perspective from each, though in a different way.
Spencer, as the veteran in the receiving corps, is being asked to be more vocal and to be more than just an on-the-field leader for the younger players.
But for Rowe, this needs to be his team. He needs to be the guy that the rest of the team rallies around when adversity strikes. He is expected to be the calm presence in the middle of the storm.
"That is the role he has," running back Robert Hubbard said. "He has taken it. We all look to Jeff as the leader. He has that respect, not just from the offense, but from the whole team. When Jeff speaks, everyone listens. He's our guy."
Rowe has slowly grown into that role during the offseason, making step-by-step progress during winter conditioning, spring practice and voluntary summer workouts. He's become the guy that can find a way to compliment any of his teammates when speaking publicly. But he saves his most genuine praise for Spencer.
"The guy is just a hell of an athlete," Rowe said. "You can see that on the field. But he is smart, too. He used to play quarterback so he understands the positions. He understands where I am coming from."
Spencer returned the volley in the game of compliment-your-best-friend.
"He is the best quarterback, I think, in the nation," he said. "Everything I accomplish is because of him. He throws a perfect ball. I never have to do anything extra."
