GROVE CITY — Mike Burk is on crutches. Nick Miller and Jason Ferderber have yet to practice. Other players are nursing bumps and bruises.

It's not a good sign when the most valuable person in camp is the trainer.

But that is what the Grove City High football team has faced this late summer. With the season opener approaching fast, Eagles coach Jeff Bell is scrambling to find healthy bodies.

"I've never had this many injuries at the beginning of the season," said Bell, who is beginning his 12th season as Grove City coach. "Hopefully, we'll get them all out of the way."

The problem is, the injuries aren't going away any time soon.

Burk, the starting quarterback who threw for more than 1,000 yards last season, broke his foot and is out six to eight weeks.

That leaves two freshmen and a sophomore to vie for the starting spot.

Burk suffered his injury in a seemingly harmless drill in which he planted his right foot and cut. He finished practice, but a later examination revealed the extent of the his injury.

"I tell you what, he was devastated," Bell said.

That leaves sophomore Kevin Moore, who moved to Grove City from Coudersport, and freshmen MasonDePeal and Tyler Dagres as the quarterback options for Bell.

All three have different styles. Moore is a wing-T style quarterback, Dagres is a drop-back passer and DePeal, who moved to the area fromMichigan two years ago, is an option QB.

Bell has no idea who will win the job.

What it has done is change the Eagles' playbook.

"With Mike there, we could throw the ball more," Bell said. "Now, we're going to have to go back to what we always want to do: establish the run and stop the run."

That will put even more pressure on senior Dwayne Martin, who returns as Grove City's main rushing and receiving threat.

Bell had pondered moving Martin to fullback, a position filled by Chris Clark for the last three seasons, but the coach opted to leave Martin at his wingback position.

"That enables us to put him in motion and do some things with him," Bell said. "At fullback, we're kind of limited in what we can do with him. At wingback, it make it a little harder for teams to key on him."

Bell has plenty of replacements in mind for Clark, who finished his career as one of the all-time best ballcarriers at Grove City. Casey Shay, Doug Skelley and brothers Wesley and Marty Phipps will rotate at fullback.

There won't be any rotating at quarterback, though. Bell is confident that whoever wins the job will be capable enough to make teams pay for overplaying the run.

"I think these kids are capable of hurting people and I think we are good enough coaches that we can do some things and cause problems," Bell said.

Ferderber, a standout senior tight end who Bell calls one of his best blockers, and Miller, the starting offensive guard and inside linebacker, figure to be back in the lineup at the start of the season.

Still, Bell is dismayed about his injury problems.

"There's no whining or crying about it," Bell said. "You can't cancel the season. You can't postpone it. We have to be ready to play."

That makes the start of the season even more critical.

Grove City moves up from Class AA in District 10 to Class AAA in 2008, meaning a whole new schedule against a crop of teams the Eagles have rarely played.

"I think it is real important for this team to get off to a good start because of our situation atquarterback," Bell said. "We need to hang in there until week four or five when we can get Mike back.

"We need our seniors to lead," Bell added. "In high school football, your season can go down the tubes in a hurry."