For fear that his family might think he was crazy, Mike Serio has been spending a lot of time in the basement lately.

"If my parents came down and saw what I was doing, they would think that I was acting pretty goofy," Serio said.

Indeed, with the way he's sidestepping around the room, it almost looks like Serio is teaching himself how to waltz or something.

But in reality, he is simply re-learning the game of football.

When Carmel quarterback Mark Venegoni banged up his ankle in last weekend's Class 6A semifinal game against Minooka and became a question mark for Saturday's state championship game against Bloomington in Champaign, Serio immediately became one of the candidates to replace him, if necessary.

"Coach (Andy) Bitto called me on Sunday morning and told me that he wanted me to start working on my quarterbacking skills," said Serio, a senior running back for the Corsairs. "So I went over to school that afternoon and starting practicing."

It didn't take long for Serio to realize that he was in for a major challenge.

"To learn quarterback in one week in our offense is really tough," Serio said of Carmel's complicated triple option attack, which yielded more than 400 yards and 40 points per game with Venegoni at the controls. "Probably the toughest part is the footwork. Based on the reads you make, your feet are moving in a different direction all the time. It actually takes a lot of practice to get it down."

So not only does Serio practice his footwork at practice, he practices in the basement, too.

"I'm hoping that if I keep working in the basement, I can eventually eliminate all of my mistakes," Serio said. "If I have to do that every night for hours and hours, I'll do it. I want to win the (state championship) game that bad. If I start at quarterback, I want to be able to make the plays that we need to make to win."

And so does junior quarterback John Solan, who has been Venegoni's backup all season.

He's the other candidate vying to take over the quarterback spot.

And yes, vying is the right word there. To liven up practice and to give the team something else to think about besides the possible loss of Venegoni, the Carmel coaching staff decided to wage an all-out competition between Serio and Solan.

"I feel like I'm working even harder than I was during preseason practice in August," Solan said. "I'm sure Mike does, too. It's pretty intense, but I think it's made both of us do a lot better in practice. We're practicing our hearts out."

Apparently, all of the Corsairs are, which is exactly what the coaching staff was hoping for.

"We've got two kids busting their guts, fighting for their lives to possibly play quarterback in the state championship game," Bitto said. "It's a good energy at our practices. I think it makes everyone focus more. It makes us realize just how competitive this game will be, how much is on the line and how we'll have to be ready."

Despite all the pressures and butterflies that come with trying to suddenly take over the most important position on the team on the eve of the most important game of the year, both Solan and Serio say they'll be ready come game time.

Solan says he feels especially prepared to step in for Venegoni if he gets the call because, after all, he's learned directly from the best (Venegoni) every day in practice.

"I've learned a lot from Mark this season and he's still helping me out," said Solan, who directed Carmel to two touchdowns after Venegoni left the Minooka game. "He comes to practice and helps both Mike and me when we have trouble or when we make mistakes. He's given me tips on my drop steps and he's been really supportive.

"And the other players on the team have been really supportive of us, too. If we make a mistake, they say, 'It's OK, we'll get the next one.' And that's really helped a lot. I think the guys on the team got some confidence in me when I came in against Minooka and we scored 2 touchdowns. Since then, it seems like their confidence has grown. And as their confidence has grown in me, my confidence has grown in myself."

Solan says that while his passing game is still somewhat of a work in progress, he's feeling really confident about being able to run the ball in the triple option. He considers running the ball to be his forte.

Of course, running is what Serio, who has rolled up 653 rushing yards and 10 touchdowns this season, feels most comfortable doing, too. But he says he won't hesitate to pass the ball.

He grew up playing quarterback in grade school, and as recently as last summer, he was sharpening his passing skills at the Northwestern passing league.

Serio says that after former teammate Marshall Khayat died in a motorcycle accident in June, the coaches came to him and asked that he familiarize himself with the quarterback spot. And they asked the same of Solan, who was originally going to play defense this season.

"Marshall would have been the sophomore quarterback and then he would have dressed for the varsity games and probably been our top backup. He was really good," Serio said. "But after he passed away, the coaches asked me to come with them to the passing league and learn more about the spot. They told me that I would be the emergency quarterback.

"I kind of joked with myself that I was the 'Code Red' quarterback. Knowing that Mark was in there, the whole idea of me ever playing quarterback seemed a little far-fetched ... until this past weekend."

As of mid-week, Venegoni was still listed as 50/50 for the state championship game. Of course, the Corsairs would love to have their star, who has accounted for more than 2,400 yards of offense himself this season, back in the lineup. But everyone - especially Serio and Solan - is preparing like he won't be.

"We've got to approach things that way, just to make sure we're ready," Serio said. "I feel kind of bad knowing that I might be playing quarterback in the state championship game because Mark should be in there. But I know that if he can't go, he would want me to get in there and try my hardest so that we can succeed and that's what I'm going to do. And so is John.

"To me, this is kind of like something that Hollywood would dream up. You know, you're put in a situation that you'd never think would happen and you've got all of this adversity to overcome. If we could win that game without Mark, I think it would be a tremendous story and it would say a lot about our team."

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