"He knows where the open areas are in a defense. It's instinctive with him," Restic said. "He knows where all the people are on the field all the time. Richie may not be that fast or very big, but he's got quick feet and has made catches that are unbelievable at times."

Horner typically downplays the importance of his skills in his receptions, giving credit instead to the design of the Crimson offense. "One thing that helps is the sets we use," Horner explains. "When you have something like a triple slot, they can't cover all of us."

"In a one-on-one situation," he continues, "the receiver generally has the advantage and the onus is on the defensive back.

The defensive back position is the most difficult on the field." Especially when one has to cover Rich Horner.

But Horner is always focused on the team. When Restic congratulated him at a team meeting for taking the ECAC receiving lead, the Californian responded only with the hope that the team would win its remaining games. "He does it all," Restic said, "and he does it all with class."

Horner, and some of his teammates who belong to the Fellowship of Christian Athletes, hold prayer sessions every Saturday morning before games. "The Saturday prayer sessions help me remember that I'm not playing for my own glory." Horner said.

The psych an I soc rel major hopes some day to be an ordained Lutheran minister like his father and feels that religion helps him keep football in perspective.

"Football means a lot," Horner said, "partly because I'm competitive by nature. But it will never be at the top of my list of priorities."

The only time Horner has been visibly upset on the football field was at last Saturday's game at Brown after an official ruled that he had caught a pass out of bounds.

"It was the third time I had been called out of bounds by the same referee. With the combination of that and the wet conditions, I really yelled at the official," Horner says. "I was thinking when I went off the field after that play that I was going to really give it to him after the game, but I cooled off pretty quickly. I think my Christianity is something that helps me do that," he adds.

But the ministry will wait for a few years for Horner who hopes to join the Peace Corps after graduation and go to a Spanish-speaking country, probably in Latin America. "I feel a real desire to break out of the cultural context in which I've lived for so many years," Horner says thoughtfully. "I want to learn about other ways of life and experience them rather than just reading about them." Horner discusses how his studies in psychology conflict with his plans to be a minister in a similar contemplative moment. "They do conflict with one another in some cases. There are some things I don't agree with in psychology. But it as been good for me because it has forced me to re-evaluate things and come to my own conclusions."

Those who know him, meanwhile, have already reached one conclusion: Rich Horner has become one fine receiver against very steep odds.