A week cannot go by without the media hyping up the battle between a young upstart and the established authority.

After week one, Miami remains engulfed by the destruction left by Hurricanes Charley and Francis and the approach of Ivan, but also in the swirling mess that is the Dolphins’ quarterback situation.

Jay Fiedler or A.J. Feeley; either way, disaster is in the air.

The New York Football Giants have problems of their own as they debate between the NFL’s new cover boy, Eli Manning, and the league’s former Cinderella story, Kurt Warner.

But the decision will be made easy for Head Coach Tom Coughlin as the Giants will eliminate themselves from the playoffs by week seven, leaving Manning as the only reasonable choice.

However, Coughlin and Dolphins Head Coach Dave Wannstedt have it easy compared to Rensselaer Head Football Coach Joe King.

The legendary coach, now in his 16th season, finds himself facing the first quarterback discussion since Dan Cole took over three years ago.

Sophomore Frank Catellier opened the season as the starter, but after suffering a shoulder injury that forced him to leave the game early, giving freshman Chad Wysocki his chance to take the position.

Three touchdowns and 383 passing yards later, Wysocki effectively created the contest after the Engineers 42-7 win over Endicott College this past Saturday.

As a member of the media it would be wrong of me not to over-hype and dramatize the competition for the team’s most crucial position.

King is between a rock and a hard place as he tries to establish a starter, while at the same time not destroy the hope and work ethic of the other player.

But King has the experience to handle these situations. There is no better man to direct these young men than a coach who appears to be more a trusted cigar-smioking, story-telling grandfather, rather than a football coach.

One thing this writer will not do is talk about how this battle will destroy team chemistry, and send the Engineers into the abyss as the offense divides into the Catellier and Wysocki camps.

King won’t let that happen.

He has always emphasized that TEAMS win football games; not individual players.

In fact, King stressed that last year’s squad was only as good as the entire team drove to be.

Even in 2003, as Cole and Cochran performed their magic, they would have never been successful without the likes of Mike Deflippi and Jai Echols on defense.

King’s emphasis on the team concept will prevent RPI from suffering the same tragic fate as the Dolphins and Giants.

Coaches love competition in practice, and King, unlike Coughlin and Wannstedt, is probably fancying his situation.