Dilfer, Green hook up, give the ol' college try Ernest Hooper, The St.Petersburg Times, published 15 November 1999 Change of attitude gives QB and WR a chance to connect on a different level. Trent Dilfer threw for 6,944 yards and 51 touchdowns at Fresno State. Jacquez Green had 2,181 receiving yards and caught 23 touchdowns at the University of Florida. So it made perfect sense for Dilfer rejuvenate his game by returning to a collegelike atmosphere. In the process, Dilfer and Green are reminding everyone why they were highly sought after prospects coming out of school. On Sunday, the two hooked up seven times for 164 yards in the Bucs' 17-10 victory over Kansas City. It was the sixth- best receiving day in team history, and it included receptions of 54 and 52 yards. The big-play bonanza is sparking the Tampa Bay offense, and Dilfer attributes part of the success to a change in his attitude after being benched before the Oct. 31 game against Detroit. "When I came back," Dilfer said, "I said the one thing I was going to do was, personally, I was going to get back to that training camp mode and I was going to try to make it like a collegelike atmosphere and try to re-establish all those good feelings we had in training camp because it was ugly." Dilfer described the camp atmosphere as one filled with the belief the team could go to the Super Bowl, and it included long nights of talking football that strengthened the bond between the quarterback and the receivers. Based on the past two weeks, the bond between Dilfer and Green may be joined by super glue. Green has 11 catches for 253 yards since Dilfer returned to the starting lineup. Throw in the seven catches for 96 yards against the Lions, and the numbers are nothing short of phenomenal: 18 receptions, 349 yards. "We're calling more deep pass plays and its taking the pressure off the running game," Green said. "We're feeling better. "We're just making each other look good." Green and Dilfer made each other look good thanks to Kansas City's press coverage. With Eric Warfield and Cris Dishman playing tight on Green, it gave the second-year pro a chance to get behind the defense. The best plays were the 52-yard touchdown in the third quarter and the 54- yard catch in the fourth quarter that would have sealed the game if not for Mike Alstott's third fumble. Both plays came against Warfield, a second-year pro who some Chiefs fans wanted to start ahead of Dishman. "I let the team down today," said Warfield, who said he had to contend with a bruised rib. "Every time they went at me, it worked." Dilfer said the offensive staff believed it could take advantage of Warfield's tight coverage. "I knew Jacquez would catch a lot of balls and I knew that they had the potential to be big plays," Dilfer said. "Next week, it'll be somebody else, but people have to come through and Jacquez definitely came through today." Will it be somebody else? Wide receivers Bert Emanuel and Karl Williams are scheduled to return from injury. Tony Dungy was non-committal when asked about Green returning to his reserve role. "We've got enough plays where we can get all of those guys in," Dungy said. "We're looking forward to getting Bert and Karl back because Jacquez is doing a great job for us, but there's no way he's going to be able to keep up that pace and return and block. "So we'll be happy to have all of those guys back, and he'll get enough balls. You won't see him disappear from the lineup."