All of last season, the glaring conundrum within the Utah football team was who would play quarterback. Coaches and fans alike seemed to fall in love with a different player every week, swapping back and forth between Travis Wilson and Oklahoma transfer Kendal Thompson.
This quarterback carousel was ongoing until Thompson got hurt against Oregon, and the Utes eventually went on to a 9-4 season. Still, fans were left asking what could have been if there had been consistent play under center for the entire 2014 campaign.
This season, head coach Kyle Whittingham has avoided that exact scenario by naming Wilson QB1 since spring ball, and it seemed to work out after the big win over Michigan. Wilson managed and controlled the offense the way Ute fans were hoping, and it finally seemed as if the question of who should be playing quarterback was put to bed.
But to any head coach’s dismay, Wilson was found clutching his shoulder on the turf on Friday night with an injury and was unable to finish the game.
Uh-oh. Bad news. Worst-case scenario.
Okay, maybe not the WORST-case scenario, but the way Wilson looked last week against the Wolverines and in early parts of the game against the Aggies will have fans missing his dual-threat ability if he can’t continue the rest of the way.
Some may counter by saying Thompson is much more of a dual-threat, and yes, that statement is somewhat true, but only because Thompson is more of a runner than a passer. It’s not that he has a terrible arm, but his release motion is slower than dial-up. For every great running play he makes, he misses a man downfield or makes an errant throw that could have put the Utes in a better position than, say, a great run.
You may wonder whether or not Wilson is truly a dual-threat, and depending who you talk to, he may not be. But the question you should be asking is this: Is Thompson just an above-average runner who disguises himself as a quarterback?
Yeah, yeah, I hear you. Thompson ended up winning the game on Friday night over USU, and he actually had a pretty solid stat line in relief duty (8-for-10 throwing for 56 yards, six rushes for 23 yards and a touchdown). He also has a big win over UCLA on his resume, and he played well against the national runner-ups in Oregon last season before getting hurt.
But what about the receivers he missed down the field because he couldn’t read the defense quick enough? If Wilson is out for an extended period of time, this will be a long season for wide receivers like Kenneth Scott, who is more of a downfield threat than someone like freshman Britain Covey.
The difference between Wilson and Thompson in the passing game is far greater than the difference between the two in the running game. If you remember, before Wilson left with his injury, he made a great read to run it in for the score early in the first quarter. It’s not that Wilson is incapable of running the read option, but his throwing ability far surpasses Thompson’s — plain and simple.
I’m not trying to bash on Thompson. If Wilson’s injury is indeed serious, which doesn’t seem to be the case, according to Whittingham, Utah should consider itself lucky it has a quarterback like Thompson to take over. He’s experienced, mature and has played in and won big games for the Utes.
But Utah had a good thing going with Wilson. He was the definitive starter all through camp, his game against Michigan was a sigh of relief for Ute fans everywhere, and he even looked good early on against Utah State. It’s Wilson’s senior year, and there’s a good chance he was (is) well on his way to having the best season of his career.
This injury revives those questions of who should play quarterback the rest of the way when there shouldn’t be any questions in the first place. On Twitter, I saw Utah fans calling for Chase Hansen’s number on Friday night in wake of Wilson’s injury, and as enticing as that is for the future, it’s not the right move for now.
As of right now, Whittingham has been secretive about the situation, but basically, no one knows who will step out under center for the Utes on Saturday at Fresno. It could be Thompson, who has the experience, or it could be Hansen, who Whittingham claims will have a bigger role in the offense moving forward, regardless of who is QB1.
It could even be the currently injured Wilson. At his weekly press conference, Whittingham said “we’ll see” in regards to whether Wilson would be playing against the Bulldogs or not. But to be honest, it doesn’t really matter who starts this game, as Utah should come home with an easy win.
That said, this quarterback fiasco needs to stop if this team wants to reach its ultimate potential. Teams don’t make progressions when there’s someone new behind center every week. In fact, they might even regress.
If the Utes want to improve on their best season in the Pac-12 to date in 2014, they need to first make sure Wilson’s shoulder can fully recover and that he can be the same quarterback he was pre-injury.
And if so, play Wilson.
@GriffDoug