Tag: quarterback competition

WATCH: Texans QB C.J. Stroud warms up throwing a basketball

Houston Texans rookie QB C.J. Stroud warmed up for training camp practice throwing a basketball.

Dual sport athletes in the NFL aren’t unheard of, but C.J. Stroud took it to Calvinball levels ahead of the second day of training camp.

The Houston Texans’ rookie quarterback threw a basketball from various arm angles in video shot by Daniel Gotera from KHOU-TV Wednesday.

Just as if Stroud was throwing a football, the No. 2 overall pick from Ohio State followed through crisply as he worked with staff on the field at Houston Methodist Training Center.

Stroud is entrenched in a quarterback battle with third-year Davis Mills for the starting job. It may take such an uncommon approach from Stroud to convince the coaching staff he can handle the offense.

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Texas names Quinn Ewers starting quarterback for the 2023 season

Oklahoma’s Red River Rival has named Quinn Ewers starting quarterback after an efficient performance at Texas’ Spring Game.

Oklahoma’s Red River Rivals have their answer at quarterback. Quinn Ewers will be the starting quarterback for the Texas Longhorns in 2023.

It was probably always going to turn out this way, so it’s not too terribly surprising that Ewers, who was solid in his first season as a starter at the collegiate level, would win the gig.

After a spring game performance in which Arch Manning went 5-for-13 for 30 yards while Ewers went 16-for-23- for 195 yards for Team White, head coach Steve Sarkisian said, “I think it’s pretty clear to say that Quinn’s our starting quarterback. And we feel very good about that.”

Sure, there was a lot of hype behind Manning, similar to the energy and excitement surrounding Jackson Arnold at Oklahoma. However, experience matters, and no matter how talented Manning might be, it’s hard to expect a true freshman to walk on campus and win a quarterback competition.

His time will come for Texas, and it could come as soon as 2024, the Longhorns’ first season in the SEC. However, if Ewers struggles in the fall, Manning could be thrust into a prominent role ahead of schedule.

Helping Texas to an 8-5 record in 2022, Ewers wasn’t great, but he showed promise for the Longhorns. He completed 58.1% of his passes for 2,177 yards, 15 touchdowns and six interceptions. With another year in the offense and more time to build a rapport with future first-round pick Xavier Worthy, Ewers should have a more productive season ahead of him in 2023.

So it looks like 2023 will provide a Dillon Gabriel vs. Quinn Ewers matchup for the ages in the Red River Showdown.

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LSU will reportedly start Jayden Daniels at quarterback in opener vs. Florida State

Kelly is going with the Arizona State transfer on Sunday night, per On3’s Matt Zenitz.

Tigers coach [autotag]Brian Kelly[/autotag] has chosen to stay quiet this week regarding a starting quarterback, but it seems that the situation was resolved in the way many expected.

According to On3’s Matt Zenitz, LSU is set to start Arizona State transfer [autotag]Jayden Daniels[/autotag] in Sunday night’s season-opener against the Florida State Seminoles. Daniels started for the Sun Devils the last three seasons, completing 62.4% of his passes for 6,024 yards, 32 touchdowns and 13 interceptions.

He was competing with redshirt freshman [autotag]Garrett Nussmeier[/autotag], but he has been expected to win the job since the other veteran in the quarterback room, [autotag]Myles Brennan[/autotag], announced his retirement from football.

Daniels was Kelly’s handpicked option in the transfer portal, and now Tigers fans will get the chance to see what he can do against a Power Five program in the first game under the new regime.

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Final thoughts as the quarterback battle nears a conclusion

LSU is close to naming a starter. Here are some takeaways from the quarterback competition as it winds to a close.

LSU will be announcing a QB1 any day now. According to [autotag]Brian Kelly[/autotag], that decision could come before the end of the weekend with an announcement likely coming early next week.

Kelly spoke like there would be a public announcement and the fact that he’s been teasing it would back that up, so one would assume that it will be public knowledge soon after the news is broken to the team.

At this point, it’s anyone’s guess. When [autotag]Garrett Nussmeier[/autotag] was out with an ankle, [autotag]Jayden Daniels[/autotag] was the favorite. Daniels has also been the one going out first during the portion of practice the media has been able to see.

But the way Kelly has maintained that this is a 50/50 battle leads me to believe that it really is. If Daniels had held a lead for a few weeks, I think he would have been announced as the starter already. It would be beneficial to the offense to have a guy named so they could begin prepping the offense for him.

Conventional wisdom could also suggest that the staff values Daniels’ experience. This is a young LSU team, and having a veteran under center could be of use.

On the other hand, Nussmeier is younger, and if he’s legit, the staff could see him as the future of this program. If this is a rebuilding year, why not just get him those reps if it’s close?

There’s a reason that LSU brought Daniels in, though. This is a guy with talent who can be a legit contributor. LSU hasn’t had a quarterback who was a competent passer with wheels of Daniels’ caliber in a long time.

Daniels could add a legit playmaking dimension to this offense that has been missing since [autotag]Joe Burrow[/autotag] left. For all we know, Nussmeier’s arm could be live enough to where he adds that, too.

I don’t think either one of these guys is going to put together an All-SEC campaign. If one of them was that good, he would have won the job by now, but I think we will see some good quarterback play.

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Geno Smith will start for Seahawks in final preseason game

Coach Pete Carroll announced it will be quarterback Geno Smith who will get the start for the Seattle Seahawks in their final preseason game.

The Seahawks quarterback competition between Geno Smith and Drew Lock will likely continue right up until the start of the regular season, but we do know who will be starting for Seattle this Friday night in Dallas.

On Wednesday during his radio hit on Seattle Sports, coach Pete Carroll announced Smith would be starting against the Cowboys.

“(Smith) is going to start this game,” Carroll told the Mike Salk Show. “He’s going to go in there first, he’s going to play a little bit, then Drew is going to get to play most of the game for us—just give him a lot of playtime and leave him out there, let him play football, because of what we missed last week.”

Lock missed all of Seattle’s game last Thursday night against the Bears, sidelined by COVID-19.

“This is the next step,” Carroll explained. “Remember, it was going to be different going into this game by what we learned last week, so we didn’t get that information. So I just need to gain information, I need to give Drew every chance to show who he is and what he’s all about.”

Carroll has been adamant he’s in no rush to name the starter just yet, praising both contenders when he can.

“Geno has not done anything to take a step backwards,” Carroll said. “He has been on it throughout. He has done a great job, so we’re really excited that he has been able to be that for us. But the other side of it is that Drew is a very exciting football player too, and he’s what keeps this thing alive. It’s fun watching him practice and we’ll see what he does.”

The Seahawks and Cowboys are set to kick off on Friday at 5:00 p.m. PT.

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LSU is close to naming a starting quarterback, per Brian Kelly

Kelly said he expects to name a starter by the beginning of next week.

After an offseason in which it seemed like the three-man race for LSU’s starting quarterback job was anyone’s to win, we finally have some clarity regarding that situation.

[autotag]Myles Brennan[/autotag] opted to retire from football, leaving [autotag]Jayden Daniels[/autotag] to compete against [autotag]Garrett Nussmeier[/autotag]. Daniels is considered the favorite and has seen the bulk of first-team reps recently.

That could become official in just a few days, as coach [autotag]Brian Kelly[/autotag] said at his press conference on Tuesday that the team hopes to name a starting quarterback by early next week.

“I think we’re pretty much closing in on making a decision,” Kelly said. “The two of them are outstanding quarterbacks. If you were voting as a group in here, it might be split in this room. It’s pretty close. I think you can probably understand why, for us, we’re not jumping out there giving you a quarterback because they’re both fine quarterbacks and it’s that close. But we’re going to have to make a decision here in the next few days.”

Kelly elaborated on that timeline a bit.

“As long as we’ve got our decision made by the end of the weekend,” he said, “and we make some kind of announcement, whether it’s Monday or Tuesday of next week, we feel like we’ll be in a pretty good position.”

While it’s possible the competition could continue into the season, it’s clear the coaching staff wants to at least announce an initial starter heading into the season-opener against Florida State on Sept. 4. That quarterback will likely be Daniels, though Kelly still describes the competition as close.

The Tigers’ quarterback battle has been one of the most interesting to watch in the entire country this offseason, but it’s clearly winding down as kickoff is now just a week and a half away.

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Pete Carroll doesn’t feel any ‘date pressure’ to name Seahawks starting QB

Despite just one preseason game left to play, Seattle Seahawks coach Pete Carroll doesn’t feel pressured to name the starting quarterback.

The Seattle Seahawks quarterback competition got waylaid last week when Drew Lock had to sit out the second preseason game of the summer due to COVID-19. Geno Smith and Jacob Eason got the reps, but Lock is expected to attempt to make up for lost time this week in Dallas against the Cowboys.

Regardless, coach Pete Carroll isn’t (or says he isn’t) feeling the pressure from having to name a starter just yet.

“I don’t think there’s any ‘date’ pressure on me at all in that regard,” Carroll told reporters on Sunday. “I think you’re right on that. I’m going to take the time it takes to figure out and make sure we have all the information that we need. I can’t wait to see what happens in this game.”

The Seahawks have only Friday’s preseason matchup left on the books before looking ahead to the season opener against the Broncos on Sept. 12. Fortunately, with the new summer exhibition schedule, Seattle does have significant time before the start of the regular season, leaving some extra time to prepare.

“And we do have really good weeks of practice coming up,” Carroll said. “This week is a great one, next week is a great one and the one after is a great one so we’ll use all of that if we need it.”

Seahawks and Cowboys kick off Friday night at 5:00 p.m. PT.

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Garrett Nussmeier gives insight into relationship with Jayden Daniels

Nussmeier touched on the dynamic of his relationship with Daniels.

Position battles can create some interesting dynamics within a team. You have two guys battling for playing time, both of whom also have to work together to help the team find success.

The most watched battle at LSU’s fall camp has been the quarterback race. With [autotag]Myles Brennan[/autotag] out, it’s now down to [autotag]Garrett Nussmeier[/autotag] and [autotag]Jayden Daniels[/autotag]. Both Nussmeier and Daniels spoke to the media earlier this week, where Nussmeier was asked about his relationship with Daniels.

“If I’m in then you know, I think Jayden would say the same – he’s going to support me,” Nussmeier said of Daniels, “If Jayden’s in, it’s the same and I’m going to support him.”

Neither Daniels or Nussmeier is entering their final year of eligibility. That might take some pressure off both, knowing it’s not the end of the world if they don’t win the job.

It’s still a guessing game, but the general feeling over the past week has been Daniels has the slight edge. Nussmeier missed some time with an ankle injury, allowing Daniels to take all the reps with the first team.

It’s unclear when the starter will be announced. Coach [autotag]Brian Kelly[/autotag] might want to have some continuity leading up to the opener. In that case, an announcement could come soon, allowing the starter to gel with the first team and the offense to be built around him.

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Brian Kelly updates quarterback battle after Myles Brennan’s departure, Wednesday’s scrimage

Kelly praised both passers, but he still largely kept things vague regarding the competition.

We may have more clarity regarding LSU’s quarterback battle after sixth-year passer [autotag]Myles Brennan[/autotag] chose to retire from football, which left a seemingly two-man race between [autotag]Jayden Daniels[/autotag], a transfer from Arizona State, and [autotag]Garrett Nussmeier[/autotag], a redshirt freshman who saw some action late last fall.

But things are far from decided.

Daniels is seen as the favorite, given his three years of Power Five starting experience. Still, Nussmeier can’t be counted out, and coach [autotag]Brian Kelly[/autotag] kept things vague when discussing the position at his press conference after Wednesday’s open-to-the-media practice session.

“I thought what they did well was distribute the football timely, protected themselves,” he said. “I thought (Tuesday) we made some untimely errors… You know, I don’t like talking about ‘managing,’ because ‘managing’ gets a definition of they’re just doing well enough to get by. They were smart with the football (Wednesday). They made plays and, I thought, did a really good job of operating.”

Kelly would get into some specifics about each passer, but he still kept things mostly cryptic.

“In particular,” Kelly, said, “I thought the ball came out of Daniels’ hand really well today, especially off the RPOs. It was accurate.

“I thought (Nussmeier) made some really good reads off of zone read action, which has been one of the things that we’ve been working on.”

That’s not a ton to go off of, and it’s clear Kelly isn’t trying to say too much, even with the season opener just over two weeks away. It seems Daniels and Nussmeier will continue to compete for at least the next couple weeks, if not into the season.

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Where LSU’s quarterback competition stands after Myles Brennan’s retirement, per USA TODAY Sports

Jayden Daniels seems poised to win the job after Myles Brennan’s retirement.

LSU has seen one of the tightest quarterback battles in the land, with neither of the three candidates separating themselves during spring ball.

The fall has been a bit of a different story, however, and we now have a lot more clarity about the situation after sixth-year quarterback [autotag]Myles Brennan[/autotag] announced that he would leave the program and hang up his cleats when he was informed he would not be the starter.

Reports from practice leading up to Brennan’s decision indicated that [autotag]Jayden Daniels[/autotag] and [autotag]Garrett Nussmeier[/autotag], the other two competitors, were splitting first-team reps.

Many assume that Daniels is now the frontrunner to win the job. A transfer from Arizona State, he brings three years of starting Power Five experience to the table, with most of it being positive. However, you can’t count out Nussmeier, who had some positive moments down the stretch in 2021 and was arguably the most impressive passer in the spring game.

USA TODAY Sports provided an update and predictions for several of the remaining high-profile quarterback battles, including LSU’s. Here’s the latest intel.

The competition lost a third contender with Myles Brennan’s decision to end his playing career. That leaves Daniels, who was new coach Brian Kelly’s pick from the portal, and Nussmeier, who had a very strong spring but has seemed to fade from contention in this key quarterback battle. If Kelly is more interested in experience and reliability in his first run through the SEC, Daniels’ multiple years starting at Arizona State could give him an insurmountable edge.

Prediction: Daniels. He may be on a shorter leash than most SEC starters, especially if the Tigers start slow in Kelly’s debut. If he does struggle, Daniels could be replaced by Nussmeier as LSU looks for an offensive spark. But after a down 2021, Daniels’ play should rebound when surrounded by the Tigers’ skill talent.

Certainly, an offense with players like [autotag]Kayshon Boutte[/autotag], [autotag]Jack Bech[/autotag], [autotag]Malik Nabers[/autotag], [autotag]John Emery Jr.[/autotag] and [autotag]Noah Cain[/autotag] should be an improvement from what Daniels had to work with in Tempe, and he does seem like the safest bet to win the job after Brennan’s departure.

Daniels’ experience should allow him to start the opener against Florida State, but if he struggles, it may not take much for Nussmeier to get a chance.

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