Depth no longer a problem: Aggies have four fighting for starting QB spot
No quarterback has taken more snaps over the last four years in an Aggie uniform than Leon Jackson III.
Determining the replacement for Jackson has been one of-if not the biggest-question surrounding the Aggies going into next season, as is usually the case when it comes to the starting quarterback position.
Last season, Jackson was at the disadvantage of having to simultaneously learn and run a new offensive scheme under offensive coordinator Darrell Dickey in Dickey’s first year at the helm of the offense at USU.
Despite taking their lumps at times, the Aggies scored 20.6 points per game in 2007 behind Jackson, ranking No. 102 in the nation in scoring offense.
Although not the most impressive of statistics, it was a substantial improvement over the dismal 10.8 points per game the Aggies scored during the previous season.
While Dickey said the coaches are nowhere close to naming a starter for the 2008 season, one apparent certainty is that next season’s quarterback will not be one in his first year running Dickey’s offense.
Jase McCormick, Sean Setzer, Diondre Borel and Ben Longshore are currently the four candidates to take over the starting quarterback job in 2008.
McCormick returns with the most experience of the group, having completed 25-of-40 passes for 258 yards, two touchdowns and five interceptions in 2007. He also rushed for 66 yards on 28 attempts last season. Despite only seeing limited action in a backup role, McCormick is building off of the experience he gained last season.
“It just gives you an idea of what to expect in a game-type situation,” McCormick said. “It helps you in practice to know what intensity you need to practice with.”
Dickey said McCormick has matured.
“Jace McCormick is as steady as he’s always been and seems to have improved his understanding of the offense,” Dickey said.
Setzer, a senior, returns as another quarterback with playing experience-although very little of it, due to injuries suffered last season.
Setzer came to Utah State prior to last season out of Garden City Junior College and was in contention for the starting quarterback job in 2007 before an arm injury slowed him down. He appears to have put the injury behind him and worked his way back into the forefront of the battle for quarterback.
“I think Sean Setzer is probably light years ahead of where he was last year,” Dickey said. “He’s really made a commitment to come out here and get a grasp of the offense.”
Setzer said he feels much of the success is because the overall progression of the offensive unit.
“We’re moving along a lot faster with the offense than we did last year when we had to learn it,” Setzer said. “Now we’re just building off of it so everybody is a lot more experienced and it’s going a lot more smoothly, I think. I’m trying to make sure I get better every day and not get content with a good practice here and there.”
Borel returns for his sophomore season after seeing time at quarterback, wide receiver and on kick returns in 2007. While Borel brings a level of athleticism that has the kind of versatility to play several different positions, the coaching staff appears to have Borel’s first priority position set for the coming season.
“We want to get him on the field, but in fairness to him, we have to give him a legitimate shot at quarterback,” Dickey said. “Probably, unless something drastically changed, we’re going to leave him at quarterback the rest of the spring, all fall and probably all next season.”
Longshore, who sat out the 2007 season as a redshirt, rounds out the bunch as the player Dickey said has the furthest to go.
Longshore, a freshman, used his opportunity to practice with the team in 2007 to make enough plays to be named scout team’s offensive player of the year. That award is for good practice habits, which more often than not will earn playing time over the course of a college career.
Maybe most important in the current battle for the quarterback position is that it is between four candidates instead of just two or three.
“Having depth and competition is what coach Guy has been working towards for a long time since he got here, and we’re finally starting to see some of that happen,” Dickey said. “There’s competition at every position, and that’s good for both sides of the ball, every position and the individuals. It keeps you on your toes.”
-matt.sonn@aggiemail.usu.edu