alt=Jay DrewPROVO — Sophomore starting quarterback Zach Wilson insists the surgically repaired fractured thumb on his throwing hand is fine, while redshirt freshmen Jaren Hall and Baylor Romney (who will be put on scholarship in January) are still dealing with nagging injuries, and illnesses.
In a nutshell, that’s a quick look at the Cougars’ quarterback situation as the Cougars await Sunday’s announcement of their opponent in the SoFi Hawaii Bowl.
Always a hot topic of discussion in Provo, who the starting QB should be, or will be, is being scrutinized a bit more closely, debated a bit more heavily, after Wilson struggled to get the offense in the end zone against the Aztecs in his third game back from thumb surgery, but first against a quality opponent.
The product of Draper’s Corner Canyon High threw for 316 yards against SDSU’s No. 5-ranked scoring defense and No. 7-ranked overall defense, but needed 53 passes to get to that total and also threw two interceptions. The biggest knock on Wilson’s performance this season has been his ineffectiveness in the red zone, areas where Hall and Romney played better albeit with a much smaller sample size.
After a review of the film, Wilson mostly reiterated Wednesday what he said immediately after the game last Saturday. He said the “energy was there” and the play-calling was adequate, but too many mistakes doomed the Cougars.
“Finishing was the thing (lacking),” Wilson said. “We made good plays, and did some good things. Then something just put us back.”
Wilson recalled a second-down pass to Micah Simon that would have given the Cougars a first down inside the 15-yard line, but a holding penalty on Keanu Saleapaga backed them up and they eventually had to punt.
“Good drive, but we got nothing out of it,” he said. “We did stuff like that that we just need to clean up.”
Is Wilson’s starting job in jeopardy?
Not really.
But head coach Kalani Sitake never tips his hand on such matters.
“The competition is always going to be there,” Sitake said after Wednesday’s first bowl prep practice. “During the week of practice, our guys will always compete. They will always work to earn their spot and that’s going to be the case in the next few practices and next few weeks before we hit the game.”
The coaches who will make the decision — offensive coordinator Jeff Grimes and passing game coordinator/quarterbacks coach Aaron Roderick — are out recruiting this week. However, neither has given any indication that it will be anybody other than Wilson taking the first snap in the Islands in 19 days.
Still, some have wondered why Sitake didn’t consider turning to Hall or Romney when the Cougars languished in scoring territory. One explanation is that neither was totally healthy. Hall made the trip but wasn’t in uniform and wasn’t cleared for contact after being in and out of concussion protocol since suffering his second concussion in as many games in the Utah State game, and Romney was “overcoming a terrible sickness” in addition to still having a case of turf toe.
“So that was the issue,” Sitake said.
After saying “Yeah, I am good,” when asked if he’s 100%, Wilson also discussed the growth he’s made in making eight starts in the regular season and going 4-4 in those starts against Utah, Tennessee, USC, Washington, Toledo, Idaho State, UMass and SDSU. Hall started in the 27-23 loss at South Florida and the 42-14 win over USU and Romney started in the 28-25 upset of No. 14 Boise State and the 31-24 win over Liberty.
“Obviously, the mental aspect (improved),” Wilson said, noting that he was able to train in the offseason before his freshman season but was slowed before his sophomore season by shoulder surgery last January.
“No excuses, but it is going to be a huge difference this offseason to be able to just regroup and gain some weight and get stronger and get in those extra reps,” he said.
Here’s a closer look at Hall and Romney’s status, and future plans, after each backup QB gave exclusive interviews to the Deseret News on Wednesday:
Jaren Hall: The two-sport athlete who became the first African American to start at QB for BYU in the USF game said he definitely plans to play both baseball and football for the Cougars moving forward, despite sustaining multiple concussions in a relatively short period of time. He said he is scheduled to meet with a doctor later this week and hopes to be cleared for full contact.
“I am feeling a lot better now, so if it were up to me, I would clear myself,” he said. “Two concussions, that is serious, but it is not a drastic decision-changer. It is like any other injury — you have to give it time to heal and then it will be good. It is not a football-ending injury, at all.”
Hall said the second concussion came when he was hit by a USU linebacker as he crossed the goal line late in the second quarter.
“Everybody feels good after scoring a touchdown, so I was excited to celebrate with guys and jump around,” he said. “But just throughout the next series, I could feel it coming back.”
Although he’s still behind Wilson on the depth chart, Hall is adamant about playing quarterback and doesn’t want to switch positions, as past QBs such as Beau Hoge and Austin Kafentzis did.
Baylor Romney: Having led BYU to arguably its most impressive win of the season, the three-point conquest of one-loss Boise State, Romney has been hampered by turf toe the last month but has dressed out and been available to play if needed.
“I am not 100% right now,” the walk-on said Wednesday. “But I am getting there. … It is my toe, just a sprained toe, really. Turf toe, or something like that.”
Off the field, the news has been much better. Coaches recently informed the native of El Paso, Texas, that he will be put on scholarship in January.
“So that is exciting news for me,” he said. “I am super pumped about it. It has been something that I have been working towards for awhile.”
Because he is in the same class as Hall (redshirt freshman) and will seemingly be third on the depth chart heading into spring camp in March, some have wondered if Romney is considering transferring to another program where he might have a better chance of being the full-time starter.
“Right now, I am just taking it one day at a time and working as hard as I can in the situation I am in,” he said. “The scholarship definitely really helps, but I am here competing for a job anyways.”
Another factor that could keep Romney from straying: He is the brother of BYU receiver Gunner Romney (a sophomore) and is married to BYU pole vaulter Elise Machen-Romney, who is also from El Paso.
And the Cougars are currently recruiting younger brother Tate Romney, a linebacker from Chandler, Arizona, who has more than a dozen offers and whose high school team plays in a state championship game on Saturday. The older brothers plan to drive down, watch the game, and do a little recruiting.
The sales pitch?
“Both of your big brothers are here. Come here,” Baylor says, then adds, “He is still weighing his options. He is a mission-first guy. I don’t think he plans on signing early (in December). He could go a lot of places, a lot of big places.”
Cougars on the air
SoFi Hawaii Bowl
BYU (7-5) vs. TBA
At Aloha Stadium, Honolulu
Dec. 24, 6 p.m. MST
TV: ESPN
Radio: KSL 1160 AM, 102.7 FM