Virginia Tech Spring Football: Quarterback Battle - SCACCHoops.com

Virginia Tech Spring Football: Quarterback Battle

by All Things ACC

Posted: 4/19/2017 2:59:56 PM


Virginia Tech recently allowed media to check in on spring practice on Tuesday afternoon and it was interesting to see the quarterback battle that has developed in Blacksburg after the departure of Jerod Evans.  So far it has been a three-way battle, with some of the more experienced prospects having an early leg up on the competition it seems.

All Things ACC spoke with Chase Parker, football beat writer for the Collegiate Times in Blacksburg, as he was able to shed some light on the situation as of now.

“There are three guys in the running (RS Freshman Josh Jackson, JUCO transfer A.J. Bush, and true freshman/early enrollee Hendon Hooker). Jackson is the only one of the three with any experience in Fuente's system, as he redshirted last year. Bush has the most playing experience, but he's never taken a snap in a D1 game (he was a backup at Nebraska before transferring to JUCO), and obviously Hooker has the least experience because he's a true freshman. My best guess would be that Josh Jackson will get the starting nod, Bush will back him up, and Hooker will redshirt.

As far as rotation goes, they get equal opportunity in practice. Nobody has really distinguished themselves as the front runner in the competition.”

In practice on Tuesday though, much of the same continued, as it seems that none of the quarterbacks helped distinguish themselves away from the pack. 

Jackson seems to be the choice as of right now by many, with a year under his belt in Fuente's system and being able to see how Evans played last year.  However, the push from Bush and Hooker will be interesting throughout the season; a battle that should continue throughout the summer as well.

Again Bush has yet to play a down in Division I football and didn’t have the numbers to impress as a JUCO, throwing for 602 yards, three touchdowns, and eight interceptions (he threw one during practice on Tuesday).  However, he does show a nice ability to run with the ball, giving him several options on the field and an offense that Evans thrived under last season.

Hooker is an intriguing prospect as well. Coming out as a 4-star quarterback from high school, Hooker has seemed to impress at times even though he is still adjusting to the game at a much higher level.  At Dudley high school, Hooker threw for over 6,000 yards and completed over 62 percent of his passes. But he also showed that he is a fantastic mobile quarterback, rushing for almost 3,000 yards as well and 48 touchdowns.  This is something that could translate and Hooker has shown that he can provide to the offense early on.

Hooker certainly has a chance to red-shirt like Parker had mentioned but for right now, he is still in the mix with the battle sure to continue throughout the summer. 

It will be hard to replace the experience and ability of Evans from last year but this seems to be a battle that continues throughout the summer, with a lot more question marks surrounding other positions.

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