QB Search Nearing End
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For media and fans, waiting for Virginia Tech to name a starting quarterback this fall camp has been agonizing. For offensive coordinator Scot Loeffler, not so much.
Loeffler has remained calm and taken plenty of time to evaluate his options at quarterback. He's narrowed the pool down to senior Mark Leal and junior Texas Tech transfer Michael Brewer. But just over a week away from the season-opener, Loeffler still isn't quite ready.
The Hokies had hinted that a decision could come yesterday during a planned scrimmage. But the scrimmage has been moved to tomorrow. And after Loeffler and the coaching staff review that day's scrimmage, they'll know their starter. The decision still might not be revealed until Monday's scheduled press conference.
"We want it to be as thorough as you can get it," Loeffler said. "We wanna put them in every single scenario, both of them. We wanna put pressure, the longer this thing goes, the more stressful it gets and that's exactly the way you like it. You want it stressful, you want it competitive and I think we're really close."
In getting to this point, the quarterbacks have in a sense whittled themselves down to an extent. Freshman Chris Durkin has had a few injuries, sophomore Brenden Motley has had a sore back and freshman Travon McMillian was moved to running back. And while Loeffler likes the improvement of freshman Andrew Ford, he still has work to do.
Loeffler made it clear yesterday that there will be a decision. He doesn't want to use a two-quarterback rotation, instead going with a clear starter.
"It's exactly where we wanted it," Loeffler said. "We wanted to bring guys in the program to make it extremely competitive. We wanted to put pressure on people, to improve and that's what's occurred. I think Mark has improved immensely. He looks nothing like he did last year, which is great and then obviously, Michael is a really good player. It's extremely competitive right now and just like I said, it's stressful, it's exactly what you want. It's exactly the type of environment and I think it's made our room better and at the end of the day, whoever we decide to name, we're gonna need two or three quarterbacks. You always do. You're a stone away from being the next guy up and that third better be ready to go, because you're a play away again."
The starter will show himself soon, but for plenty of outsiders and followers, he can't show himself soon enough.
Below is Loeffler's full interview with the media yesterday morning:
Click Here to view this video.