2023 Position Preview: The Quarterback Room in Young and a Two-Man Race

Written by Sammy Jacobs (@Hoosier_Huddle)

The Indiana Hoosiers kickoff fall practice on Wednesday and all eyes will be on who will be the starting quarterback in week one. The battle is between redshirt freshmen Tayven Jackson and Brendan Sorsby as redshirt junior Dexter Williams recovers from an injury and true freshman Broc Lowry is the clear third option.

Indiana head coach Tom Allen is not new to quarterback competitions, especially at IU. However, he believes this year’s isa unique situation.

“I think one unique thing about this one, there's probably two unique things, first of all is that you got two younger guys, redshirt freshmen. I have two guys that are the same age, they're younger, competing. I think that's a unique thing about it.” Allen said.

Allen will not publicly announce a starter ahead of game one.

Let’s meet the competitors for the 2023 starting quarterback job:

The Combatants: Tayven Jackson vs. Brendan Sorsby

Tayven Jackson, RS Freshman, 6’3” 215 lbs.- Jackson was the focus of a strong transfer class for the Hoosiers as he returns to his home state after a season at Tennessee. While he only appeared in three games, Jackson brings a strong arm and the athleticism to escape the pocket and make some plays with his legs. During spring practice, he flashed his potential with some outstanding throws, but also showed how far he has to go. Jackson has also earned the respect of his teammates as he was named to IU’s leadership council and has drawn compliments on his leadership skills from Allen.

Brendan Sorsby, RS Freshman, 6’3” 230 lbs.- Sorsby got his taste of Big Ten football as a true freshman when he appeared in IU’s loss to Penn State. Much like Jackson, Sorsby has a strong arm and can make plays with his feet and is on the team’s leadership council.

In his lone game Sorsby completed three passes for eight yards. Sorsby also had a solid spring practice and showed that in his performance in the spring game.

The Depth: Broc Lowry, Blaze McKibbon, Roman Percell and Dexter Williams

Broc Lowry, Freshman, 6’1” 210 lbs.- Lowry was in for spring, but for all intents and purposes is not in the competition for the starting job. He is the fastest of the three healthy scholarship quarterbacks and has a solid arm. He reminds people of Peyton Ramsey, only thicker at this point in their careers. Lowry would benefit from a year to develop in the weight room and behind Jackson or Sorsby.

Blaze McKibbon, RS Junior, 6’5” 225lbs.- McKibbon was also in for spring practice after walking on from Long Beach City College. He started his college career at Fresno State before heading to JUCO. A former three-star recruit was brought in to add some experience depth to the quarterback room.

Roman Purcell, RS Sophomore, 6’0” 215 lbs.- Purcell is another transfer walk on for the Hoosiers. An injury in high school knocked him off the radar for many FBS teams and ended up at Army for a season before heading to the junior college ranks. After junior college Purcell ended up at North Carolina A&T. He’s athletic and can throw the ball well enough. While he may not factor into the rotation, Purcell is an intriguing piece if IU could find a spot for him.

Dexter Williams, RS Junior, 6’1” 200 lbs.- We all saw how the offense was trending with Williams at quarterback and it seemed like IU had found something. However, a devastating injury ended that and will keep Williams off the game field until mid-season at the earliest. It would have been interesting to see if Williams would have staked a claim to the starting job if he was healthy. If he can come back healthy there could be a role for Williams if needed.