Hoosiers Spring Football Preview: The Battle for QB 1 Begins Now
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Photo: © Rich Janzaruk/Herald-Times, USA TODAY Sports
Written by: Sammy Jacobs (@Hoosier_Huddle)
The quarterback position will be the most watched group of Indiana’s spring football practices. The Hoosiers have four scholarship quarterbacks on the roster, three of which are healthy enough to participate in spring ball.
The Hoosiers are coming off two seasons where injuries and poor play have dominated the quarterback room. 2023 will sort of be a system reset for the room as both Jack Tuttle (Michigan) and Connor Bazelak (Bowling Green) have transferred out leaving three inexperienced freshmen and a recovering Dexter Williams to right the offense.
The Departed
- Jack Tuttle- Transfer (Michigan)
- Connor Bazelak- Transfer (Bowling Green)
- Will Jontz- Graduation
- Grant Gremel- Transfer (TBD)
The Battle
The Hoosiers have an opportunity to start fresh at the quarterback position in 2023. After Dexter Williams went down with a major leg injury against Purdue, the quarterback position became wide open. IU will open spring practice with three quarterbacks who have played in four games total (one at IU). Let’s meet the contestants for this spring’s quarterback battle.
Brendan Sorsby, RS Freshman- Sorsby was curiously thrown into the fire after IU botched the usage of Jack Tuttle against Penn State. Sorsby played one quarter after Tuttle was injured. Sorsby threw six passes and completed three of them for eight yards, he also had two rushes for negative-eight yards.
It’s not fair to judge Sorsby based on one quarter of football where he was clearly overwhelmed and spent most of the season as the fourth string quarterback. He provides the dual-threat abilities that offensive coordinator Walt Bell and head coach Tom Allen are looking for.
Broc Lowry, Freshman- Lowry comes in early to IU after leading his high school to an Ohio state championship. He passed for 1,756 yards and 16 touchdowns and rushed for 1,728 yards and 26 touchdowns. As the lone quarterback without a college snap under his belt, it may be easy to automatically place him third in the race, but Lowry is a winner and could work his way into the conversation with a great spring.
Tayven Jackson, RS Freshman- Jackson is the most experienced with all of three games under his belt when he was at Tennessee last season. He is the quarterback that comes in with the most fanfare as his brother is Trayce Jackson-Davis and was a four-star recruit coming out of Center Grove High School in Greenwood, Indiana. Jackson is the most talented player too. He has a good arm and is athletic in the pocket. While it’s not his job to lose, don’t be surprised if he is atop of the post-spring depth chart.
The Wild Card
Blaze McKibbin, RS Senior- McKibbin comes to IU as a walk-on, but in the only quarterback with multiple seasons of experience. He started his career at Fresno State before transferring to Long Beach City College. He is an interesting prospect, but may be in the room for his experience and depth.
In an article by 247 Sports’ Jackson Moore said:
“The 6-foot-5 and 210-pound athlete was a three-star recruit out of high school, according to 247Sports, and picked up offers from Cincinnati, Nevada, San Jose State and Louisiana (Lafayette). As a high school junior, he led Gardena (Calif.) Serra High School with 1,742 yards, 17 touchdowns and 5 interceptions in six starts. As a senior, McKibbin led the Anaheim (Calif.) Servite High School offense against the nationally recognized Southern California Trinity League powerhouse programs.”
Final Analysis
While it is far from ideal to go into spring practice with little experience at the quarterback position, the Hoosiers do have an exciting opportunity to give three freshmen plenty of repetitions this spring. Do not be surprised if the staff does not announce a starter or even where each player stands after spring practice. It’s not an effort to be sneaky, they just need to let this competition play out into Fall Camp.
The Hoosiers offense will go as the offensive line and quarterback go. It has been those two units who led to the 6-18 record over the last two seasons. IU saw what having a true dual threat quarterback can do for the offense late last season. There is no doubt that IU’s staff fumbled the quarterback decision last season, so it is imperative that they get it right this year. Even if that means throwing someone to the wolves in the season opener against Ohio State.
The Hoosiers may still try and get a veteran transfer after spring practice.