BYU Quarterback Competition Is Up For Grabs During Spring Football

PROVO, Utah – At BYU, the quarterback position is always going to be the big story. This spring is no different. Despite returning a two-year starter at quarterback in Zach Wilson, BYU opened up spring practices on Monday with a quarterback competition.

Head coach Kalani Sitake and offensive coordinator Jeff Grimes when asked by the assembled media on how they would describe the competition between Zach Wilson, Jaren Hall, and Baylor Romney, the two coaches classified the competition as “Healthy, and strong.”

DAY ONE ✔️ pic.twitter.com/YmUIyKn1Ie

— BYU FOOTBALL (@BYUfootball) March 3, 2020

“The guys are doing good and there is a lot of experience. I expect a lot from those guys and I know they expect a lot of themselves. We’ll see how it carries over,” said Sitake. “I think we have a solid defense that can contend with them and make things really difficult but I have a lot of confidence in all of the quarterbacks on our roster.”

It’s not common for a college football team to have three quarterbacks on day one of spring ball that they feel can win them ball games, but BYU has that luxury as all three showed they could win and put up numbers as the top quarterback.

.@BYUfootball coaches had one word to describe the quarterback competition in Provo. Zach Wilson, Jaren Hall and Baylor Romney all competing for that starting spot. #BYU pic.twitter.com/YKqw5AC4n3

— Jeremiah Jensen (@JJSportsBeat) March 3, 2020

With that luxury, it’s put BYU’s quarterback position up for grabs and that’s just standard protocol for Kalani Sitake.

“Yeah, every job is,” Sitake said when asked if the QB position was up for grabs. “No one is safe. That is how it works.”

What caused the BYU Quarterback position to become an open competition?

Zach Wilson returns this year in his spring ball where he has a clean bill of health and experience on his side. Last year, he was recovering from shoulder surgery that had sidelined him throughout spring practices. Some of the numbers in Wilson’s production dipped from his freshman season in completion percentage, QB efficiency, and TD-INT ratio. But is it simply numbers that caused this quarterback competition to happen?

“Well, obviously when a guy is out of the lineup for whatever reason it gives opportunities for other guys, right? I have said this several times but I have not been a lot of places where we had two really good quarterbacks. I haven’t been any places where we felt really good about three of them, I don’t think,” Jeff Grimes told sports.ksl.com. “But when those opportunities were provided [last season], Jaren and Baylor stepped in and competed and did well and proved that we can win games with those guys. So, I think when you have that you’ve got three guys who we can win with and all of them deserve an opportunity.”

Last season in games where Wilson was out due to a thumb injury, Jaren Hall and Baylor Romney were 3-1 and had a victory over rivals Boise State and Utah State in those four games.

Zach Wilson embracing the competition, adding weight

Junior quarterback Zach Wilson arrived at spring ball with a bigger build and some added weight. Wilson is now up to 210 pounds and hoping to get that weight up to 215 or even 220 pounds depending on what he feels comfortable with. Along with continuing to add weight, Wilson has other goals in mind with spring ball practices already here after a quick off-season on the heels of another 7-6 campaign last fall.

#BYU QB Zach Wilson on what the coaching staff laid out as expectations for the QBs in spring:

“Just to take the offense to another level [and] be a better leader.” #BYUFootball @kslsports pic.twitter.com/MonV3auN1B

— Mitch Harper (@Mitch_Harper) March 3, 2020

“Just to take the offense to another level and be a better leader,” said Wilson. “Someone that can rally the troops and someone that can just get us ready for battle. That’s one of the biggest approaches I can take and obviously, as a quarterback room just helping us win more games. I think that’s the biggest focus. We just have to do better overall.”

Last season, Wilson admitted he came back from his thumb injury early and that might have had an impact on his play and allowed for the QB competition to be where it is at right now, but he’s embracing the battle and acting as though he is still the top guy on the depth chart.

“You know it’s spring ball, every day is a competition. So it’s how we take every day,” Wilson replied when asked where he sat on the QB depth chart. “You know every day it’s mixing up. So I’m going to come out there every single day like I’m the guy and you know, talk to my guys like I’m the guy just to bring that leadership presence.”

Areas where Wilson is looking to improve in his game

Wilson said on Monday that he is “100 percent” healthy from his shoulder and thumb injuries. Since the end of the 2019 season, Wilson has poured over his film and he’s expressed he wants to improve his footwork, his pocket presence, and have better execution of the offense in the red zone.

Zach Wilson said the way the ball is coming off his hand this spring is better than where it was his freshman season two years ago. #BYU #BYUFootball @kslsports pic.twitter.com/TPUG2LOdhe

— Mitch Harper (@Mitch_Harper) March 3, 2020

Last season, BYU was 26th nationally in passing yardage at 284.7 yards per game and they were 15th nationally in appearances in the red zone. Yet despite those great numbers, BYU was 67th nationally in scoring offense at 28.5 points per game.

“Our biggest thing is just, we’ve gotta score,” said Wilson. “Aside from everything else, we killed it in the yardage last year. Especially looking back from the year before, we crushed it as far as yards go per game and explosive plays that we had. But we just didn’t score. We struggled in the red zone so that’s a big point.”

Jaren Hall on the BYU Quarterback Competition: “Go out and be your best”

Two-sport standout Jaren Hall returns for his redshirt sophomore season and according to Hall, he’s fully recovered from the concussions he suffered last season. Just last week, Hall hit the first grand slam in his entire baseball career that spans college, high school, and little league. But he’s juggling the baseball success with the competition at quarterback as well and he’s embracing it.

Redshirt sophomore QB Jaren Hall is fully recovered from the concussion he suffered last season and now he’s embracing the competition in spring. #BYU #BYUFootball @kslsports pic.twitter.com/7bGShh3sW8

— Mitch Harper (@Mitch_Harper) March 3, 2020

“It’s competition,” said Hall. “You know no matter where you are, go out and be your best. Every rep you’re given, no matter how many they are, you should just play what you can and be your best self.”

Baylor Romney is as calm and collected as ever before

Now holding a scholarship, redshirt sophomore Baylor Romney comes into spring as the calm and cool customer that barely speaks but he has a quick trigger on when he gets the ball off. On Monday, Romney showed that quick decision making in the short to intermediate throws that gave him success in his two starts last season.

Mitch Harper is a BYU Insider for sports.ksl.com and host of the Cougar Tracks Podcast (SUBSCRIBE) and Cougar Sports Saturday (Saturday from 12-3 pm) on KSL Newsradio. Follow him on Twitter: @Mitch_Harper.