Thomas Discusses Sun Devils Quarterback Competition
TEMPE -- There's a new sheriff in town, and he's looking for the best gunslinger this side of the Mississippi River.
Sun Devils offensive coordinator Glenn Thomas is not even two full months into his new role, and he must figure out the most important piece to his offense's puzzle: Who will start at quarterback?
There seems to be no right answer, at least not yet. Supporters for either Paul Tyson or Trenton Bourguet have made their opinions heard, but there's been far too little football activity to suggest either quarterback truly has an advantage in the race.
The Sun Devils have 15 spring practices to get a clearer picture of the quarterback situation, and Thomas had one word of advice for the five quarterbacks vying for the starting opportunity.
He said, "It sounds cliche, but maximize the opportunity when you're in there. (As a coach) you have to minimize the reps just to try to get everybody a look so when you're in there, you've got to make the most of it.
"You can tell pretty quick who knows it, who's studying and who's on top of the playbook because when they're in there, they already kind of have some convictions and confidence in what's going on. And then those guys can start to separate themselves out sooner than later, but at the end of the day your reps are limited. So when you're in there, you got to maximize it."
After Bourguet and Tyson, passers such as Daylin McElmore, Finn Collins and Bennett Meredith hope to enter their hat in the ring despite not being considered favorites.
Yet, the coaching staff insists each guy will get their fair shot despite the heavy amount of interested suitors.
Said Thomas, "Just like we talked about as far as the minimal reps with five. We'll do the best we can to give ample opportunity for all of them to show what they can do and then eventually, just by nature it's gonna have to kind of water down. And then you go to four to three to two and then eventually you got to decide on the one."
As far as first impressions go, the quarterbacks have all been at attention, which has got Thomas excited for the process of finding his quarterback.
"I think just the eagerness to learn, you know, there's a newness to it," he said. "Obviously, being two practices in they've all been super eager to learn. They're all out there early, trying to get some extra meeting in, buzzing through the script, trying to maximize those reps like we talked about.
"I've been super excited about that. They've been very humble as far as being coached. They're trying to implement kind of the new little coaching points here or there that we're trying to get done. So that's been exciting."
The battle for the starting job realistically appears to be between Bourguet and Tyson, with each quarterback boasting different frames and prototypes.
Thomas, who has spent several years in both worlds of college and professional football, has seen his fair share of quarterbacks through the years, which he believes will help in the end.
"Personally I've been in enough systems where when I was in college 20 years ago, it was spread out, athletic, run around (and) do that stuff. Obviously when I was in the NFL, it was more pro-style, under center. And then you know, as I jumped back into college football, we've been able to do a little bit of both. So I think from an experience standpoint, I've been able to be around several types of quarterbacks.
"I think that'll lend itself in a positive way moving forward, whoever that guy may be with his skill set you know, as far as how we structure the offense."
The timetable for finding a new quarterback is unclear, and head coach Herm Edwards made the picture even more cloudy when he stated the Sun Devils' next guy might not even be with them at the moment.
However, whenever the decision is made, Thomas is confident the offense will be able to match their strengths and ultimately lead Arizona State to success.
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