There is a quarterback competition brewing in Salt Lake City.
Despite seventh-year quarterback Cam Rising being the unquestioned starter heading into fall camp and the 2024 season, Utah’s backup position is still up for grabs. With Rising’s recent injury history, rendering him unable to play last season, the Utes trotted out backups Bryson Barnes and Nate Johnson at different points of 2023.
Barnes took the majority of snaps, completing 142 passes for 1,572 passing yards and 12 touchdowns. He has since transferred to Utah State. Johnson, meanwhile, also went portaling, joining Vanderbilt with hopes of earning a starting gig in the SEC.
That means the Utes will leave the battle up to senior Cal Poly transfer and former five-star quarterback Sam Huard, sophomore quarterback Brandon Rose and freshman quarterback Isaac Wilson, the younger brother of NFL and former BYU star quarterback Zach Wilson, to win the position.
And, with fall camp opening up on Monday, Utah offensive coordinator Andy Ludwig says it will be a daily battle, as the Utes look to refine and develop depth ahead of their official Aug. 2 move to the Big 12.
“Obviously a hot topic as always is the battle for the number two quarterback position,” Ludwig said on Monday, “which will be a daily and highly competitive situation.”
This offseason, knowing that backup quarterback was going to be a need, the Utes heavily recruited Huard, who was with Washington for two seasons and Cal Poly for another. The Bellevue, Washington, native has all the talent and intangibles, but he has struggled to make it translate on the collegiate level.
At Washington, Huard appeared in five games in two seasons and was never given the opportunity after Michael Penix Jr. transferred from Indiana and went on to lead the Huskies to the national championship game this past January. Huard finally earned a starting gig with the Mustangs at the FCS level, where he finished with 2,247 passing yards and 18 passing touchdowns a season ago.
Since joining the Utes this spring, Ludwig has seen the junior quarterback in stints. His intangibles, intellect and arm strength have all been remarkable traits in workouts, according to Utah’s offensive coordinator. Now, it’s all about letting it translate on the field.
“He has super high football intellect,” Ludwig said. “His care factor’s off the chart. I saw him throw a little bit in June and didn’t see much of a mention of him in July. I was not around much then, but he’s great on the board. Now I have to see that translate on the field and today he’s gonna have his opportunity to do that, so I’m fired up to see that.”
Outside of Huard, both Rose and Wilson are inexperienced at the college level. Rose was a three-star recruit out of Murrieta, California, and has seen limited action since joining Utah in the 2022 recruiting class. Unlike most backups, the sophomore quarterback has stuck around Salt Lake City with hopes of eventually earning the starting gig once Rising ultimately leaves for the NFL.
Wilson, on the other hand, comes in as a highly-touted four-star recruit from the 2024 recruiting class. He was ranked as the No. 21 quarterback in last season’s 247Sports high school quarterback rankings and the No. 3 player in the state of Utah.
If he loses out in the backup competition, Utah would likely redshirt and develop him for the 2025 season, as a potential candidate to replace Rising as Utah’s starting quarterback.
“We need to see separation from one of those three young men,” Ludwig said. “Between Brandon, Isaac and Sam, as soon as there’s some separation, that young man will start getting more reps, the other two guys a little fewer, but that’s going to be continuing on as long as it has to.
“Obviously, the sooner the better, but I want to make the right decision rather than a rushed decision.”
So, what is Ludwig looking for from the three quarterbacks?
He wants someone who is going to take care of the ball, lead the offense and have strong communication in the huddle.
“Those are the big things,” Utah’s offensive coordinator said. “We put a lot of stock in completion percentage and fall camp. We know we’re going against a very, very talented and stingy defense. So, we take that into account. But, we have to distribute the ball. We have to complete the ball. We have to protect the ball.”
As fall camp unfolds it will become more clear who will earn the position, but it remains critical for the Utes to make the right decision.
The hope from Utah’s staff is that Rising can and will play a full season, especially if the Utes want to earn a bid into the 12-team College Football Playoff. If he can’t, however, the Utes will need a reliable backup option, and Ludwig is more than ready to make that decision soon. Rising missed all of last season after suffering tears to his ACL, meniscus, MPFL and MCL on Jan. 2, 2023, in the Rose Bowl vs. Penn State.
Ludwig and Utah head coach Kyle Whittingham have implemented plans to make sure the quarterback takes fewer hits in 2024, placing an emphasis on him scrambling less, throwing the ball away more quickly and more often.
The best part for him is he has a breadth of quarterbacks to choose from.
“The addition of Sam Huard is optimal,” Ludwig said. “Now we’ve got a scholarship senior quarterback. We’ve got scholarships for juniors, sophomores and freshman quarterbacks (on the roster). Shoot, that’s old school. But now we have scholarship quarterbacks in each class.”
Editor’s note • This story is available to Salt Lake Tribune subscribers only. Thank you for supporting local journalism.
