Lewis in ‘driver’s seat’ in QB battle

With the season opener still seven weeks away, Colorado head football coach Karl Dorrell isn’t naming a starting quarterback yet.

He made it clear Wednesday, however, that it’s Brendon Lewis’ job to lose.

Speaking at a media roundtable at Colorado National Golf Club, Dorrell said the competition to start will be ongoing but, “B-lew is in the driver’s seat.

“He was our starter a year ago. We can’t discredit that. I mean, someone’s gonna have to beat him out. That’s the flat truth.”

Lewis, now a sophomore, started all 12 games in 2021, but struggled at times. He was 11th in the Pac-12 in passer rating (118.82), and 12th in completion percentage (58.0) and passing yards per game (128.3).

Overall, he threw for 1,540 yards and 10 touchdowns. He also threw just three interceptions — the lowest total among the starters in the conference.

Lewis displayed his toughness, fighting through a year in which the offensive line struggled. He was sacked 31 times but still ran for 188 yards and two touchdowns.

“He knows he’s got a job to hang on to and he knows he’s got to continue to get better,” Dorrell said. “And he knows that there’s people nipping at his heels, so it’s great competition, but he’s in the driver’s seat.”

Last year, Lewis went into preseason camp battling with JT Shrout for the starting job. Shrout, however, suffered a season-ending knee injury midway through camp. Shrout, a junior, was limited in spring, but is now full-go, Dorrell said.

Sophomore Drew Carter and Houston transfer Maddox Kopp are also expected to compete for the job this fall.

This offseason, Dorrell has seen Lewis respond “very well” to the competition.

“He’s taken his own initiative,” Dorrell said. “He does a lot of extra work on his own. He does extra work when people don’t even know he’s doing it right now. That’s what you want your quarterbacks to be doing. They’re starting to realize that commitment level. … There are players (on the team) that are doing a lot of extra stuff because they’re anticipating great, great years for themselves.”

Dorrell said all the quarterbacks are now wearing braces on their front leg (left for righthanded quarterbacks, right for left-handed quarterbacks) to help prevent serious injuries.