Nothing controversial about Hogs’ QB battle

There are all types of quarterback competitions, especially in high school and college.

Sometimes there are quarterback controversies, but that’s when sides have been taken on which quarterback is the best.

There is no quarterback controversy at the University of Arkansas. Just a competition, apparently among five guys.

At Alabama, there is a controversy because fourstar signee Jalen Hurts has won 26 games in two seasons as the starter, and five-star signee Tua Tagovailoa has won one game, the national championship, in relief in January.

There’s an intense battle for the starting quarterback

position at Michigan, and Georgia has more quarterbacks than a Manning passing camp.

Keep in mind that lots of times recruiting stars don’t matter.

Battling for the quarterback job at Arkansas are four-star signee Ty Storey and three-star signee Cole Kelley. Also in the fight are three-star signee redshirt freshman Daulton Hyatt, four-star signee and true freshman Connor Noland, and three-star freshman John Stephen Jones.

Outside of Chad Morris and the coaching staff, no one knows what is going on in the quarterback competition, but it appears Storey and Kelley are being given the chance to win the job. Thus far, they haven’t done enough, and so the freshmen are getting work, too.

In the spring game, neither Storey or Kelley seemed comfortable running the offense as fast as Morris and offensive coordinator Joe Craddock want.

That’s understandable. They had been in a conventional, pound-the-ground offense; Morris wants unconventional, faster than a speeding bullet, more powerful than a locomotive. They don’t have to leap tall buildings, so Morris isn’t looking for Superman.

It is similar to when Nolan Richardson came to Arkansas as the head basketball coach. He inherited an Eddie Sutton-type team that specialized in milking the clock, making the right pass, taking high-percentage shots and working hard on defense.

Richardson wanted to run the ball down opponents’ throats and choke them with defense. He was preparing for the shot clock when teams had to pick up the tempo.

When he started to get his type of players, things changed in a hurry.

Morris has one advantage: The Razorback Nation learned from that period when Richardson rebuilt the Razorbacks into his lean, mean fighting machine.

Morris has just begun to remold the Hogs.

That explains why ESPN picked the Razorbacks last in its SEC power rankings. Yes, even behind Vanderbilt.

Morris has been candid in his remarks about the quarterback competition. He’s waiting on someone to seize the reins and become the team leader mentally and emotionally.

That’s usually difficult for a true freshman because everyone is older and more experienced than he is, but wisely Morris has not ruled anyone out. If Hyatt, Noland or Jones walks in the huddle today and takes control to leave no doubt he is the answer, then so be it.

The first game is two weeks from Saturday and time is running out. The last thing any coach wants to do is settle on a starting quarterback, but at this time it would be fair to say whoever starts the first game is not guaranteed of starting the second unless he earns it on the field.

Every day in Fayetteville five quarterbacks are getting a golden opportunity to become the starter. One of them needs to step up in the next two weeks and convince Morris and Craddock it is his team.