Wilcox letting QB competition unfold
This might be the last story on Cal’s quarterback competition for a while.
Head coach Justin Wilcox said after Wednesday’s practice that he’s not going to publicly break down the performances of the three players vying for the starting spot each day, and he’d prefer not to even broach the subject again until it’s time to name a starter.
“I know that’s a hot topic, and it’s important for us. But really, we’re not going to name a starter every day,” Wilcox said after three days of training camp spent splitting repetitions, spending hours in the meeting room and even more time evaluating with the offensive coaches. “We want those guys to come out here and compete and not worry whether or not they were ‘the starter’ at the end of that day.
“When the time comes, we’ll definitely let you know.”
Wilcox hasn’t hinted at a
timeline for naming a starter, believing that one of the three — junior Chase Forrest, sophomore Ross Bowers or freshman Chase Garbers — will emerge from the pack organically.
There’s even a chance that the decision won’t come before the Bears’ first game, Sept. 2 at North Carolina.
Until then, the quarterbacks are pretty much equally splitting chances, with Forrest generally getting the first shots, followed by Bowers and Garbers. Brandon McIlwain, a transfer from South Carolina, who is a long shot at gaining eligibility this season, is the fourth man taking snaps.
“It’s a competition,” Forrest said. “With the quarterback, it’s definitely unique, because there’s only one of us playing. I have a lot of respect for Ross, and we’ve been grinding together for three years.
“Competition brings out the best in everyone. I’ve always been like that. I’ve battled with Jared (Goff ), I’ve battled with Luke (Rubenzer) and with Davis (Webb). It’s just one of those things, where it drives you.”
Forrest and Bowers, the two who rose to the top of the competition during spring practices, have similar talents, but they appear to have different leadership techniques. During Wednesday’s practice, Forrest quietly worked on individuals drills with starting center Addison Ooms, and later, Bowers danced among the defensive players when the music started blaring ahead of the stretching period.
Among a multitude of considerations, Wilcox said he’s looking for a starting quarterback who has a mastery of the offense, makes good decisions and is an accurate passer.
“The coaches have put everything on the table,” Bowers said. “They’ve told us what it takes.” Passing-game coordinator/quarterbacks coach Marques Tuiasosopo “has been there and done that. He knows what it takes. He’s giving us all of the secrets to everything.
“The hard part is following through on it, making sure you’re taking care of all of the little things and going out and producing.”
Bowers and Forrest directed playerrun practices between spring ball and training camp, getting criteria from the coaches, scripting the practices and making sure their teammates followed the schedule.
The coaches have raved about the carryover of offensive coordinator Beau Baldwin’s scheme from spring to training camp.
“We never root against each other,” Bowers said. “Obviously, we’re all fighting for the same job, and there can be only one guy. We get that, but we’re all on the same team at the end of the day.
“I want to see all four of us do well. That’s what we expect out of each other. We all hold that standard for the group.”
There appears to be mounting evidence that the “group” might not get trimmed to one starter for quite a while.
“I’m just going to go out every day and try to win it,” Forrest said. “… Who knows? This could go during the whole season. You don’t want it to be like that. Obviously, you want to be the guy, but I’m just taking it one day at a time.”