QUARTERBACKS

few weeks. Only one man can be MSU'S starting signal caller come the season opener on August 31.

Mississippi State head coach Joe Moorhead has insisted it's a wide-open quarterback competition. That seems fitting as both young men already have strong cases to lead the Bulldog offense in 2019.

First, there's Thompson. He's now about to enter his third season with MSU. He's started a game in each of his first two years on campus and won them both. He was the primary backup to Nick Fitzgerald last season and coming out of spring practice earlier this year, Thompson was almost assuredly State's next starting quarterback.

That all changed in May when Stevens left Penn State to reunite with Moorhead, who was Stevens' offensive coordinator at Penn State in 2016 and 2017. Stevens had offers to go elsewhere to finish his collegiate career. However he elected Starkville and the reunion with his former coach. No one has said such, but Stevens' arrival alone seems to indicate there's a good chance for him to be MSU'S next starter. It seems unlikely he'd risk coming to a school for his last year of college football only to sit on the bench.

On Monday, Stevens talked like a starter. Make no mistake, he isn't taking anything for granted and he certainly didn't anoint himself as the guy, but he admitted he comes to the Bulldogs with the mindset to start and a big reason for that is simply no one on MSU'S roster knows as much about running the Moorhead system as himself.

“I think some of my experience with this offense and knowing the system and this being my fourth year in this offense which, really, I guess makes me the most experienced person here in this offense,” Stevens said. “It really helps me be a coach at some point and be able to help those guys learn and give them examples of some of the things we did at Penn State and things like that. Just anyway I can help.”

Some might wonder how much Stevens' prior experience with Moorhead actually carries over to now. The answer to that question? Quite a bit.

“The base of the offense is all the same,” Stevens said. “Really the biggest difference for me so far has been the way some things are signaled, but it's pretty much all the same stuff I was running at Penn State.”

For all of Stevens' familiarity with things, Thompson's chances can't be totally dismissed, even if there are knocks against Thompson. He hasn't been as accurate throwing the football in his career as Moorhead and the coaching staff would like. Thompson's career completion percentage sits under 48 percent. Moorhead has said in the past that his offense is at its best when his quarterback's completion percentage is around 60 percent. Judged only on the past, Stevens certainly looks to have the edge in the accuracy department with a career completion percentage of 59 percent. However Thompson is still growing. Who's to say his passing game hasn't improved over the spring and summer? If it has, Thompson might could keep himself at the top of State's depth chart, because when it comes to learning Moorhead's system, Thompson feels like he's now where he needs to be. He's comfortable in the scheme just as Stevens is.

“I feel much more comfortable with the offense,” Thompson said when comparing where he is now with where he was last season. “The installs feel like I've seen them before. I know most of the installs and the new stuff we have. It's much more comfortable and a much better feeling.”

Moorhead said last month the quarterback competition will indeed ultimately come down to which guy throws the football the best. It's incredibly early in fall camp, but the returns so far are that there is little separation in that regard.

Wide receiver Osirus Mitchell has been one of the Bulldogs catching passes from Stevens and Thompson since practice started on Friday and he said Monday that both guys are performing at a high level.

“Honestly, they're both doing fantastic to me,” Mitchell said. “(Monday) will be the first day in pads, so we'll really get to see, but from the first two days just in helmets, they've both looked fantastic.”

Mitchell later affirmed that, whoever wins the quarterbacking job, the Bulldogs will be in good shape. One huge help in that regard seems to be that Thompson and Stevens get along. It's a competition, but it appears to be one underscored by mutual respect. Stevens said he received positive vibes from Thompson and the other MSU quarterbacks immediately when he joined the team.

“It's been really good,” Stevens said. “Those guys have been great with me. I think, not just in the quarterback room, but the whole team in general – being the new guy isn't easy – but it was something I wasn't too concerned about. I've found ways to interact with people wherever I've been so I wasn't really too worried about the relationship aspect. Obviously, it was going to be different coming here and not knowing really anybody, but everyone has been great with me and everyone has treated me like their own and I'm really thankful for that.”

Thompson echoed Stevens' thoughts. Thompson painted a picture in which both guys are helping each other. Stevens is passing along tips from his days running this offensive style at Penn State. Thompson is giving guidance on how things have been done in Starkville under Moorhead.

“It's been great,” Thompson said. “Tommy is a great guy. We're both quarterbacks so we relate to each other naturally. It's just been great.”

The challenge for Stevens and Thompson is that, eventually, this competition won't be a competition anymore. Sooner or later, MSU will name a starting quarterback. The other guy will be relegated to a backup role. To their credit, both Stevens and Thompson insisted their attitudes won't change no matter their future situations.

“There's always competition,” Thompson said. “I always want to go out there and get better each and every day and prepare like you're the starter even if you're first, second or third string. I wouldn't say it's any different. I just want to go out and compete every day.”

Stevens has actually come up short in a quarterback competition before. He was once battling with Trace Mcsorley at Penn State and ultimately didn't win the job. Stevens thinks this situation will work out similarly to that one, in that the dynamic inside MSU'S quarterback room won't change regardless of who becomes the starter.

“Obviously there is only going to be one starting quarterback, but if all of us can work together and one way or another help whichever guy is the starter, that's the most important thing,” Stevens said. “I know we were able to do that at Penn State and everything I've seen so far leads me to believe we'll be able to do the same thing here.”

The bottom line of the whole competition is Moorhead will make the decision he believes puts MSU in the best position to win the most games. At least right now, both Thompson and Stevens seem to understand that. They're saying all the right things and on the surface appear to have the common goal of making sure the ultimate winner of this duel is Mississippi State.

“We just work together to try and make the team as good as possible,” Thompson said.