Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
No separation between QBs Driskel, Johnson
BOCA RATON — Florida Atlantic coach Lane Kiffin would have liked for it to be over by now, the current quarterback competition between Jason Driskel and De’Andre Johnson. He would have liked to pick a winner and move forward.
But, in 15 spring practices and six preseason camp practices, Driskel and Johnson haven’t separated from each other, leaving Kiffin and the coaching staff waiting for an answer.
“I’d want to have it already,” Kiffin said Wednesday morning. “You always want to have it as early as you can, but you can’t force it. I’ve made that mistake before, one time, somewhere where you forced the decision because of a deadline that you put on it. It may not be the right decision. There is no deadline. Once someone separates, that’ll be it.”
Driskel and Johnson have been alternating days as the No. 1 quarterback, with Driskel beginning camp with the first unit last Thursday. Both have dealt with bouts of inaccuracy and carelessness, leading Kiffin to say the offense was “definitely behind our standard of what we want.”
On Wednesday, Kiffin pointed to turnovers and fumbled snaps as the culprits.
“We’re not going to beat anybody doing that stuff,” Kiffin said. “Very disappointed in that. We expected to be further along in decision-making and guys catching the ball better. We got a lot of work to do. The other stuff won’t matter if we turn the ball over.”
The other stuff would be FAU’s retooled offensive line, or its deep running back group, or even its new-look receiving corps led by junior college transfer DeAndre McNeal.
In Driskel, FAU largely knows what it would get. He started 11 games for the Owls last season, throwing for 2,415 yards and nine touchdowns. He was intercepted 11 times. The redshirt junior flashed mobility by running for 242 yards.
Driskel was not named the starting quarterback until 11 days before the season opener last year. But him and Daniel Parr began to split time during the sixth game of the season.
In Johnson, FAU has a somewhat unknown commodity. He hasn’t played in a Division I football game, with his most recent action coming last season at East Mississippi Community College. There, he threw for 2,646 yards and 26 touchdowns. He added 834 yards on the ground while tossing six interceptions.
Johnson’s running ability is something FAU hasn’t been able to judge completely. Quarterbacks cannot be hit during practice, and they’re marked down wherever they are first touched. That doesn’t allow coaches to wholly evaluate Johnson’s possible impact.
“Without preseason games, that’s always something that’s hard to judge when you got guys that can move around,” Kiffin said. “Similar to having [Alabama quarterbacks] Blake Sims or Jalen Hurts, guys that you really don’t know until you play with that position because we’re obviously not going to tackle those guys.”
During Wednesday’s practice, Johnson eluded Haiden Nagel’s pass rush, before wheeling to his left and finding Harrison Bryant for a touchdown. It offered a flash of potential.
“That’s what you got to keep into account, and hopefully, he’ll be able to do that stuff,” Kiffin said.
■ Miami Northwestern quarterback Chatarius
“Tutu” Atwell rescinded his commitment to FAU on Tuesday night, tweeting that he would re-open his recruitment. Atwell likely would have played receiver for the Owls.
“After long talks with my parents and coaches I feel it is in my best interest to decommit from FAU,” Atwell wrote. “I want to Thank Coach Kiffin, Coach Harrell and the entire FAU staff for believing in me and my abilities.”