WHO’S NEXT AFTER PERKINS?
U.Va. searches for another ‘Thor.’
When Virginia’s quarterbacks room is filled with players after the all-clear is given in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, Jason Beck will look out at his ideal number of job candidates.
Sure, in a perfect world, he’d have an ultra-experienced leader like Bryce Perkins to hand the reins to, but Beck will gladly take a room that features four capable individuals and the framework of a pecking order.
He’s searching for his next “Thor” -terback — a guy preferably with some height, a big arm, powerful running ability and a serious leadership streak. For the immediate future, Brennan Armstrong and Mississippi State transfer Keytaon Thompson are the most wellequipped players for the role, but Beck still hasn’t had a chance to see Thompson on U.Va.’s practice fields.
Beck can’t wait.
“We knew we needed another guy in the room for competition, for depth and for the stability of
our program,” Beck said.
“We were really excited with Keytaon when he came around. He’s a really good fit for what we do both in terms of quality of player, but also quality of person. … He’ll give us great competition between him and Brennan.”
At 6-foot-4 and 225 pounds, Thompson — an immediately eligible graduate transfer and redshirt junior — certainly looks the part. After serving as a backup in 90% of his appearances (20 games) for Mississippi State, he has to prove he has the chops to step in, surpass Armstrong on the depth chart and adequately fill the shoes of Perkins, one of the most productive quarterbacks in school history.
A tall order, to say the least.
Along with Thompson and Armstrong, redshirt junior Lindell Stone and true freshman Ira Armstead will be in the fold. It’s a good situation for Beck, who prefers to have four or five quarterbacks in the fold, including one who can redshirt.
Armstrong is a redshirt sophomore who has completed 17 of 25 passes for 258 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions in two seasons. He redshirted after playing in just four games in 2018.
“We’re really excited about Brennan,” Beck said. “We feel really good about him. It’ll give us great competition there. Lindell is a perfect option for us as well, because he knows the offense. He doesn’t have to take many reps. He’ll be able to go in there and execute and do really good stuff for us, but he just didn’t quite have the skill set that we want in that ‘Thor’-terback, and that’s what led us to want to bring in another guy to compete now as we develop the younger guys.”
Armstrong was expected to come into spring practices as the heir apparent to Perkins, but the spring was wiped out by the coronavirus. A few weeks after what would’ve been the conclusion of spring practices, U.Va. added Thompson — a move that could demoralize a fragile competing quarterback, but Cavaliers coach Bronco Mendenhall believes Armstrong is composed of tougher fiber.
“He’s confident,” Mendenhall said. “That’s one of his greatest strengths, and he loves competition, and he really doesn’t acknowledge anyone else. He focuses on what he can control. Coach Beck had a conversation (with Armstrong) prior to us adding Keytaon, and so he knew that was coming. … I simply don’t believe you can win the ACC Coastal, or win the ACC, or have a successful football program without two very good quarterbacks. I loved the situation we had with Bryce and Brennan, and now I really like the situation we have now with Brennan and Keytaon.”
Mendenhall and his staff have made a living at U.Va.’s quarterback position off of transfers, with Perkins arriving from Arizona State to play his final two seasons, and Kurt Benkert coming to the Cavaliers for two seasons after East Carolina. Thompson would continue that trend, while Armstrong would be the first Mendenhall and Co. recruit out of high school to win U.Va.’s starting job.
And, yes, Beck sees some loose connections in how Thompson plays compared to Perkins’ combination of playing style and size.
“There are some similarities that are intriguing,” Beck said.
“We have an idea with Keytaon that we’re excited about — good size, athleticism, good arm, strong arm, very capable passer. There’s a lot of things we’re excited about. Smart football IQ. He’s really won in high school in football and in basketball, so there’s a lot of things there that we love and we’re excited about, but until we’re here and we really start working with him for those first couple of weeks, then we’ll have a much better feel for what his strengths are and what direction that will take us. We absolutely view him as a ‘Thor’-terback and we’re excited to have him.”
For now, Beck is spending his time in front of his quarterbacks drawing on a white board on video teleconferences for an hour and 15 minutes at a time four times a week. There’s going to be a lot to learn once he finally gets them on a field together for the first time.
“You can do quite a bit in terms of drawing it up on a white board, watching film of it, talking through it and even quizzing the guys,” said Beck, who adds he doesn’t rule out the possibility of employing a twoquarterback system, but would prefer to have one leader at the position. “Obviously, the limitations are you can’t get the on-the-field reps that we missed in spring ball, so we’re not getting that learning by having it on the field, but we’re getting a lot done that will help when camp starts.”