Going into spring practice it was clear the most important position battle on the team was the one that would take place behind center. Through many practices and the Blue-White Game, Mark Stoops still hasn't named a starter.
That's nothing new for Kentucky football in the modern era, as ongoing offseason quarterback competitions have become more the norm than the exception.
With spring football in the books, Cats Illustrated takes a look at where each position stands based on what we've learned and what remains unsettled. We'll start with the quarterbacks.
Players of note
The two main contenders for the job, Gunnar Hoak and Terry Wilson, drew praise from the coaches at different points in the spring. The best thing Hoak has had going for him in the competition was his experience in the offense, and that pretty much held true as his top asset through the spring. After a slow start in the spring game, Hoak finished stronger and had one of the game's top plays when he followed a beautiful pump fake with a ball fitted perfectly to a receiver in the endzone. However, Hoak struggled with turnovers in the scrimmages and Darin Hinshaw was quick to point out that being in the system doesn't equate to actual game experience.
Wilson entered the spring with his athleticism, explosiveness and "upside" as his perceived biggest strengths and, as with Hoak, those qualities held through practices and the spring game based on what coaches said and everyone observed in the Blue-White Game. Wilson's second drive in the spring game was a work of art and gave everyone a glimpse of what he's capable of, but at the same time he was inaccurate and erratic at times on some of his throws.
Danny Clark did some quality things in the third quarter of the spring game and Walker Wood saw his first public action later in the game. Clark has made strides, the coaches have said, while Wood is just feeling his way around after a lingering rehab.
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Best development
Both Hoak and Wilson looked at least capable of running the offense and helping the team. That doesn't mean the position is where it needs to be, but both quarterbacks showed that they bring something unique to the table and the offense appears to fit both of them well enough. Kentucky avoided the kind of disastrous quarterback performance that would have lingered like a black cloud over the program going into the summer. As it stands, Wilson and Hoak have both done enough to make someone believe they can win in the fall, depending on who wins the job.
Something to prove
Both Hoak and Wilson have something to prove.
For Wilson to be more than a "high upside" athlete playing quarterback he's going to need to start making great decisions in the RPO game. How he continues to pick up the offense and make decisions, play after play into fall camp, will determine his fate in 2018. And Hoak surely wants to prove that he's more than the "safe" option and can be the kind of playmaker who makes big things happen.
While the competition has yielded some promising results, neither leading contender has done enough to cause any observer to think the position is "safe" as a strength.
What we're still asking
- Who will the starter be? The coaches probably don't know any more than we do.
- How much will Wilson's decision making particularly in the RPO game improve before the start of the season?
- How much will Danny Clark continue to develop in this offseason? If his plateaus, that would not bode well for his long-term future in the program. But if he improves exponentially, that could make things interesting in the near and long-term.
- Could Kentucky really run a two-quarterback system? It seems like more of a possibility than ever before.
State of the position
Overall the quarterback position seems to be right where most people expected. It's a question mark without question. It's easy to envision a scenario in which Kentucky's quarterbacks struggle mightily and drag the team down in 2018. However, in spite of the questions there's room for optimism with two very different quarterback options for the coaches to look to. It's equally easy to imagine one of the quarterbacks developing nicely and helping to take the offense to the next level.
In simple terms, it seems like Wilson comes with a wider variance of outcomes in terms of floor and ceiling. There's both good and bad there.
