STARKVILLE —
Mississippi State football coach Dan Mullen wouldn’t be surprised if a quarterback transfers because he has seen it before.
Mullen was involved in a quarterback controversy while he was the quarterbacks coach at Utah in 2003. Starter Brett Elliott broke his wrist in the second game and backup Alex Smith took over. When Elliott returned four weeks later, Smith had won the job. Before the next season, Mullen sat down with Elliott.
“I said, ‘You’re going to have every opportunity to win that job back,’ ” Mullen said. “He said, ‘Coach I appreciate it, but Alex is a really good football player and I want to play. I don’t want my play to be determined if one of my good friends gets hurt.’ ”
Elliott, a former MSU offensive graduate assistant, transferred to Linfield College and Smith finished fourth in the Heisman Trophy voting in 2004 and was the first overall pick in the 2005 NFL draft.
Mullen has seen two- and three-man quarterback races, but he hasn’t seen a four-man race like what he and his football face this season. Junior Damian Williams, sophomores Nick Fitzgerald and Elijah Staley, and redshirt freshman Nick Tiano have been battling for the starting position since spring. A front-runner hasn’t emerged.
The quarterback battle was the main topic of conversation in the spring, which is why Mullen was asked multiple questions about the position last month at Southeastern Conference Media Days in Hoover, Alabama. At MSU’s media day on Monday, Mullen answered several questions about his quarterbacks the day before the team opens training camp. MSU opens the season against South Alabama at 11 a.m. Saturday, Sept. 3 (SEC Network), at Davis Wade Stadium.
After being asked if a quarterback would transfer if he didn’t become the starter, Mullen said that was a real possibility.
“It’s difficult because it’s the quarterback (position),” Mullen said. “If you’re not a starting receiver, if you’re the No. 2 wide receiver, that means you play 30 plays a game instead of 40 plays a game. The quarterback is a unique position that way, and (it) wouldn’t surprise me (if someone transfers) because guys want to play.”
Mullen has said multiple times he won’t name a starter for the sake of naming a starter. He said he could make a decision early or late in training camp, or it could happen the week of the first game or midway through the season.
Fitzgerald and Staley are believed to be the leading candidates to replace Dak Prescott. Fitzgerald acted as Prescott’s backup last season. He was 11-for-14 with 235 yards and three touchdowns. The Richmond Hill, Georgia, native had 127 yards rushing and three touchdowns. Staley was 3 of 5 for 51 yards and one touchdown. He had 18 yards rushing.
Staley was the only quarterback to talk to the media on Monday. He said the four quarterbacks have a good relationship with one another. When asked what reaction the others will have when a starter is named, he said they aren’t thinking about it.
“That’s something we’ll find out when it gets here,” Staley said. “We’re all just focused on starting. Each one of us wants to start, and when that comes up, that’s when we’ll figure that out.”
Williams was the backup as a freshman in 2013 and a sophomore in 2014. He was redshirted last season. For his career, Williams is 12 of 37 for 434 yards with three touchdowns and two interceptions. He has 175 yards rushing and one touchdown.
After spring practice ended, Mullen sat down individually with the quarterbacks to get a feeling of where they stood. He asked them if any separated themselves and they all said no. He then asked if they felt like they got a fair shot to become the starter via reps. They all said yes. That’s part of the reason why Mullen feels like Tiano won’t transfer.
“He’s learning,” Mullen said. “If he’s not the starter this year, it doesn’t mean he won’t be the starter next year.”
Continuing to split reps equally will be a top priority. Mullen has delegated that responsibility to quarterbacks coach Brian Johnson.
“He spends a lot of time before we even hit the field, who’s getting what reps and what rotations,” Mullen said.
Mullen said the quarterbacks will get equal reps with the ones, twos, and threes, but it’s a fluid situation depending on performance.
“Part of it’s going to be day by day. How you perform the previous day, you might get more reps within a certain group,” Mullen said.
When he was at Utah, Mullen wanted Elliott to stay at the school, but he understood why he left and it worked out well for him. He went on to win a NCAA Division III national championship at Linfield in 2004. He won the Gagliardi Trophy and Melberger Award, which is presented to the most outstanding Division III player, in 2005.
Mullen doesn’t want to see attrition, but he understands.
“It’s a very different understanding of the quarterback position than other positions,” Mullen said. “I would be supportive of helping those guys anyway I could because they want to be in a position to go play.”
Follow Dispatch sports writer Ben Wait on Twitter @bcwait
Ben Wait reports on Mississippi State University sports for The Dispatch.
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