When Massachusetts football coach Mark Whipple placed a timeline on naming a starting quarterback, he indicated he’d like to have a decision within the first seven-to-10 days of practice.
And as expected, the Minutemen are closing in on a decision between Blake Frohnapfel and A.J. Doyle.
UMass is scheduled to hold its second team scrimmage on Thursday and Whipple noted at Wednesday’s Media Day that the team will make a determination on a starting signal-caller “by the weekend.” The performances of both Frohnapfel and Doyle in the scrimmage will be a strong indicator as to who will win the job. Whipple said on Tuesday that regardless of the decision, he’s confident in who will be under center.
“We’ve got a good situation at quarterback,” he said. “Whatever happens, I feel good about it.”
The rhetoric from Gladchuck Field is that the competition is still incredibly even. Frohnapfel and Doyle continue to split first-team reps, although Frohnapfel received a slight increase in work recently so the team could compile more film and get a better look at him. As an incoming transfer from Marshall, Frohnapfel didn’t have the luxury of working with the team during the spring like Doyle did.
Both quarterbacks are making significant transitions from a season ago. The Minutemen are installing a pro-style offense, a scheme neither quarterback has experience playing in. Instead sitting in a shotgun formation every play, they’ve had to learn new techniques such as taking snaps under center and dropping back into the pocket.
In the second week of the competition, the transition is gradually becoming smoother.
“The whole first week was just getting my feet wet,” Frohnapfel said. “I definitely feel a lot more comfortable with the little things, some of the stuff you don’t even think about but I was being forced to think about because I wasn’t used to them.”
Despite making major adjustments in terms of progressions and footwork, quarterbacks coach Liam Coen is impressed with both players’ ability to adapt and learn amid a tight competition.
“Specifically for the quarterback position, you’re predominantly taking snaps from under center in the pro-style offense,” Coen said. “You have to go through a whole different exchange and technique and those kinds of things. But the guys have done a great job, I think it fits our personnel pretty well.”
Coen – one of the most successful quarterbacks in UMass history as a four-year starter – has returned this season as a first-year coach at UMass under Whipple. Previously, he was the quarterbacks coach at both Brown and Rhode Island. From his perspective, the quarterbacks competition is going as well as he hoped.
“The type of competition that we have at the position right now is everything you could ask for,” Coen said. “They’re super competitive on the field in terms of when they’re up and they’re playing and they’re also in the classroom and in the meeting room and doing a great job.”
Coen said the team charts every single throw made by both players in practice and then breaks them down on tape after. He believes that both players are competing at a higher level because they’re aware that everything is being evaluated.
Ultimately, what Frohnapfel and Doyle do in the upcoming scrimmage will determine the competition moving ahead. Coen said he hopes both players can build on the performance in the first scrimmage which took place over the weekend.
“The other night, I think we probably didn’t take care of the football as much as we would’ve liked,” he said while noting that the responsibility falls upon the quarterback. “I look for us to be able to take care of the football, run the show, have some leadership and be efficient passers. Obviously we’re looking for big plays and we’re going to script those up and get those plays called, but ultimately we’re looking for efficiency at the position and completion percentage.”
It’s a sentiment shared by Whipple, who will be watching the quarterbacks intently on Thursday while also eyeing leadership level.
“Lead and take care of the football, move the team,” Whipple said. “Know the progressions and go that way. Know when to take a chance, when not too and situations. Those things came out a little bit the other night and both of them have really improved since the other night.
Mark Chiarelli can be reached at [email protected] and followed on Twitter @Mark_Chiarelli.
