Three quarterbacks are competing to be San Diego State’s starting quarterback for the 2021 season that opens in less than two weeks against New Mexico State.
The most dynamic QB on SDSU’s roster is not among them.
That much was evident Sunday afternoon when the Aztecs held a scrimmage in Carson’s Dignity Health Sports Park, where seniors Jordon Brookshire and Lucas Johnson and sophomore Jalen Mayden concluded their competition to be the Aztecs’ starter.
“There was some good things from each and every one of them,” SDSU head coach Brady Hoke said. “I could feel Jordon maybe a little bit more than the others. ... They all competed, but I think Brookshire may have played better than the rest of them.”
Well, better than those in the competition, anyway.
Sharing the field with them — and actually getting more snaps than the others — was Will Haskell, a 6-foot-4 true freshman from Arizona whose athleticism and potential will quicken the pulse of a fan base starved for someone special at the position.
When the QB competition began in the spring, Haskell was attending Glendale’s Ironwood High. Once on campus, it was quickly evident SDSU has something in Haskell, though he has a playbook, among other things, to learn.
“Is he ready for prime time?” Hoke said a week ago. “Probably not yet.”
He’s already entertaining, though, with the kind of presence that draws eyes to see what he might do next.
Playing 24 snaps over two series (tempered by the fact it was against other young Aztecs), Haskell ducked and dodged and darted around the backfield.
He showed his speed around the edge — three of his six runs went for 16, 14 and 19 yards. He extended plays with his feet and was decisive with a quick release when he threw the ball.
Haskell completed 3-of-8 passes for 26 yards, numbers diminished by two completions negated by penalties. The second one was a 5-yard touchdown pass in the back of the end zone to freshman wide receiver Joshua Nicholson.
With playmaking ability also comes the belief — good or bad — that you can escape anything.
Sometimes that produces a play like the one where Haskell scrambled right, then saw daylight up the middle for a 19-yard gain to the 10-yard line.
Then again, there was the one play when Haskell eluded two rushers and stepped over a third defender before being knocked off balance by one of his own linemen. He dropped the ball as he went to the ground, but grabbed the loose ball before it got away.
But he bought time nicely rolling left and before making a strong throw to Nicholson. The TD was waved off by the officials before they could celebrate.
One play later, Haskell threw over the middle to tight end Kyler Albanez, but safety Jatavious Magee stepped in front of the ball for an interception that ended the drive and the scrimmage.
“He can run,” SDSU linebacker Caden McDonald said. “He’s got some wheels on him, for sure. He’s an athletic quarterback. You’ve just got to keep him in the pocket.
“But it’s really good to see that he can get out of the pocket, evade some defenders and get some yards on his feet.”
Hoke said his eyes were all over the field, so he did not pay particular attention to Haskell’s effort.
“There was some of those freshmen offensive linemen in there that maybe my eyes were on a little more,” Hoke said, “but I think Will is very talented. That’s one reason we wanted to make sure he’s going to be an Aztec.”
Brookshire opened the scrimmage at quarterback and completed the first five passes he threw — including a 45-yard completion to BJ Busbee after Brookshire bought himself some time by scrambling to his left — before throwing high and wide of receiver Elijah Kothe on a 10-yard pass to the right corner of the end zone.
With the third-down incompletion, kicker Matt Araiza came out of kicked a 27-yard field goal.
Brookshire, who played 22 snaps over three series, began his next drive by deftly stepping up in the pocket to avoid the rush before lofting a 14-yard pass to tight end Jay Rudolph.
The drive also included a 30-yard reception by wide receiver Ethan Dedeaux, who turned the short pass into a 30-yard gain.
Passing-wise, things didn’t go as well after that.
Tight end Aaron Greene dropped a short pass when he took his eyes off the ball. Brookshire picked a bad snap off the ground and threw incomplete to the end zone. Wyatt Draeger and Dylan Taylor teamed up on a third-down sack.
Out came Araiza again, who this time made good on a 50-yard field goal attempt.
Brookshire’s only other series included two incompletions, both on balls that weren’t quite on the mark but catchable nonetheless, and a would-be connection with wide receiver Jesse Matthews in which safety Cedarius Barfield was flagged for pass interference.
Johnson was in for only 14 snaps over two series, completing three passes between the two drives.
Johnson’s first opportunity was abbreviated because freshman running back Jaylon Armstead took a handoff at the 38-yard line, veered left and didn’t stop running until he reached the end zone 62 yards later.
Mayden played 17 snaps over two series, highlighted during the first drive with a couple completions and a third-down scramble when he ran 5 yards for a first down.
The second series for Johnson and Mayden began with the Aztecs backed up inside their 5-yard line and handing off the ball, so it was not as instructive as, say, a drive that started at the 25-yard line.
Other observations
• Senior running back Greg Bell got enough work to feel game speed, carrying four times for 14 yards and grabbing a screen pass for 6 yards, before settling in on the sidelines to avoid unnecessary risk.
• Freshmen Jaylon Armstead (6 carries, 78 yards) and Cam Davis (6 carries, 39 yards) showed that SDSU depth at running back — six deep? — has gotten even better this season.
Hoke on the 5-11, 220-pound Armstead: “Armstead really had some good runs and showed something. It’s kind of interesting, though, because earlier in camp we were a little concerned. We talked to him a little bit, and he really came out there and did a nice job.”
Hoke on the 5-8, 180-pound Davis: “The one thing I know is he can run with the football. He’s quick. He’s got good vision. He’s a good return guy, and he’s got great speed.”
• Kothe, a 6-4 senior from Las Vegas, led all receivers with four catches. That was more than half his season total (seven) from a year ago.
“He’s earned your respect by watching how he practices,” Hoke said. “He is an unbelievable competitor ... I think the quarterbacks feel like we (coaches) do, that he’s a guy you can count on.”
• Like Ariaza, backup kicker Jack Browning also had a 50-yard field goal.
• Junior Dallas Branch, who was competing for a starting cornerback spot before being injured, watched from the sidelines with the fingers of his left hand splinted and a protective wrap up to his forearm.
In his absence, sophomore Noah Tumblin and true freshman Noah Avinger are competing to start at the position.
SDSU scrimmage stats
Aug. 22, 2021 | Dignity Health Sports Park | Carson, Calif.
Note: The scrimmage consisted of about 75 total plays, many of which were situational (red zone, back up, etc.) impacting the stats.
RUSHING (att.-yards-TD): Jaylon Armstead 6-78-1, Cam Davis 6-39-0, Will Haskell 6-34-0, Greg Bell 4-14-0, Kaegun Williams 2-7-0, Jalen Mayden 1-5-0, Chance Bell 1-2-0, Lucky Avinger 4-2-0, Jordon Brookshire 3-(minus 9)-0, Jordan Byrd 2-(minus 3)-0. TEAM 35-169-1.
PASSING (comp.-att.-int. yards TD): Jordan Brookshire 7-12-0 109 0, Jalen Mayden 4-7-0 56 0, Will Haskell 3-8-1 26 0, Lucas Johnson 4-7-0 8 0. TEAM 18-34-1 199 0.
RECEIVING (rec.-yards-TD): Elijah Kothe 4-36-0, BJ Busbee 2-50-0, Ethan Dedeaux 2-25-0, Aaron Greene 1-26-0, Jay Rudolph 1-14-0, Cam Davis 1-12-0, Tyrell Shavers 1-10-0, Brionne Penny 1-9-0, Isaiah Richardson 1-8-0, Greg Bell 1-6-0, Kyler Albanez 1-5-0, Jesse Matthews 1-0-0, Kobe Smith 1-(minus 2)-0. TEAM 18-199-0.
TACKLES (unassisted-assisted-total): CJ Baskerville 4-1-5, Dylan Taylor 2-3-5, Wyatt Draeger 1-3-4, Noah Avinger 3-0-3, Noah Tumblin 3-0-3, Andrew Alves 2-1-3, Brady Anderson 2-1-3, Segun Olubi 2-1-3, Andrew Aleki 1-2-3, Dezjhon Malone 1-2-3, Cameron Thomas 2-0-2, Kyron White 2-0-2, New Zealand Williams 2-0-2, Pa’a Ewailiko 1-1-2, DJ Herman 1-1-2, Jelani Whitmore 1-1-2, Allan Mwata 2-0-2, Cedarious Barfield 1-0-1, Darrell Masaniai 1-0-1, Patrick McMorris 1-0-1, Dominic Oliver 1-0-1, Trenton Thompson 1-0-1, Vai Kaho 0-1-1, Kahi Neves 0-1-1, Jonah Tavai 0-1-1.
TACKLES FOR LOSS (no.-yards): Andrew Aleki 1.5-9, Pa’a Ewailiko 1-18, Wyatt Draeger 1-7, Noah Avinger 1-3, Caden McDonald 1-3, Cameron Thomas 1-3, CJ Bakersfield 1-2, Dylan Taylor 0.5-4, Val Kaho 0.5-3.
INTERCEPTIONS (no.-yards): Jatavious Magee 1-7.
PASSES BROKEN UP: Noah Avinger 1, Cedarious Barfield 1, Davaughn Celestine 1, Allan Mwata 1.
QUARTERBACK SACKS (no.-yards): Pa’a Ewailiko 1-18, Andrew Aleki 1-8, Wyatt Draeger 0.5-5, Dylan Taylor 0.5-4.
FIELD GOALS (made-att., distance): Matt Araiza 2-2 (27 gd, 50 gd), Jack Browning 1-1 (50 gd), Collyn Hopkins 0-1 (34 wl).
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