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Much has been made of the situation at quarterback for Boise State. Despite entering the 2015 season with 17 returning starters, they face a tough decision in replacing last year's quarterback Grant Hedrick.
Sophomore Ryan Finley has led most conversations about who the favorite is to win the starting job. These sentiments make sense, as Finley is the only quarterback on the roster who has fielded a snap during a live game. The other options head coach Bryan Harsin has at his disposal are true freshman Brett Rypien, redshirt freshman Alex Ogle, and redshirt sophomore Thomas Stuart. None of these three quarterbacks, however, have ever seen live play.
The drama was thickened when Finley was arrested back in April and charged with two misdemeanors. He has yet to receive his due process in court, but Harsin has already said that a suspension for Finley is unlikely.
All the wonder and intrigue that has followed the Boise State quarterback position this summer seems to be nearing a conclusion. Last night at the Broncos' annual fall scrimmage, Finley received all of the first-team snaps, going 13-17 for 111 yards and one touchdown.
Rypien also rose to the occasion in the scrimmage, going 10-of-19 for 94 yards with two touchdowns and one interception. Stuart struggled in completing only 50% of his passes (4-of-8) and throwing two interceptions. Playing against the third team, Ogle did well to finish 11-of-16 for 108 yards and a touchdown pass.
Despite last night's performances, Harsin still hasn't officially named a starting quarterback:
"When we know, it’s time for everybody to know," Harsin said. "We’re not going to get into a situation where we try to hide it till the last minute. We just haven’t gotten there yet."
All things considered, however, it seems all but official that Finley will be the Broncos' starting quarterback when the season gets under way on September 4th against the University of Washington.
In an article earlier this summer, we took a poll asking you, the fans, who should start if Finley were to be suspended, which resulted in this:
It's pretty clear based on those results that the fans believed Boise State was ready to have a true freshman step up to the plate if Finley saw time taken away from him.
Well, here we are now. Finley is eligible and the clear favorite to start. High expectations loom over the Broncos once again in 2015, and the team will need whomever is under center to step up for those lofty goals to be met. With the season only 13 days away and a decision from Harsin expected any moment, who do you think should be named starter for the Boise State Broncos? Please vote and explain your reasoning in the comment section!