For the Aztecs, the Quarterback Is the Question of Spring

He has been here before. He has sat in his office, talked of spring football and of San Diego State’s prospects.

He has spoken with confidence and excitement. That is nothing new. Coach Al Luginbill might be on the all-time top-10 list of optimists.

And as he prepares to open his third spring practice session this afternoon, the song remains the same--even though SDSU needs to find a new quarterback.

“I feel more confident going into this spring with this group of young men than in either of the previous two springs,” Luginbill said. “They’re more of a known quantity. We’ve had more production, more individuals who have played in games since any time we’ve been here.”

The Aztecs are coming off a 6-5 season, and for the first time since 1981-82, they have put together two consecutive winning seasons. In addition, 63 of 79 lettermen return, and 32 of SDSU’s 46 players on the two-deep roster are back.

But there is one looming question that is not about to go away this spring:

Who will play quarterback?

It is the question that will be asked throughout the next three weeks and, maybe, throughout the month of August as the Aztecs look toward the 1991 season.

This is the first time in Luginbill’s tenure that the Aztecs have had a quarterback opening. When Luginbill took over, there was a fellow named Dan McGwire ready to step in.

Now, McGwire is working out--and waiting for April 21, NFL draft day. And a trio of quarterbacks are ready to go after his job:

- Cree Morris, a 6-foot-7 sophomore who spent last season as a backup. He completed 17 of 36 passes for 253 yards, two touchdowns and one interception last season.

- David Lowery, a 6-foot sophomore who redshirted last season after backing up McGwire two falls ago. As the 1989 backup, he completed four of nine passes for 44 yards.

- Tim Gutierrez, a 6-1 redshirt freshman who impressed SDSU coaches in practice last fall.

McGwire ranked fourth in the nation in total offense (333.1 yards a game) and completed 60% of his passes. But Luginbill’s optimism is unrelenting.

“We’re not re-inventing the wheel,” Luginbill said. “We’re just running it with a different engineer.

“I think the position will take care of itself. That’s an individual who is only as good as the people around him are. Fortunately, we have a lot of returning people around him.”

Three of SDSU’s top four running backs return and, although receivers Dennis Arey and Jimmy Raye are gone, All-American candidate Patrick Rowe and several other talented receivers are back as well.

“When the quarterback enters the huddle, he will look around and see (veterans),” Luginbill said.

Morris, from Orange Glen High, might have the edge going in. He and Lowery have each been in the current SDSU system for two seasons. Despite their redshirt years, each has traveled for two seasons and has been in every Western Athletic Conference stadium in which the Aztecs will play.

But Lowery suffered a broken jaw in a brawl between two SDSU fraternities last month and, although the wires were removed, the jaw is currently rubber-banded shut. Although Lowery will practice, his jaw will remain rubber-banded shut for two more weeks, and he will not be able to participate in live contact drills.

“I truly wish he was healthy,” Morris said. “It would be better for me and better for the team. When you’re running a race, you think you can run faster if someone is right there running next to you.”

Because of Lowery’s jaw, Gutierrez will get more turns. He looked good in practice last fall but is still a year behind Morris and Lowery.

“They’re going in even,” said Luginbill, who loves the thought of competition during practices.

Morris is of the McGwire ilk, a drop-back passer whose strong suit is his arm but not mobility.

“But he’s maybe a little more mobile than Dan,” Luginbill said.

Lowery, meanwhile, is very mobile and can throw on the run. And Gutierrez is cool under pressure.

“He seems to have ice water in his veins,” Luginbill said.

Luginbill would like to make the quarterback decision by the end of spring practice April 24. But, he also said he doesn’t know if 15 spring practices will give him enough time to decide.

“If the decision doesn’t become obvious at that time, then we’ll put it off until the end of preseason spring practices in August,” he said.

The other area of interest this spring is--yawn--the defense, which spent four weeks last season ranked 106th nationally--of 106 Division I schools. The Aztecs showed some improvement in the second half of last season, but if they are to accomplish Luginbill’s 1991 goals--win a bowl game, compete for the WAC title and earn a top-25 national ranking--the defense needs to improve.

“We’re going to continue working with the mind-set on the defensive side of the football,” Luginbill said. “I totally misevaluated how important that is. If we can get the same mind-set change on that side of the ball that we did in special teams, all of a sudden, we’re a very fine football team. That’s what I’m going to zero in on.”

Aztec Notes

Besides quarterback David Lowery, the only other injured Aztec going into spring ball is offensive lineman John Williamson, who had arthroscopic surgery on his shoulder last week and will miss all of the spring workouts. . . . Two other players will not return to the team, Coach Al Luginbill said. Junior center Bonner Montler quit, and sophomore defensive lineman Vaea Santos was dismissed for disciplinary reasons. . . . Luginbill said the returning starters from the second half of last season--both offensively and defensively--will go into the spring as the leading candidates to win starting jobs. “For the first time since we’ve been here, there will be competition for every position on defense,” he said. . . . Because of NCAA rules changes cutting spring ball to 15 practices from 20, there will be no Red/Black game for SDSU this year. The Aztecs will scrimmage Saturday and the following two Fridays, April 12 and 19, before closing the spring session with a scrimmage April 24.