Morris Leads in SDSU Quarterback Race
His first big move after getting the wires removed from his broken jaw two weeks ago was to drive to his parents’ house in Orange County and go out for a shrimp dinner.
His first big move after getting clearance to participate in the contact portion of spring football this week was to play in San Diego State’s intrasquad scrimmage Friday.
David Lowery stepped back into in the race for Dan McGwire’s vacated quarterback spot, but he has some catching up to do. Coach Al Luginbill finally acknowledged Friday that Cree Morris is the front-runner in the quarterback derby--but not before protesting that picking a front-runner now is not right.
“That’s not fair,” Luginbill said. “It’s obvious now that one guy (Lowery) had one turn under contact. It’s not fair to make a determination--David has a little ways to go.
“But I don’t know if we’ll come out of spring with a No. 1. Three more practices in pads are going to make a major difference for David.”
Lowery, who broke his jaw in a fraternity brawl in late February, has been working out with the Aztecs since spring football began April 3, but he had not participated in contact drills until Friday’s scrimmage. He completed 10 of 25 passes for 95 yards with two interceptions.
“I was feeling real nervous,” Lowery said. “Overly rambunctious. Excited. I was too fired up about it.”
Lowery said he doesn’t think he is too far behind.
“I’ve gotten my reads down in practice,” he said. “I just have to execute better.”
Morris completed 16 of 26 passes for 194 yards and one touchdown with three interceptions.
“I turned the ball over way too much for a quarterback at State,” Morris said. “Whoever ends up being the quarterback is going to be the guy who doesn’t turn the ball over.”
Said Luginbill: “We did not protect the ball well at all--that’s obvious. I can’t remember the last time we were that ugly protecting the ball.”
The third man in the race, Tim Gutierrez, completed five of seven passes for 29 yards.
The big thing on the SDSU practice field this week was fights. There were at least four of them.
After linebacker Andy Coviello and receiver Jeff Speech got into it Monday, Luginbill said he didn’t particularly like the fights, but, “when you have intensity in your program, you’re going to have those things.”
Patrick Rowe, a second-team all-American last year, didn’t play in Friday’s scrimmage because Luginbill wanted to see the other receivers, so Rowe was asked to rank this week’s fights. In order:
1. Receiver Jake Nyberg vs. cornerback Sam Williford: “That was the best one. Sam was pinned on the canvas like he surrendered, and the guys pulled Nyberg off the top.”
2. Running back T.C. Wright vs. linebacker Lou Foster: “Lou Foster is an intimidating type of guy, and I was kind of shocked that T.C. was going at him like he was. I’m not sure who got the best of it. They were going at it pretty good, like Hagler and Hearns.
3. Coviello vs. Speech: “Speech won, and he’s a wideout--I have to stick with him.”
4. Nose tackle Eric Duncan vs. receiver Keith Williams: “It wasn’t much of a fight. (Duncan) threw Keith down, and then Keith threw the ball at him, and then Duncan was ejected (for one series).”
Aztec Notes
Two of the five interceptions in Friday’s scrimmage were returned for touchdowns. Gary Taylor went 102 yards for a touchdown, and Damon Pieri ran 38 yards for a touchdown. Said Coach Al Luginbill: “The day may have come at San Diego State where, if the offense isn’t sharp, it’s not going to be business as usual.” . . . Judd Rachow, who is being moved from offensive tackle to tight end, underwent arthroscopic knee surgery Friday to repair cartilage damage. He will miss the rest of spring drills.