Slovis, and then? Breaking down BYU's QBs after spring scrimmage

PROVO — Just as he's done all through spring camp, BYU quarterback Kedon Slovis opened last Friday's annual scrimmage at LaVell Edwards Stadium with starters' level reps, a sign of his standing before the graduate transfer from USC and Pitt begins his one-and-only season with the Cougars this fall.

His numbers didn't paint the same story in the limited scrimmage that offensive coordinator Aaron Roderick described as "boring," where most outsiders agree the starting defense won the day under a break in wintry weather over Utah County.

Slovis completed 6-of-13 passes for 50 yards and an interception — give credit to cornerback Jakob Robinson for the well-designed, athletic pick on a ball designed for wide receiver Keanu Hill — to lead the starters.

Did those minutes change anything about Roderick or head coach Kalani Sitake's vision of Slovis as the starter?

Hardly.

"Even the interception, it wasn't a terrible decision; the guy made a good play," Roderick said. "I thought he did a good job. It was mostly checkdowns, but a couple of good completions like the first play of the game was a completion for a good game. ... It's hard to run the ball, and we didn't want to show much. But I thought he did a nice job."

Of course, that doesn't make Slovis' performance much easier. Not for him, personally. It's a spring game, and easy to move on. But there were plenty of plays the Arizona native wanted back — the interception among them.

"It's always frustrating," admitted Slovis, who was the only quarterback wearing a green non-contact jersey during the scrimmage. "Every spring game I've ever had, you walk away wanting more. You don't want to show too much on TV, and we just had a scrimmage on Tuesday. We felt really good after that. ... You've got to keep perspective with all that stuff."

Perhaps the bigger takeaway from Friday's scrimmage was the emergence of depth at the quarterback position.

"I thought the other guys were able to get some work in and get hit a little bit," Sitake said. "It was good to liven up the quarterbacks."

In other words, the Cougars probably won't heavily prioritize quarterbacks during the next transfer portal window April 15-30, choosing instead to add wide receiver and linebacker depth. But who are the "other guys" providing depth at quarterback?

No. 2: Cade Fennegan or Jake Retzlaff

Fennegan, the Boise State transfer and top incumbent quarterback since Jaren Hall declared for the NFL draft and Jacob Conover transferred to Arizona State, completed 1-of-2 passes for 4 yards and flashed some wheels with a pair of rushes for 12 yards.

But it was Retzlaff, the former California junior college standout, who may have had the best day in reserve. The 6-foot-2, 200-pound sidearm-hurler out of Riverside City College completed 7-of-10 passes for 69 yards, including a touchdown to Hobbs Nyberg.

Retzlaff's the only quarterback who threw a touchdown pass during Friday's scrimmage. Is that a sign of the offense, or a stingy defense led by new coordinator Jay Hill making life miserable on the offense — at least in the first and second string?

Regardless, neither Fennegan nor Retzlaff nailed down the first-choice backup quarterback role with three practices left in the spring, Roderick said. But it's definitely down to those two.

"Retzlaff has really been coming on after missing some practice time," said Roderick, alluding to the signal caller's tonsillectomy around the start of spring. "There's going to be a good battle there for that second spot with Cade. Right now, it's between those two to be the backup."

No. 4: Nick Billoups

Billoups showed promise, though mostly with his legs with 30 yards and a touchdown on the ground. With Sol-Jay Maiava-Peters moved to the running back room, the Utah transfer from San Clemente, California, who ran the scout team a year ago could run more Wildcat packages in 2023 with his speed and athleticism.

The 6-foot-2, 203-pound athlete also hasn't played a down of FBS football since enrolling at BYU, so experience puts him behind the tandem of Retzlaff and Fennegan.

Potential redshirts, or not?

The same feats of athleticism were shown by freshmen quarterbacks Ryder Burton and Cole Hagen, who led late scoring drives against deep-reserve defensive players.

Burton, who should be finishing his senior year at nearby Springville High but graduated early, completed 5-of-8 passes for 68 yards and scored on a quarterback sneak under center.

Burton was initially a redshirt candidate, mostly because of his youth (he's still only 17 years old) and inexperience, but the 6-foot-2, 200-pound freshman is making a case for his eligibility in 2023 and could earn a spot on the scout team, at least.

If Burton, who threw for 4,077 yards, 45 touchdowns and 16 interceptions in three years with the Red Devils, can crack the two-deep this fall, it will bode well for the future of BYU quarterbacks.

Same goes for Hagen, the former Corner Canyon standout who initially committed to Yale before enrolling at BYU following a two-year mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The older brother of BYU wide receiver signee Cody Hagen completed 2-of-3 passes for 20 yards and ran for an 11-yard touchdown that signalled the end of live play.

"I thought the other guys were able to get some work in and get hit a little bit," Sitake said. "It was good to liven up the quarterbacks."

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