1. Ty Thompson leads all passers
The quarterback battle will be on everyone’s mind Saturday afternoon as Anthony Brown has been taking all first-team reps this offseason and guys like Jay Butterfield, Ty Thompson, and Robby Ashford have been trying to make up ground.
When you listen to Mario Cristobal talk about the quarterbacks, he admits that there’s plenty of talent in the room, but Brown is leading the way both on and off the field.
Thompson is the guy I’m most excited to watch on Saturday, however. He was the No. 39 overall recruit in the 2021 class as well as the fourth-best pro-style, according to the composite. He’s one of the highest-rated quarterback prospects in school history and he could give the offense that boost with natural talent in the same way Trevor Lawrence did at Clemson and Tua Tagovailoa did at Alabama. Obviously, he doesn’t have the same hype as those guys, but he could be that freshman starter who carries the team to big things.
In the scrimmage on Saturday, though, he’s going to turn some heads and really make fans wonder if he should be the top option for QB1 when the season kicks off against Fresno State.
Thompson will lead all passers with about 200 yards and two touchdowns and he’s going to be accurate all afternoon long. The quarterback battle will heat up as summer approaches.