If you’re in a multi-player battle for the starting quarterback position, you want all the help you can get.
So Idaho State quarterback Kobe Tracy had no problem picking out the highlight of Saturday’s Bengal intrasquad scrimmage.
“Probably Mike Shulikov making all those plays today,” Tracy said of the Bengal outside receiver who leveraged his 6-foot-6-inch frame to make several tough catches in traffic during the scrimmage. “That was the best part for me. ... He’s a beast out there.”
Tracy was one of four ISU quarterbacks who got to run the Bengal offense during the approximate two-hour exhibition. The Highland High School graduate, who transferred to ISU for his last season of eligibility after playing at Utah Tech, is part of a tight race to earn the starting spot under center when the Bengals open their season Aug. 31 at Oregon State.
“I feel like I had a good day,” said Tracy, who led the Bengal offense to three touchdown drives, including a 10-yard slant pass to Shulikov for a score. “I felt like the offense in general had a great day, thanks to the big guys outside making a lot of catches and plays for us, and the big guys up front blocking.”
Shulikov, who was getting his first “live action” with contact since injuring his knee last fall, was particularly impressive on Saturday. You certainly couldn’t tell he was competing in contact for the first time in months.
“Mike’s a special player, man,” said ISU head coach Cody Hawkins. “… He has as good a ball skills as any player I’ve ever seen at any level. Now, he’s a big body, great, and he’s got to work on a lot of things — getting in and out of breaks. But man, if you’re just talking about catching the ball and rebounding (catching the ball in traffic), that guy is elite.”
Shulikov and Tsion Nunnally, another big-bodied receiver at 6-4, 219 pounds, both left solid impressions on what, admittedly, was an inexperienced Bengal secondary. Nunnally, who played high school football in California with current Bengal quarterback Jordan Cooke, was steered toward Pocatello by former ISU player and coach Nick Whitworth, who coached him at Washington State. In Saturday’s scrimmage, Nunnally broke several tackles on a relatively short down-and-in route, turning it into a 76-yard touchdown catch and run.
“Tsion came to us pretty late, so he’s newer in the offense and we’re still grooming him,” said Hawkins. “But man he’s a competitor. If you’re doing anything physical, he wants to run through people’s faces, which is a rare trait from a receiver. But he also has the ability to run past people.”
So the Bengal defense was at a distinct disadvantage against the deep and talented ISU receiver corps Saturday. Neither starting cornerback, Josh Alford nor Tyler Bohannon, played in the scrimmage, and starting safety Calvin Pitcher, made only a brief appearance. The theme for the day on defense was getting reps for an inexperienced group of backups.
“We’re trying to get the majority of our guys that we’re feeling at this point that are heading to Oregon State, we’re trying to get those guys. ... as many reps as we can,” said ISU Defensive Coordinator Josh Runda. “…I thought the best part about today was you had some young guys who got some reps, which will be invaluable down the stretch.”
Working against that younger lineup, Tracy, Cooke and Jackson Sharman, the three quarterbacks who are still in the battle for the starting position, combined to lead the Bengals on seven scoring drives. Hunter Hays, the fourth contender for the starting job, sat out the scrimmage with an upper body injury. True freshman Davis Harsin, also got a series under center. The offense looked potent no matter who was running it, and Hawkins said he’s not sure any of the QB1 candidates got any separation during the exhibition.
“I think the guys were who we thought they were,” said Hawkins of the quarterback competition. “I’ve gotta look at tape. JC (Cooke) did a really good job of moving the club. Could have made a couple more sound decisions, situationally. I think Kobe made really sound decisions, but missed a couple of throws he would have liked to see that would have led to touchdowns. And Sharman, he’s just got to continue to play on time and take what’s there, but man, when he moves around, he can create some stuff that’s pretty special.”
With the last scrimmage behind them, the Bengals’ focus now turns to game-planning for the season opener at Oregon State. Hawkins said his coaching staff will spend Sunday parsing personnel issues, and then communicating with all the players on Monday how the coaches see their respective roles.
And the quarterback decision?
“We’re not going to drag it out forever,” Hawkins said. “I’m not trying to be secretive, but I want everybody to know if they’re still in the fight, I want to give them as many opportunities to throw punches as possible.”
SCRIMMAGE NOTES
The Bengal special teams struggled Saturday, missing several makeable field goal attempts while under pressure to get the kicks off quickly. Placekicking candidate Gabe Panikowski hurt himself pregame and wasn’t available for the scrimmage. Hawkins said the Bengal special teams have been much better during fall camp, but he was disappointed with their performance under pressure Saturday.
True freshman linebacker Darrell Gipson is quickly making an impression on the coaching staff. Starting in place of Kris Sanchez, who sat out Saturday, the 6-3, 248-pound Washington native caught Hawkins’ eye.
“He’s having to make a lot of checks and adjust to all the different formations, and he’s at the point of attack darn near every play,” Hawkins said. “Physically, he can do it, but mentally for a freshman, I think that can be hard for most guys.”’
Hawkins is also becoming an admirer of Beau Jaques, a 6-2, 253-pound sophomore defensive lineman from Meridian, who batted down a pass at the line of scrimmage Saturday.
“Bo Jaques is playing his absolute tail off,” said Hawkins. “He’s a local kid, walked on, but he won’t be a walk-on for long. He’s a tough dude… and is going to play good snaps for us.”
Other young defenders who impressed Hawkins include safety Jayden Bell, the Highland High School graduate who has been sidelined by injury for the last year; and freshmen cornerbacks Jackson Daniels and Mike Lindsay, both from California. Lindsay, by the way, went largely unrecruited last winter, and ISU gave him its last remaining scholarship. He is the nephew of former NBA superstar Reggie Miller.
“Jayden Bell loves to hit,” said Hawkins of the 6-3, 218-pound sophomore. “You watch that kid run around, he’s going to play for us. He’s going to be a problem for offenses.”
Of Daniels and Lindsay, Hawkins said, “I’m really proud of the way those two freshmen cornerbacks competed. They’re getting a lot thrown at them, but those guys have bright futures.”
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