At some point soon, UTEP coach Scotty Walden is going to settle on one quarterback, and that could be Skyler Locklear Saturday against Southern Utah .
Or there could be a Cade McConnell sighting, as there was last week against Nebraska when Walden said he was committed to playing both quarterbacks in the first half.
Walden indicated Monday "we're going to approach (the quarterbacks) the same way" as Nebraska, then Tuesday elaborated like this: "I've got the same approach. We'll see how it plays out. Skyler is going to start and we'll go from there, see how it plays out."
That seems to indicate if UTEP gets rolling offensively, certainly more likely against Southern Utah than it was against Nebraska, Locklear could outright end the quarterback battle, at least for the moment.
Or if UTEP doesn't get rolling, McConnell could come in and take his swing and open everything up again.
Looking back on the Nebraska game, Walden said his evaluation was that Locklear did enough in the first half to take the reins in the second half, and looking ahead, for the start against Southern Utah.
"Skyler and Cade both had their good and their bad," Walden said. "I thought Skyler did a great job. He was 11 of 17 , completed more than 60 percent of his passes, he was very accurate. There were two throws we have to have, he knows this: the one to Kam Thomas in the end zone, and there was one over the middle throwing off the back foot when he didn't need to, we had good protection.
"Cade had his bright spots, too. He pulled a couple of runs, got to the sideline, kept the defense honest."
By the number, Locklear was 11-of-17 for 115 yards, a touchdown and an interception. McConnell was 3-of-7 for 20 yards and an interception, plus 20 yards on four rushes that accounted for almost a quarter of UTEP’s 84 rushing yards.
Walden also brought true freshman Shay Smith, the Franklin grad, into the discussion. He ran a play of wildcat in the third quarter, then took over for the last possession of the game.
"He had an opportunity in the middle of the game, we had a package for him and we wanted to get that in the open field," Walden said. "When the game got late and the score is what it was, it was a great time to get reps under his belt.
"He can't say he's never played on a big-time stage, he has those reps now. Those reps for a young player are invaluable."
Smith completed two-of-two passes for 14 yards and lost six yards on two rushes.
Meanwhile, at the top of the depth chart, Locklear and McConnell said their approaches won't be any different this week.
"I don't think about" a rotation, Locklear said. "It's football. When I'm in there, when I'm in the game, I'm playing football, that's all it is."
McConnell was a fourth team quarterback at this point last year, and went into the sixth game of the season as the third-teamer before two injuries propelled him to the starting position. He looked prepared when he stepped in and that wasn't an accident.
"Every day has to be the same," McConnell said. "Prepare like your the starter every single day. That's the same thing I did last year, it's the same thing I'll do for every year to come.
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"No matter who coach is rolling out there, you have to prepare the same way. Us in the quarterback room, we're a very cohesive unit and we challenge each other every single day. When we dissect film, all six of us in those chairs are taking notes, being very detailed and everybody is going to be prepared when they step out behind center."
Last week, that was half of the six quarterbacks. This week could be the same, could be different. All will be revealed Saturday night in the Sun Bowl.
Bret Bloomquist can be reached at bbloomquist@elpasotimes.com; @Bretbloomquist on X.
This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: UTEP still facing uncertainty at quarterback as Southern Utah looms, but that could end
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