The consensus from the media coming out of Penn State‘s media day this week was that the quarterback position is still up for grabs after a week of camp.
The leader appears to be sophomore Kevin Newsome, but long-shot redshirt soph0more Matt McGloin has caught some eyes in practice.
PennLive wonders whether whether Paterno will go for a mobile guy like Newsome because the O-line looks sketchy? Is a natural leader with so-so skills more valuable than normal because of the inordinate trials that surely lay ahead in Tuscaloosa and Iowa City and Columbus?
“It’s a combination of things,” said Paterno. “A couple guys might not be as good of football players as a couple guys who are not playing who are good leaders. We’re right in the process right now where we’re trying to learn from them, really.”
Could a freshman start for Paterno at quarterback for the first time since 2001 (Zack Mills)?
“There’s really nobody with any experience out there. So, when you say, ‘Are you going to play a freshman?,’ we may be forced into playing one. Really, even the Newsome kid’s a freshman. He started in January a year ago. I really don’t know who’s going to be the quarterback. We’re trying to put them in situations where they have to make something happen, do some things in the clutch, get some confidence, get the football team to have some confidence.”
A summation was not called for. But Paterno offered one, anyway:
“I think before it’s over we’ll probably have a pretty decent quarterback. Whether we’re going to have a great one this year? That’s maybe a long shot.”