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WSU likely to wait until next week to narrow QB battle

The position battle rolls on under center, and things aren’t getting much clearer.

Washington State University Football Fall Practice 1 - Jayden De Laura (4) Jack Ellis/CougCenter

There are a lot of good position battles on the field during fall camp for Washington State. But, like usual, the battle for the starting quarterback job is getting most of the attention.

Last season, true freshman Jayden de Laura began the year at starter, but Cammon Cooper also filled in during a pair of games. This season, the team adds transfer signal caller Jarrett Guarantano to the mix. So far this camp, those three have seen a lot of the reps at quarterback, and it appears that they will keep sharing the reps... At least for now.

On Tuesday, head coach Nick Rolovich was asked if he would have that battle narrowed down to two players by the end of the week.

“I don’t think so,” Rolovich said. “I think middle of next week unless something happens. We just haven’t seen enough of them in all the types of situations.”

This quarterback battle is especially interesting given the varying experience of the trio. Cooper and de Laura, of course, have the upper hand after playing in Rolovich’s run-and-shoot scheme last season, with de Laura starting under center for WSU. Guarantano, on the other hand, had a full spring camp to get up to speed, while de Laura sat out the spring due to a suspension.

“For me, I kind of take it as something really good for me,” de Laura told the media last week. “It’s a healthy competition. We don’t hate each other or any of that. You know, at the end of the day... That’s it.”

We’ll get a better idea of which way the winds are blowing this weekend, when the Cougs hold their first scrimmage in Pullman on Saturday.

WSU Football

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