Morris Feeling Good About Arkansas's Quarterback Options for 2019

While keeping a smile on his face and positivity in his message all last season, it was clear Chad Morris didn't have a quarterback he felt comfortable putting out on the field against SEC opponents in 2018.

Adding two transfer quarterbacks in SMU's all-time leading passer Ben Hicks and former A&M starter Nick Starkel has solved that lack of confidence and Morris spoke at length about the revamped quarterback room at SEC Media Days Wednesday:

"We knew there was a chance Connor (Noland) would decide to stick to baseball, so we knew we had to be proactive. I knew of Nick Starkel. He's been a starter in this league. Being able to bring him in, and having two years to play, will only intensify the competition at that position.

"I've been extremely excited about that whole room in general. From the addition of Ben (Hicks) to John Stephen's development, he got a lot of reps this spring, and now adding Nick Starkel in, his leadership, confidence level, listening to our players talk, he demands a certain respect and he commands leadership. The ball is definitely electric coming out of his hands."

Though Hicks enrolled early and received a ton of praise in the spring for his leadership and his ability to bring players along in the offensive scheme, listening to Morris speak, it sounds like Starkel has really been impressing with his arm and accuracy. The media will get to witness it for the first time on August 2nd when the Hogs open up fall camp.

Morris has been a quarterback developer his entire coaching career and he says this year he's more involved than ever in that role alongside Joe Craddock. That can only be good news for Hog fans. Even better is having a quarterback battle with two quality contenders.

Hicks has one year to play while Starkel has two left. Starkel's biggest competitive edge, aside from his talent, is his experience against SEC competition. He won the starting job as a redshirt freshman then fractured his ankle in the 2017 opener versus UCLA. Starkel recovered and proceeded to start in four more games, throwing for 1,793 yards and 14 touchdowns on 123 of 205 passing.

He set the A&M bowl game record throwing for 499 yards against Wake Forest, connecting on 42 of 63 passes including four touchdowns. He also set A&M freshman records for attempts, completions and passing yards for a single game.

Unlike last year, Morris anticipates being able to name a starter before the home opener against Portland State this year. Last year it was a guessing game week-to-week on who would be taking the snaps and there's no doubt it hurt the offense's overall chemistry.

"I would like to have a starter named as soon as we could, earlier in camp if it presents itself. We want a clear-cut winner, a guy our guys can rally around. They're all going to get their share of reps this fall, but we want to narrow it down quickly."

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