Alex Hornibrook

Wisconsin Football: Paul Chryst yet to name starting quarterback for Cotton Bowl

Updated Mar. 5, 2020 12:17 a.m. ET

Fansided, Trevor Jossart/FanSided via Badger of Honor

Wisconsin football coach Paul Chryst has yet to name his starting quarterback for their Cotton Bowl matchup versus Western Michigan

Faced with the dilemma of who to play and when all season, head Wisconsin Badgers football coach Paul Chryst has one more decision to make at the quarterback position in their final game: who to start.

After an apparent head injury in the team’s final regular season win over Minnesota, freshman quarterback Alex Hornibrook did not play one snap in the Badgers’ Big Ten title loss to Penn State, indicating that he may not have been 100 percent healthy.

Senior quarterback Bart Houston, who began the year as the starter, was benched in the third game of the season after struggling against a lowly Georgia State team. From there, Hornibrook started the next nine games before being taken out of the Minnesota game with an undisclosed injury. Houston took over, leading the Badgers on a furious comeback to secure Paul Bunyan’s Axe and defeat the Gophers 31-17.

With less than a week remaining until January 2nd- the Badgers’ Cotton Bowl matchup versus Western Michigan, Chryst is still left to name a starter for their New Year’s Six bowl game. Hornibrook has since returned to practice and is available at his disposal, making the decision tough for the head coach who has juggled the two quarterbacks around all season.

The 6-foot-4 inch Hornibrrok has completed 58.1 percent of his passes on the year and has thrown for 1,243 yards and eight touchdowns to seven interceptions. Houston is completing 65.9 percent of his pass attempts for 1,086 yards, five touchdowns, and three interceptions.

The Badgers are 6-0 in games where both Houston and Hornibrook saw at least one snap. Hornibrook is has a record of 7-2 as a starter, while Houston is just 3-1. Wisconsin and Western Michigan will kick off on Monday at noon ET in Dallas.