MADISON, Wis. -- If the way in which Wisconsin's two-quarterback system will be utilized on Saturday remains a riddle to fans, it apparently is equally mysterious to the actual quarterbacks. At least, that's how Tanner McEvoy and Joel Stave described the situation following Tuesday's practice.
Four days before Wisconsin plays host to Illinois, neither quarterback appeared to know exactly how he would be deployed for the game.
"If I knew what was going to happen, it'd be a little easier," McEvoy said.
Added Stave: "I'm not sure how they're going to use either of us or how they plan to really split it up."
And so, we have another twist as Wisconsin's quarterback battle rages on. Hey, at least Illinois won't see what's coming, right?
"You've only got a certain amount of days to prepare for it," McEvoy said. "We've got a lot of things that defenses probably have to think into and be ready to prepare for. We've got to go out there and execute it. If we do that, I think we've got a pretty damn good offense."
Neither Stave nor McEvoy has been informed of which quarterback will start. What is known at this point is that both players have split practice repetitions "pretty evenly," McEvoy said. "Basically right down the middle."
McEvoy obviously is more suited toward an option-style offense, while Stave is the prototypical pocket passer who can stretch the defense with deep play-action passes. McEvoy struggled in that area over five starts and hasn't completed a pass of longer than 37 yards. He also has as many interceptions as touchdown passes (five).
Stave replaced McEvoy late in the first half of Wisconsin's 20-14 loss against Northwestern, and though he threw three interceptions, he also showed just enough to warrant more playing time. Stave, a two-year starter, missed the first four games while recovering from a well-documented mental block that hindered his throwing ability as he struggled to cope with losing out on the starting job.
It's clear now that the Badgers' passing offense in its current format has not worked, which has led coaches to rethink their game plan. Wisconsin ranks 13th out of 14 Big Ten teams in passing offense (149.8 yards per game), ahead of only Minnesota. Ten of 14 conference teams are averaging at least 213 yards passing per game.
"Joel and I, we understand the deal," McEvoy said. "We're competing, but we're helping each other, too, at the same time. We've just got to accept the challenge and go out there and execute and push each other to make each other better and make the team better."
The biggest challenge moving forward will be maintaining continuity within the offense despite two quarterbacks playing with entirely different skill sets.
"It's a real delicate balance," Badgers offensive coordinator Andy Ludwig said. "The most important thing is to stay within yourself and stay within the strength of the entire unit. Not deviate to match one player or the other. Just do what you do, but just put those quarterbacks in the best possible position."
On Monday, Badgers coach Gary Andersen hinted at the fact that McEvoy could be used in certain packages as a wide receiver, while Ludwig noted having two quarterbacks on the field at once was "a definite possibility." But, as of Tuesday, McEvoy said he had not taken any snaps at wideout.
As a junior in high school at Bergen Catholic (N.J.), McEvoy caught 35 passes for 550 yards and three touchdowns at receiver. McEvoy moved to quarterback for his senior season.
"I used to play it back in high school," McEvoy said of receiver. "I used to love the position. If that's what they want, then I'll go out there and try to execute what they want me to do. Whatever it takes to win, I'm on board."
Though this is an unusual situation for both McEvoy and Stave, Ludwig said he had experience using a multiple-quarterback system when he served as offensive coordinator at Utah from 2005-08. In one version of the system, he used Eric Weddle as a wildcat quarterback while two other players were used as passing quarterbacks.
"I've had some background in it and had success doing it," Ludwig said.
In many respects, Wisconsin is back to where it began the season, when it did not have a clear-cut starting quarterback. For each player, a major area of concern is not trying to play outside of his means in an effort to one-up his teammate.
"You've got to know when not to force it, when not to press too much," Stave said. "I anticipate it kind of being like a camp scrimmage or something like that where everyone's kind of tense. You guys know how camp scrimmages are. They're important. You're splitting reps. You're standing on the sideline for a while and all of a sudden it's, 'All right, Joel, you've got this series.' If it's like that, then we've had success in camp scrimmages before, so I don't see it going any differently."
Both Stave and McEvoy said they believed a two-quarterback system could work if executed well. But it's clear the coaching staff would prefer one player to emerge.
"You're going to play the player with the hot hand," Ludwig said. "If the course of the game, the course of the season dictates that, absolutely. We want to put our best players on the field right now. We're trying to figure out who is the best player in that position."
This week, however, both players will duke it out -- even if neither knows exactly what to expect.
"I think we've got good players," Stave said. "I think me and Tanner can both do a lot of good things, and we're both very different quarterbacks. So I think if used correctly, and I can't say I know necessarily how that is or how it's going to work, I think we have the players in the system who can make it work."
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