NORMAN, Okla. - Oklahoma football coach Bob Stoops said he won't name a starting quarterback for 2015 until late August.
That's a long time from now, considering the decision was made back in January.
Stoops coached the Sooners in Saturday afternoon's annual Red-White Spring Game and he watched four quarterbacks each take their turn. No one dazzled or particularly stood out and Stoops went as far as to suggest the offense was vanilla.
Because it was vanilla, because Trevor Knight and Justice Hansen and Cody Thomas didn't provide any whip cream with a cherry on top, this race is over.
This job is Baker Mayfield's, mostly because the Sooners went 8-5 last year.
Why so sure?
Well, Trevor Knight hasn't shown the ability to stay healthy or be consistent when he is. Cody Thomas wasn't trusted to throw the ball and Justice Hansen doesn't have the experience.
Meanwhile, the fact OU's offense was questionable enough that Stoops felt he needed to make offseason changes, in this case firing offensive coordinators Josh Heupel and Jay Norvell and then bringing in Lincoln Riley for the same role shows Stoops isn't interested in doing what he's done.
Saturday didn't prove much. Mayfield wasn't great, but it doesn't matter, because Knight and Thomas and Hansen weren't either. No one showed they were better than Mayfield and without some real stats or recent accomplishments it's hard to conceive of Stoops choosing anyone but Mayfield.
"They've had a nice spring," Stoops said of his quad quarterbacks. "We didn't show everything out there today. It was a bit conservative, but I've been pleased."
A standard answer for April 11, certainly. Too soon to laud too much on any one quarterback, but it wasn't exactly a vote of confidence for the status quo, either.
Thomas got the first snaps of the game and went 5-of-12 for 83 yards and also threw an interception. Hansen was the most-consistent. He was five-for-five for 70 yards, but he's not up for consideration. Knight was 6-of-13 for 78 yards and an interception and Mayfield threw two interceptions, completed 10-of-13 passes and also threw a touchdown pass.
"We didn't need to beat anyone today," Stoops said. "Why show everything you're going to do? Our purpose was to do some basic fundamental things."
Fair enough, but that approach also takes any steam out of a quarterback move by Hansen, Knight or Thomas. It keeps Mayfield as the mysterious newcomer and it empowers Stoops, while at the same time making sure none of the quarterbacks get upset at being demoted.
Which is completely smart, but it doesn't take a codebreaker to realize this job is Mayfield's.
The upside is better with Mayfield who also happens to have experience as a former starter at Texas Tech, understands the offense Riley wants to run and has more ability to throw the ball downfield. Yes, he takes chances, but at this point, off of a disappointing season where quarterback play was more stagnant than sensational, taking some chances seems desirable.
"Baker is not afraid to take chances," Riley said. "You can't be scared, but you have to be smart. I love the aggressiveness of Baker. He's had a really strong spring."
Would you describe any of the other three quarterbacks as aggressive, or risk-takers? Probably not.
"I love taking my shots," Mayfield said. "You have to take your chances. There's times I need to hold back. It showed today."
Mayfield wasn't great Saturday. He showed some flashes, but then again, Mayfield didn't have to be great on Saturday.
He just couldn't be terrible while the other three shined. Those things didn't happen because Stoops and his staff set it up that way.
The result means no one emerged as a starter and no one stepped up to take away Mayfield's job.
Follow Andrew Gilman on Twitter: @andrewgilmanOK
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