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Arkansas quarterbacks Cole Kelley, Ty Storey discuss open competition for starting job
By Jake Rill
Published:
A lot has changed for Arkansas since the beginning of last season.
Chad Morris is the new coach. Former starting quarterback Austin Allen is gone. And the Razorbacks will need somebody new to lead their offense.
Arkansas has six quarterbacks on its roster and Morris is holding an open competition to determine the starter in his first season. However, sophomore Cole Kelley may have the edge, as he filled in when Allen was injured last season.
And Kelley discussed how important gaining that experience was in an interview with Hit That Lane from ESPN Arkansas recently at the Razorbacks’ fall camp.
“I never really thought that experience was a huge deal, I just thought when you get out on the field you either know how to handle it and to play or you can’t,” Kelley said. “But now, having that experience, I definitely feels like it’s definitely different. To have that experience, I just feel like I’ve been here forever and I’m a seasoned veteran, and I really didn’t start a whole season, so it definitely helps.”
Kelley played in nine games last season, including making four starts. He passed for 1,038 yards and eight touchdowns.
What is Kelley’s mindset entering an open quarterback competition? He tries not to think about it.
“Just making sure I’m staying myself day in and day out and not really focusing on the battle and more focusing on better our team,” Kelley told Hit That Lane.
Another potential option to be Arkansas’ starting quarterback is junior Ty Storey. He has had limited action over the past two seasons, including appearing in two games last year.
However, the Razorbacks have no senior quarterbacks and Storey is their only junior.
Storey told Hit That Lane that it’s a friendly competition between the quarterbacks early in camp.
“We’re all just trying to push each other to get better,” Storey said. “We’re all rooting for each other, hoping the best for everybody. At the end of the day, just all you can control is yourself trying to get a little bit better.”
Jake Rill contributes to news coverage for Saturday Down South. He has covered the SEC since 2016.
