No. 8: The Quarterback Battles
This time last year the one question concerning the FAU football team that everyone wanted answered was: Who will be the starting quarterback? Fast forward one year and the question everyone wants answered is: Who will be the starting quarterback?
Jason Driskel and Daniel Parr battled all fall and into the season to be the Owls’ lead signal caller. The battle was never really settled. Driskel started 11 of the 12 games, with Parr playing in nine games. Neither performed particularly well.
Driskel completed 61 percent of his passes, but those completions only covered 2,415 yards and found the end zone nine times. Parr only attempted 36 passes, throwing for 106 yards and zero touchdowns.
Parr displaced Driskel as the starter late in the season, but that only lasted one game.
To be fair to both Driskel and Parr, both had to perform behind an offensive line decimated by injuries.
Spring practice figured to rekindle the duel – with another player added to the mix. FAU signed former Florida St. QB De’Andre Johnson in December, but the three-way spring battle never materialized. Parr broke a bone in his foot during offseason workouts and recovery from the subsequent surgery forced him to miss spring drills.
Parr is expected to be healthy for the start of fall camp, ensuring a three-way quarterback battle that will captivate FAU fans come August.
What We Wrote
Fall QB Position Preview
Parr and Driskel Neck and Neck
Jason Driskel Named Starter
Parr Starts Against Rice
De’Andre Johnson Signs with FAU
Daniel Parr To Miss Spring Practice
Spring Preview: QB Battle Rages On
Spring Report Card
Kiffin on Parr: Judgement Reserved
Why It’s Important
There’s an old football axiom stating that teams possessing two starting quarterbacks have no starting quarterback. While entertaining, the FAU quarterback battle didn’t create one standout player at the position. While Driskel played well at times and Parr led a couple of nice drives, neither player displayed the ability to consistently manage a game, let alone carry a team.
Enter Johnson. The JUCO transfer dazzled at times this spring but also struggled with his third new offense in as many years. (Driskel and Parr are also working under their third offensive coordinator in three years, too.)
Johnson has the tools to be spectacular, but he certainly didn’t show them off in a yawn of a spring game performance. Driskel fared better in the spring game, but still stares down receivers and makes curious decisions. Parr, well, no one really knows how he’ll perform in Kendal Briles’ offense.
FAU needs strong quarterback play to shed its losing ways. The battle to find one will be front and center again this fall – and will likely earn a spot in next year’s countdown, too.
The Countdown
No. 10: Baseball Relationship Ballpark of the Palm Beaches
No. 9: Football Beset by Injuries
No. 8: The Quarterback Battles
No. 7: Schmidt Complex: It’s a Start
No. 6: Buckeye Surprise
No. 5: The Sirens Call
No. 4: One Stormy Week
No. 3: Partridge Fired
No. 2: Forgettable Seasons
No. 1: The Lane Train
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