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Head coach Dino Babers on Monday didn’t commit to Rex Culpepper as his starting quarterback for Saturday’s matchup against Boston College.

Babers needs to evaluate everyone in the quarterback room, and announcing a starter could provide the Eagles with an advantage, he said during a virtual press conference. 

“We’re going to continue to evaluate those guys,” Babers said. “We’re going to put the best guy out there. It’s one of those situations where you have to continue to evaluate to see exactly where they’re at.”

Culpepper, a senior, has started the previous three games since junior Tommy DeVito experienced a lower body injury against Duke. Culpepper is 0-3 and has six interceptions to five touchdowns in those three starts. His 55.6 % completion percentage against Wake Forest was his highest of the season.  

Following his second interception of the game, Culpepper was pulled with seven and a half minutes remaining in the fourth quarter. Babers said Saturday that he kept Culpepper in because SU still had “a chance to win the game,” even though they trailed by more than 20 points for the majority of the third quarter.  

Culpepper was replaced by true freshman JaCobian Morgan, who found tight end Luke Benson for a touchdown. But Babers wouldn’t overly praise Morgan, citing the lack of complexity of the defense at that point of the game. 

“If you’re going against a base defense and they’re not blitzing you, and they haven’t prepared for you and you have guys open, you’re supposed to be able to get the ball to them,” Babers said.

Morgan’s final throw — a quick hitch to Benson, who turned around just before the ball hit his gloves — was Babers’ favorite. Babers high-fived Morgan following his first touchdown throw. Three plays earlier, he evaded a pass rusher, stepped outside of the pocket and found Ed Hendrix for a 30-yard gain. 

He finished 7-for-7 with 57 yards and a touchdown. That’s just 28 yards fewer than Culpepper, who had 27 attempts. 

Against Clemson, Morgan received his first game action but didn’t throw a pass. He handed the ball off six times to Markenzy Pierre, and Babers said he wanted the freshman to know what playing in front of 19,000 fans was like.

The three-star quarterback from Canton, Mississippi beat out fellow freshman Dillon Markiewicz for the backup job. Morgan replaced Culpepper because he had  the “most reps,” and other quarterbacks were receiving more opportunities following DeVito’s injury, Babers said. 

“Dillon is close, and that’s why we’re still evaluating these guys in practice,” Babers said. “I’m excited — he did what he did, and there’s probably going to be other opportunities for other guys, too.”

Other quarterback options include redshirt freshman David Summers and walk-on Luke MacPhail. Last week, only Morgan and Markiewicz were listed on the depth chart ahead the Wake Forest game. 

The indecision may keep Boston College on edge, but Babers’ openness to playing other quarterbacks was unheard of prior to the Wake Forest game. Perhaps it’s a sign of what’s to come. 

“You have to see how the game goes,” Babers said. “You have to see how Rex is and what’s going on with him. Based off those things, we’ll make a decision.”

Published on November 2, 2020 at 1:38 pm

Contact Adam: adhillma@syr.edu | @_adamhillman