Battle brewing for Salukis' back-up QB spot

Conventional wisdom has Matt DeSomer being the go-to back-up if, heaven forbid, SIU All-Star starting quarterback Sam Straub is out of the game during the 2018 Saluki football season for some reason.

But what's conventional has not necessarily been reality during what has turned out to be an unconventionally competitive fall camp.

DeSomer has many built-in advantages, having played in a plethora of genuine D-I games in which he performed well. But there is an army of quarterbacks in the 2018 fall camp (seven at last count), and two of those have shown signs that they think conventional wisdom may have its flaws.

During last weekend's practice, both junior Stone Labanowitz and freshman Javon Williams Jr. indicated by their presence and play that they somehow may get into the quarterback mix in 2018. Labanowitz is only 5-foot-9, but he has qualities that belie his stature.

"Stone is really a playmaker," quarterbacks coach Michael Williamson said. "He loves competition and has elite pocket presence."

He also has what every college player needs to succeed: self-confidence.

"He didn't get many scholarship offers out of high school because of his size," Williamson added. "But then he went to a JUCO surrounded by QBs with size and beat them all out."

After a rocky start in SIU's spring camp, Labanowitz has improved so much that he may challenge DeSomer for playing time this season and will be one of the top candidates for no. 1 in 2019 spring practice and beyond.

In the past, SIU head coach Nick Hill has installed a Wildcat-like series that mainly featured Desomer's running ability, for a change of pace in a game from Straub.

Yet, with the appearance of Centralia star Williams Jr., Hill has another option for the Wildcat.

Williams is an anomalous, freaky athlete for the FCS level. Although only 18, his body and strength is FBS- or even NFL-level already. There are only a few guys he could possibly be compared to that have played the quarterback position at SIU.

"Javon is like DeSomer and Mark Iannotti," Williamson said. "He can drop back and throw pretty well, but we also have created some running plays for him."

At 6-foot-2 and 237 pounds, Williams has the strength of a linebacker.

However, he is surprisingly fast. In last Saturday's scrimmage, he almost seemed, like Iannotti, to seek contact, as smaller defensive backs bounced off of him. He's had several plus-20-yard runs and could give DeSomer a run for his money as far as Wildcat situations.

Speaking about crushing "conventional wisdom," many media types have noted that though Williams is a man-among-boys running the ball, his lack of college-level passing ability might hold him back at the D-I level. But in the final play of last Saturday's practice, Williams fired a perfect spiral down the middle of the field to catch wide receiver Sam Thompson in stride for a touchdown.

Hill believes competition at each position during practices is great for building a winning team. Now, he's certainly got that at the biggest spot on the field.</group><group id="79069