Since signing day, Arizona Wildcats coach Rich Rodriguez has insisted that the search for talent is a never-ending quest. He mentioned the strong possibility of Arizona adding more players. Neither time frames nor age limits were discussed publicly.
UA spring practice concluded at the end of March, and May began with a bombshell: Arizona would be adding former No. 3 MLB draft pick Donavan Tate – baggage and all – to its roster as a walk-on quarterback.
The news, revealed Wednesday, sent Twitter aflutter and sparked all sorts of discussion – unusual in and of itself for a program that largely has been out of the spotlight the past two seasons.
Tate’s arrival creates more questions than it answers. Below, we attempt to tackle five of them.
1. Why would RichRod bring in a 26-year-old quarterback with a history of injuries and drug problems?
Rodriguez’s job is to develop young men and win as many football games as possible. He wouldn’t add Tate to the mix if he didn’t think he could help the Wildcats win more games. Tate obviously has talent; he was considered one of the best athletes in the country at Cartersville (Ga.) High School before committing full time to baseball and signing with the San Diego Padres. He went on to endure serious off-the-field issues, including a pair of stints in substance-abuse rehabilitation facilities. Arizona vetted Tate’s background before bringing him aboard. He is a husband and father now and said in at least one story that he has been sober for quite some time. His troubled past is no mystery, but Rodriguez obviously believes that the possible rewards outweigh the potential risks. Remember also that Arizona was supposed to add big-time West Coast QB Braxton Burmeister before he flipped to Oregon. In a way, Tate fills that spot.
2. How does the addition of Tate affect the Wildcats’ quarterback situation?
Tate is not your average, run-of-the-mill walk-on; he is a walk-on only because the Padres are paying his college costs. As walk-ons go, he’s as high profile as they come. As such, the expectation is that he will compete immediately with veterans Brandon Dawkins and Khalil Tate for the starting quarterback job. Neither is a sure thing. Dawkins, a redshirt junior, showed flashes of brilliance last season, especially as a runner. But there are concerns that he has peaked as a passer. Khalil Tate, a sophomore, remains relatively inexperienced; he’s still only 18 years old – eight years younger than his new competitor. Rodriguez said repeatedly throughout the spring that Arizona’s passing game needs to improve. It absolutely does. It remains to be seen whether Donavan Tate, who hasn’t played competitive football in nine years, can raise the overall level of play at the position. It also remains to be seen how the coaching staff will divvy up practice reps to give each player a fair chance to win the job.
3. How should Dawkins and Khalil Tate feel about this development?
In one sense, they have to be wondering, “What about us?” They’ve put in the work on the field, in the film room, in the weight room and in the classroom. They’ve earned the top two spots on the depth chart. Quarterback is unlike any other position on offense or defense in that only one guy can play at a time. (Platoons have been attempted in the past; they generally aren’t very effective.) Therefore, the addition of a big-name talent has to be viewed as a threat. In another sense, it’s just more competition – which, in theory, should make everyone better. At Power Five schools – even ones currently struggling as Arizona is – the expectation is that a new three-, four- or five-star quarterback will join the fray annually. The corresponding expectation is that the incumbents will embrace the competition. So, if anything, the addition of Donavan Tate should motivate Dawkins and Khalil Tate. If it doesn’t, it’s fair to question whether they have what it takes to excel at the position.
4. What does Donavan Tate bring to the table as a football player?
This is the perhaps the biggest question of all – and the hardest one to answer. As mentioned, Tate hasn’t played football since his high school days in 2008. To put that in perspective, Khalil Tate was 10 years old when Donavan Tate last suited up for Cartersville. Tate was a fantastic prep player, ranked as high as the No. 5 athlete in the nation, although it wasn’t a certainty that he would play quarterback in college; Scout’s analysts projected him as a safety. Getting back into football mode will require more than relearning the proper footwork and throwing mechanics. Tate also will have to get used to being hit again. As hard as baseball was for him, he never got tackled by a 300-pound person (that we know of, anyway). One of the differences between Tate and the other well-known baseball-players-turned-quarterbacks – Chris Weinke, Brandon Weeden, Drew Henson – is that he is (or at least was) a dual-threat QB while they were primarily drop-back passers. You’re going to get hit in Rodriguez’s offense. Is Tate ready for that?
5. Is this truly a nothing-to-lose proposition, as many have asserted?
As mentioned, Tate isn’t taking up a scholarship, which is a good thing. In that way, the risk of adding him to the roster is minimal; if it doesn’t work out, the two sides can part ways cleanly. But there are costs. Practice reps are limited. Any that Tate gets will come at the expense of Dawkins and Khalil Tate. Donavan Tate is bound to receive undue media attention. This is our fourth piece on him, and multiple sites across the worldwide web have picked up on the story. It’s to be expected when you add a player who was the third pick in the MLB draft, signed for more than $6 million and busted in spectacular fashion. If Rodriguez receives a disproportionate number of questions about him – which he will – and if Tate gets more interview requests than the other quarterbacks, how will that play in the locker room?
