The most important time for the Arizona Wildcatsβ still-developing quarterbacks isnβt spring. It isnβt fall.
Itβs what happens in between.
Coach Rich Rodriguez has mentioned it repeatedly: The quarterbacks need to step up their games in the summer, when the coaches, by NCAA rule, are not allowed to coach them.
Brandon Dawkins and Khalil Tate have heard the message loud and clear. They understand whatβs expected of them.
βFor a quarterback, there really is no offseason,β said Dawkins, whoβs entering his redshirt junior season as the favorite to start. βMaybe you get a week or two. Two would be max. Youβre never really taking that much time off from throwing, working out, something.β
The quarterbacks know they need to put in the work to improve a passing game that slumped badly last season. Arizona posted its fewest passing yards and touchdowns under Rodriguez. The offense, plagued by injuries at quarterback and tailback, often became one-dimensional.
The Wildcats spent 15 spring practices striving to upgrade the passing attack; it was the No. 1 item on their lengthy to-do list after a 3-9 season. But in Rodriguezβs view, that was just the start.
βYou canβt play at an elite level, particularly at quarterback, if youβre not fully committed throughout the summer to work, not only on the physical part, but the mental part,β Rodriguez said. βI think they have (been). But thereβs another level weβve got to get to, and theyβve got to do it on their own without the coaches being there, without our direction.
βI think they want it. I feel good about those guys understanding what they need to do this summer.β
That might not have been the case in recent years.
After Arizona concluded spring practice on March 31, Rodriguez said: βI donβt think the last few summers theyβve been as aggressive working on their skills and their game as they need to be.β
Whether he was referring specifically to Dawkins, Tate (who enrolled at Arizona in January 2016) or the recently transferred Anu Solomon is not clear; what Rodriguez wants moving forward, though, is.
βI know those guys love football, but theyβve got to love the grind of getting ready in the summer on their own,β Rodriguez said. βI think theyβll do that.β
Every player at every position is expected to put in work during the offseason. Some of it is required, NCAA-approved weightlifting and conditioning. The other portion consists of voluntary, player-run practices, or PRPs. But if you want to get better β and get in the coachesβ good graces β youβd better show up.
βItβs optional,β junior receiver Shun Brown said, βbut itβs mandatory at the same time.β
And itβs different for quarterbacks.
βItβs expected,β quarterbacks coach Rod Smith said. βWhen football timeβs up, football timeβs not up for them.β
Quarterbacks are tasked with organizing the PRPs, which usually run one hour per session four or five days per week. The invites to the other skill-position players β and/or defenders for 7-on-7 sessions β go out via group text. The PRPs β which coaches are not allowed to attend or even watch from afar β are wedged into playersβ surprisingly busy summer schedules, which also include classes and the aforementioned conditioning workouts.
Now that heβs an upperclassman, Dawkins believes he has a better understanding of his role in leading those passing sessions. The quarterback essentially has to serve as the head coach and offensive coordinator. The actual coaches might provide guidelines, but itβs mostly up to Dawkins to determine what β and who β needs the most work.
βWhat donβt you guys understand?β Dawkins will ask his teammates. βWhat routes do you have trouble with? What routes are you still trying to work on?β
The PRPs serve a dual purpose. For veterans, itβs another opportunity to sharpen their skills. For young players and newcomers, itβs a chance to get up to speed β not only with the playbook, but with the work ethic thatβs required to be competitive in Division I football.
Tate didnβt fully grasp the significance of summer workouts as a 17-year-old freshman last year.
βI didnβt realize it,β he said. βTheyβre very important. You have to get out there and perform hard at all times.β
Brown remembered arriving in Tucson from Shreveport, Louisiana, in the summer of 2015. He had little idea what any of the play calls meant. Veteran Nate Phillips helped him β to a point.
βAfter the fourth time asking him, he was like, βNah, bro, youβve gotta start learning by yourself,ββ Brown said. βWhen he stopped helping me, thatβs when I actually started learning.β
Now Brown is a vet, and new receivers such as Brian Casteel and Drew Dixon will learn from him.
Arizona also will welcome two new quarterbacks when summer classes begin: KβHari Lane from Montezuma, Georgia, and Rhett Rodriguez, the coachβs son, from Catalina Foothills High School.
Rhett regularly observed Arizonaβs spring practices while in high school and accompanied his father to the coachesβ offices afterward. Although in need of physical development, Rhett already possesses the mindset his dad believes all successful quarterbacks must have.
βThat position, if youβre not a gym rat, I donβt think you can ever be as good as you need to be,β said Rich Rodriguez, who placed several of his past quarterbacks β including Pat White, Denard Robinson, Matt Scott and B.J. Denker β in that category. βThe best quarterbacks at all levels are the ones that are truly obsessed with the game and everything about the game. Thatβs where weβve got to get (the current) guys to.β
When training camp opens in August, Rodriguez and Smith said theyβll be able to tell immediately whether the quarterbacks and their teammates put in the work.
If the passes are crisp and the routes are sharp, the coaches will know what the Wildcats did last summer.
