Jamarye Joiner came to Arizona as a quarterback. He switched positions about a year into his UA career. But QB always remained a part of his DNA.
“Once you’re a quarterback, you’re always a quarterback,” the fourth-year sophomore said amid preparations for Saturday’s game at USC. “It’s something that you don’t lose. It’s like riding a bike.”
Joiner isn’t a full-time quarterback for the Wildcats. He has been pressed into part-time duty after injuries sidelined Jordan McCloud and Gunner Cruz for the remainder of the season.
With only one healthy scholarship player left in the QB room — second-year freshman Will Plummer — Jedd Fisch and his staff had to explore other options. Joiner was by far the best one. He was rated as a three-star prospect as a dual-threat quarterback coming out of Cienega High School. He spent his first season at the UA, 2018, as a reserve at the position.
Joiner played two snaps at quarterback on Oct. 16 at Colorado, the game in which Cruz suffered a season-ending thumb injury. That total increased to 10 against Washington last week.
Joiner rushed four times for 25 yards and a touchdown against the Huskies. He also was the quarterback — and lead blocker — on Stevie Rocker Jr.’s 52-yard rush, which required Joiner to read the defense and decide whether to keep the ball or hand it to the freshman running back.
At the very least, utilizing Joiner as a “Wildcat” quarterback has proved to be an effective changeup for a UA offense that has yet to score 20 points in a game.
“It’s just one more guy, when he’s in the shotgun, that the defense has to account for,” offensive coordinator Brennan Carroll said. “When you’ve got another guy that’s a very good athlete like Jamarye is, the secondary has to account for him, the defensive end has to account for him. It just gives you one more gap to cover.”
Joiner said he and the offensive staff have been looking at his film from high school to find plays that he can run within the scope of Fisch’s offense. They utilized Joiner’s passing ability before he made the switch. Joiner received a backward pass from McCloud against UCLA on Oct. 9 and threw a forward pass for a touchdown to Michael Wiley.
Arizona has only two touchdowns in its past three games — and Joiner was involved in both of them. His presence behind center also seemed to open up the run game.
So you’re probably wondering: Why not make Joiner the starting quarterback?
It’s not that simple. This isn’t the “Madden” video game, where you can just edit a player’s position.
Carroll praised Joiner’s aptitude after the coaching staff “asked a lot from him in a short period of time.” But Carroll indicated that taking it a step further wouldn’t be practical at this point in the season.
“Jamarye’s depth of knowledge is in the pass game,” Carroll said. “But as a quarterback, there’s so much more on your plate. That would be tough.”
Joiner expressed confidence in his ability to master the playbook if necessary, saying his knowledge is “increasing very rapidly.” He also acknowledged the difference between knowing your routes and responsibilities as a receiver and coming at it “from a quarterback perspective.”
He will continue to work at both positions, focusing primarily on drills and techniques as a receiver and on film study as a quarterback.
“I try not to make it too stressful, because when it’s stressful, you’re not going to reach your maximum potential,” Joiner said. “Just play the game. I’m not trying to overthink it. Just let my athleticism and IQ do the rest.”
‘A thousand times better’
While Joiner role remains somewhat ambiguous, his health is no longer a question mark.
Joiner said his left foot — which required surgery each of the past two offseasons — feels “a thousand times better” than a year ago.
Joiner first underwent surgery for a Jones fracture in May 2020. He played in all five games last season, catching 12 passes for 111 yards and a touchdown.
But Joiner didn’t consistently display the explosiveness that enabled him to gain a team-high 552 yards and score five touchdowns on 34 receptions the previous season. The foot broke again during Arizona’s 2021 spring game, requiring a second procedure.
Joiner spent most of training camp working off to the side as his foot healed. He made his season debut on Sept. 25 against Oregon. His workload gradually has increased since then, including a season-high 36 snaps vs. Washington.
“When you’re coming (back) from an injury, anybody knows it takes a little minute to get back into that groove,” said Joiner, who has two catches for 15 yards. “I was out since April. I came back in September. That timeframe is a big timeframe to not be doing anything. It’s just getting back into football shape, getting back into running routes, trusting my foot 100%.
“It just it feels a lot better. I’m way more comfortable with it. I’m ready to go.”
Brown takes blame for miscue
Late in the fourth quarter of last week’s game, Washington faced third-and-3 from its 38-yard line. The Huskies led 21-16. Arizona desperately needed to get the ball back
After a timeout — the Wildcats’ last — UA defensive coordinator Don Brown called for a formation Arizona hadn’t used very often. It featured only two defensive linemen.
As the players were lining up, multiple UA defenders could be seen waving toward the sideline and pointing at what they perceived to be a vacancy along the line. Defensive tackle Leevel Tatum III sprinted onto the field. One problem: Arizona already had 11 defenders in play.
The Wildcats stopped the Huskies short but were flagged for an illegal substitution. By the time Arizona got the ball back, only 21 seconds remained on the clock.
“That’s obviously my responsibility,” Brown said Tuesday. “And I take full responsibility for it. We’ve just got to do a better job of communicating and making sure that we’re in the vicinity.”
Brown said that defensive package was one of nine he had installed for the UW game.
“With all the packages that we have, you’ve got to be really on top of your game,” Brown said. “That was a mistake that was extremely costly.”
Extra points
Arizona could have a crowded backfield against USC with Drake Anderson and Michael Wiley possibly returning from injury to join Rocker and Jalen John. Is it possible to keep that many backs happy? “If they’re all great competitors, absolutely,” Carroll said. “They should be excited about the challenges of working their tails off to earn those carries and to see who’s going to perform the best. I feel like that’s going to make the room better.”
USC could have backup quarterback Jaxson Dart available Saturday behind starter Kedon Slovis. Dart, one of the highest-rated recruits in the class of 2021, recently returned to practice after missing several weeks because of a knee injury. Dart passed for 391 yards and four touchdowns in relief of Slovis on Sept. 18 vs. Washington State.
