With less than three weeks remaining until the ASU football team kicks off its season, there is still much to be decided in the starting lineup, most notably which quarterback will be lining up under center to take the first snap of the season.
The field has narrowed, as redshirt freshman Bryce Perkins is out for an extended period of time with an injury. Freshman Dillon Sterling-Cole is still adjusting to the collegiate level, so the final competition is between redshirt sophomore Manny Wilkins and redshirt freshman Brady White.
While most of the full-team workouts have taken place behind closed doors, Tuesday's practice featured both quarterback hopefuls leading groups in the two-minute drill.
White took his turn with the first team, and threw a nice ball to the back corner of the end zone that was dropped by redshirt junior wide receiver Ellis Jefferson to bring up fourth down. White responded, finding redshirt senior wide receiver Tim White down the middle of the field over the outstretched arms of junior defensive back J'Marcus Rhodes.
Wilkins's turn was more methodical, gaining yards in bunches, completing all but one pass, and pushing the ball consistently up the field. Wilkins capped the successful drive off with a touchdown to redshirt sophomore Jalen Harvey.
The last time ASU had a quarterback battle, ball security was one of the major factors that separated Taylor Kelly from Mike Bercovici and Michael Eubank in order to win the starting job. Knowing how much coach Todd Graham emphasizes possession, White said that keeping the ball in the hands of the offense has been a major talking point in camp.
"We're taking care of the ball a lot better," White said. "That's very high on our priorities and you can't win ballgames when you turn the ball over... We've been doing a good job of that."
There appears to be no end in sight in this battle as coaches have praised both Wilkins and White and have not ruled anything when it comes to making a decision over the presumed quarterback of the future for ASU.
Reach the reporter at mtonis@asu.edu or follow @Tonis_The_Tiger on Twitter.
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