Estimated read time: 5-6 minutes
SALT LAKE CITY — Cal Poly transfer quarterback Sam Huard loves to compete.
The former five-star quarterback had several options after he announced his intent to transfer away from the FCS program following a one-year stint where he threw for 2,205 yards and 18 touchdowns with the Mustangs.
But Huard chose Utah and the clear expectation that he'd be one of several options to backup incumbent starter Cam Rising.
"This place is one of the best programs in the country, and this place has — there's been a ton of great stability, and they've proven so much here," Huard said in his first conversation with Utah media. "Just the opportunity to come here and a great system and just compete and get better. I know coming here wasn't gonna be easy and learning a tough playbook.
"Getting back up to this level, it takes some time to get back to this speed, but I know I have such great people around me, they're gonna help me get there. And I know there's things to process. ... At the end of the day, there's not many better people to learn from than Cam out there, and he's been unbelievable since I've gotten here. What a great mentor he is, and for me to come in here, just compete and push myself and also be able to pick his brain has just been awesome."
Huard remains locked in a battle with Brandon Rose and freshman Isaac Wilson for the backup role, but he's been unofficially tabbed as the expected back since the day he committed to Utah — if not for being the only backup with actual playing experience at the Division I level.
It was at the FCS level — and a handful of snaps at Washington backing up Michael Penix Jr. — but it's still more than Rose or Wilson. Huard, though, still has to prove it at Utah, and with the distinct disadvantage that he didn't get any spring ball and is "playing catch up," according to Utah head coach Kyle Whittingham.
"He's done a good job," Whittingham added. "He's a really bright kid and has made up a lot of ground, and is executing pretty darn good given a situation not being able to be here in spring ball. But that was the biggest deficit that he faced was just lack of knowledge of the offense."
Has he made enough progress to be Utah's QB2 this season? That remains to be seen, but Whittingham said there's been some development with the depth chart at the position.
"It's shaping up," Whittingham said. "We did have some little bit of separation — not enough to make any depth chart statements or radical changes. We'll probably go another week with the way we're handling the reps and getting people involved."
By Monday, though, Whittingham wants to have an established order set. Progress is being made after one week of fall camp, and the competition no longer remains on an equal plane.
"I'm not going to say it's a dead heat anymore, because there is some jockeying in position that's taking place," Whittingham added. "But not ready to make any public statements about that. We need a bigger sample size."
That sample size will extend to the second week of camp, with the culmination of that battle coming Thursday with Utah's first scrimmage of the season, in which Whittingham said it'll provide the team "our best look at what we've got."
Huard remains a strong competitor to be Rising's backup as the son of a former NFL quarterback and the nephew to Fox broadcaster and former NFL quarterback Brock Huard.
He knows nothing is a guarantee at Utah, and he admits he's "got such a long way to go," but he feels like he's got the work ethic and talent to compete for the backup spot — "I just love being able to come out here and compete."
"I know that I have the people around me to help push me, and I know that I'm in a great opportunity to just continue to just get better every single day," Huard said. "Being a quarterback and waking up every day and having that challenge, does it get hard? For sure, but I know that I'm built for this, and the things I've gone through have helped prepare me to just know that this thing is going to be a process and there's going to be some ups and downs to it.
"But at the end of the day, you've just got to keep pushing and keep working, and that's what I love about it because it's not easy and it's hard, but I wouldn't want it any other way, because I love to compete and I love to just push myself every single day."
Huard's work ethic has already been noticed by Rising, who has served as a bit of a mentor to help him acclimate to Utah's system and has said it "fired me up" to watch how quickly Huard has picked up the offense and has applied it to his game.
Huard just wants another chance to compete.
"I feel like I'm able to process and make decisions and be accurate with the football," Huard said. "I think the biggest thing I need to work on here is just kind of settling down a little bit, just getting more comfortable — I'm running some new plays for the first time going against one of the best defenses in the country at disguising stuff, and so I know it's gonna take some time.
"But just being able to be out here and just get better and really work on those things and footwork and the time and all that stuff, it just comes with the reps and it comes with time. And so there's definitely a lot of things that I'm looking forward to continue to get better at."
