After overseeing a monthlong competition to decide his starter, Indiana coach Tom Allen has settled on a quarterback.
It’s Peyton Ramsey, the steady redshirt sophomore who officially beat out Arizona graduate transfer Brandon Dawkins and true freshman Michael Penix for the job. Allen officially announced his decision on Thursday morning.
Ramsey had the most consistent camp of the three, demonstrating both his knowledge of the offense and his ability to make good decisions.
In announcing his decision Thursday, Allen said Ramsey checked the three most important boxes in the evaluation process.
“First of all, a quarterback that protects the football and his decision making — how he reads coverages, how he distributes the ball, how he protects the football — that was No. 1,” Allen said. “No. 2 was the ability to move the team down the field consistently throughout those opportunities, whether it was scrimmages or those times throughout practice.
“And No. 3, we want a young man the team believes in. That was very, very important to me. We selected our leadership council earlier in fall camp, (and) he was our leading vote-getter by a landslide.”
When he takes the field for Indiana’s season opener at Florida International on Sept. 1, Ramsey will be making his fifth start for the Hoosiers. He played in nine games last season, replacing former IU quarterback Richard Lagow in early October.
Ramsey flashed potential with the time allotted, throwing for 1,252 yards with 10 touchdowns and five interceptions before missing the final month of the season with an injury. His 65.4 completion percentage ranks first in IU single-season history.
“Our entire staff is in agreement that Peyton is the guy,” Allen said. “I think our team really sees that as well.”
Even so, it’s likely Dawkins and Penix will get situational snaps.
Dawkins got off to a slow start to fall camp, and appeared to be the most inefficient passer of the three as he learned Indiana’s playbook.
The former Arizona starter showed better command of this throws in recent practices, but it was still not clear that he could consistently make all the passes required to run the offense.
Of course, Dawkins’ best attribute is his running ability, which IU may still look to take advantage of through a potential package tailored to the veteran.
“(He’s) tremendously athletic and a very, very good runner,” Allen said. “Throws the ball well on the move, creates a lot of issues and he’s gotten better and better throughout fall camp, without question.”
Penix appears to be Indiana’s quarterback of the future. He throws the best ball, can throw on the run and scramble with agility.
With the NCAA’s new redshirt rule, which allows players to appear in up to four games while retaining an extra year of eligibility, it’s likely Penix will appear in a game or two early in the season to gain on-field experience.
Should a clear need arise, it wouldn’t be far-fetched to see Indiana burn his redshirt.
“Obviously, you see what I see out there,” Allen said. “Very special player, but he’s young. To help him build and help him grow, I think it’s the best decision for all three individuals and what’s best for our team.
“Bottom line is I believe all three of those guys are gonna play at different times. I’m not gonna put specifics on that, but I do expect all three of them to play. But Peyton Ramsey is the starter.”
