CONWAY -- When Central Arkansas plays its first game under new Coach Steve Campbell in four weeks, its starting quarterback will likely be a left-handed son of a high school coach with some starting experience.
The name of that quarterback isn't yet known -- and it might not even matter.
"I really can't tell the difference," wide receiver Dezmin Lewis said about Ryan Howard and Taylor Reed, who are competing to start the Bears' Aug. 30 opener at Texas Tech.
UCA held its first fall practice under Campbell with a two-hour workout Saturday morning in helmets and shorts on the practice field just west of Estes Stadium. On Campbell's to-do list is replacing five defensive starters, getting his players more acclimated to a hurry-up, no-huddle offense installed in the spring and picking between Howard and Reed.
Choosing a starting quarterback might be the least pressing for Campbell. Though Howard went first in Saturday's workouts, both he and Reed took snaps with the No. 1 offense Saturday. Campbell said he has no timetable to pick a starter, and said he has nothing against using both in games.
"I like getting your good players on the field," Campbell said. "Both of them have an ability that we need to utilize. They are both good at some of the same things, but some of their skills are different."
Howard is a fifth-year senior from Vestavia Hills, Ala., just outside of Birmingham, where his dad serves as offensive coordinator. He started six games last year after Wynrick Smothers suffered a broken ankle, completing 61.5 percent of his passes for 1,848 yards with 18 touchdowns.
Howard said he feels comfortable in the role as starter, but doesn't think it necessarily gives him an edge in the race to determine who gets it this year.
"I can't worry about things I can't control," Howard said. "That's kind of been my mindset for the past three years. I've got to worry about myself and getting better each day."
While Howard started in place of Smothers last year, Reed saw playing time, too. In nine games, he completed 30 of 35 passes for 315 yards and 5 touchdowns. If there is one difference between the two, it's the running ability of Reed, an El Dorado native who started nine games for Memphis in 2011, redshirted at Arkansas in 2012 and arrived at UCA last year.
Campbell said Reed, who rushed for 196 touchdowns and a touchdown last year, ran a 40-yard dash in 4.6 seconds, a desired attribute for a quarterback in his spread option system. Like Howard, Reed said he's not worried about the starting job just yet, either.
"It's a new system," said Reed, whose father, Scott, has led El Dorado to four state championships. "I think we're both taking the same steps. We're both pushing each other, trying to get the best out of each other."
The similarities have been noticed by Lewis. The 6-3 Reed is about four inches taller than Howard, and Lewis said he can't tell who is playing quarterback when a play begins, or when one of them throws him a pass. The only difference he sees is the jersey number -- Howard wears No. 13, Reed No. 15 -- and he doesn't see that until he returns to the sideline.
"They know what they're doing," Lewis said. "I really don't notice until we're running off the field and I congratulate them for a good throw."
That's a good sign for Campbell, because there are plenty of other issues to clear up before the trip to Lubbock, Texas, such as getting his new players used to the tempo at which they'll be operating this season. Under Conque, the Bears sped up some, but they will be hurry-up full-time under Campbell.
"The tempo was good for the first day," Campbell said. "We still have a long way to go to get game-ready. We have a game four weeks from today, so a lot of work to do in a short amount of time."
Sports on 08/03/2014