Deep Dive: SDSU Quarterback Room
The lasting memories of the 2021 FCS Championship game for SDSU fans will be the last minute SAM Houston St. TD, but the wounds of what happened in the first quarter will be ripped open again this fall. Coach Steg has already confirmed that starting quarterback for much of the championship run, Mark Gronowski, will miss the season with a torn ACL. The big question that looms for a championship team that returns almost its entire roster: who will be behind center come Sept. 3 in Fort Collins?
Current Roster:
Mark Gronowski (Freshman/ Naperville, Ill.) – torn ACL
Rudy Voss (Freshman/ Lakeville, Minn.)
J’Bore Gibbs (Sophomore/ Chicago)
Keaton Heide (Sophomore/ Wayzata, Minn.)
Karst Hunter (Redshirt Freshman/ Miller, SD.)
With Gronowski out, the Jacks turned to Heide in the championship game. It’s a difficult spot for anybody to be thrown into and Heide was somewhat underwhelming. Gibbs will return from injury and could vie for the starting spot. He last saw significant action in 2019 when he took over as starting QB vs. Minnesota. Stayed on most of the year until he suffered a season ending injury vs. NDSU. Gibbs is much more mobile than Heide and would seem to fit into the system that saw that Jacks dominant time of possession during the spring season. Voss and Hunter, while unproven, do not seem to factor into the QB race this fall.
Transfers/Incoming Recruits
Chris Oladokun (Graduate Student/ Samford)
Jon Bell (Incoming Freshman/ Naperville, Ill.)
Following the season, the SDSU coaching staff headed out to the transfer portal to bring in a QB. They got Oladokun, a 6-2 184 lb. dual threat quarterback out of Samford to come in. During the 2021 spring FCS season, Oladokun passed for 221 yards, 1 TD and 2 INTs. Oladokun saw significant action in only one game, a loss to ETSU, before losing the starting job. In 2019 however, Oladokun played in every game, throwing for 2,058 yds, 18 TDs and 7 INTs. Samford finished the year with a 5-7 record.
Before Samford, Oladokun played at the University of South Florida, where he started in three games. He threw for 285 yards, 3 TDs and 1 INT during the 2018 season. An interesting tidbit from his time at USF: his first career start vs. Cincinnati was played in 28 degree weather, coldest in USF history. Oladokun connected with a receiver on a 77 yard TD pass on the first play of the game. Oladokun generated plenty of Power 5 interest coming out of high school, receiving offers from Iowa State and Nebraska.
Bell committed to the Jacks in early June and appears to be on-campus. A bit of an unknown at the moment but seems to fit the mold of the QB Coach Steg tends to prefer: athletic, mobile, strong-armed. Its easy to dismiss him as having no chance but until fall camp starts no one really will have a good idea.
Whose it going to be?
Right now, the favorite for the job has to be Oladokun with Gibbs challenging him the most. It’s curious to why Oladokun lost the starting job this spring, it’s possible he was hurt and that’s why he lost the job. I think the fact that Oladokun is a big-time talent and has played at a high level (USF) makes him the clear-cut favorite. Put him behind SDSU’s big offense line and he should be much more comfortable than whatever Samford had out in front of him. Judging by his highlights, he spent most of his time at Samford running for his life. The only big concern would be that he is not ready for the weather come November and December (being from Tampa) but I doubt that it will be a big issue. I think Gibbs has an outside shot of being the starter, depending on his health and what Coach Steg prefers going into a tough but winnable game at Colorado St. The schedule sets up nicely after Colorado St. with three very winnable games (two cupcakes) following. Wouldn’t be surprised in the slightest if SDSU had some interchangeable quarterback play the first month of the season.