4/14/2019 football Edit

Rutgers Football Spring Game: Quarterback Report

Chris Nalwasky • TheKnightReport

Beat Writer

The Rutgers football team capped spring practice with the Scarlet-White game on Saturday.

It wasn't a full scrimmage, but the offense was put in various situations where they were able to drive down the field from its own 25-yard line, the two-minute drill, or red zone.

Artur Sitkowski, Cole Snyder, and Johnny Langan were the three main signal callers that received reps. Walk-on Austin Albericci also mixed in.

Take a brief read below on how the three main scholarship guys did with quotes from head coach Chris Ash.

"I thought our quarterbacks threw well," Ash said.

Sitkowski remains the first team quarterback, but the competition will live on through training camp once there is a clearer picture on how the room will look.

"He's the first team starter but we're not going to name a starter or anything like that. Johnny Langan isn't even eligible yet," Ash said. "Art is the No. 1 quarterback coming out of the spring. He's done a nice job. All of them have. They've all improved.

"There's a lot that still has to be decided on what direction we're going to go. We're waiting to see what's going to happen with Johnny. I don't know when that's going to come around. We're not in any position right not to make any comments."

Artur Sitkowski (22-of-30 for 216 yards, 1TD & 1INT): The rising sophomore signal caller started the day on fire against the second team defense, completing his first six passes for 69 yards including a short 10-yard touchdown to receiver Bo Melton. Sitkowski sliced up the defense and had 113 yards through the air on 9-of-10 passes in the first quarter. Sitkowski displayed strong accuracy and hit his targets in stride on a bevy of throws. He also didn't panic under pressure, made good decisions with the ball, and didn’t force throws through tight windows.

"Art looked a lot more comfortable. He led the offense a lot better out there today than he did last spring. He's shown a lot of signs of improvement with what he's done," Ash said.

"He's a lot more confident and comfortable and the game has slowed down. He has better command of the offense and can make better decisions. We've kind of changed some things (with the offense) to help with that also. Today, was kind of a product of what we saw for 15 practices."

Johnny Langan (8-of-16 for 76 yards / 8 rushes for 15 yards & 1 TD): Langan was the second quarterback in the game, but ended up playing pretty poorly. On the day he only has 61 passing yards and the offensive unit as a whole looked pretty stagnant whenever he was under center. As we mentioned on the message board this spring, even if Langan gets his NCAA waiver, he will still have to hold off Cole Snyder for the backup job.

"It's their first spring here with us and they really did a nice job picking up the offense," Ash said of Langan and Snyder. "They're competitive guys and they went in there, whether it was passing or running, and led the offense and executed. They improved on their decision making."

Cole Snyder (4-for-8 for 60 yards, 1TD): After a couple of solid throws during the first half, Snyder was the first quarterback on the field after halftime. Snyder tested the first team defense with a couple of different throws, including one 28-yard completion to Eddie Lewis and another 28-yard completion to Paul Woods for a touchdown.

"Cole really took a big jump the last two weeks of the spring," Ash said. "The first two weeks he struggled. It was his first spring, new offense, and it was a lot to learn. Through hard work and studying and getting reps, he improved. I'm pleased with where he's at at the end of the spring."