Bohl on QBs: ‘There’s no job that’s secured’

LARAMIE -- Craig Bohl was in a particularly good mood Monday evening.

For one, he's back out on the field at War Memorial Stadium, coaching his team. Something not many people, including himself, expected to be doing right now.

Secondly, some groups are way ahead of even his expectations.

Quarterbacks are one of them.

"I think our quarterbacks, by in large, are a little bit ahead of where I thought they'd be today," he said during opening statements of a Zoom meeting with the media.

When Bohl wasn't joking about his new face shield -- think Kansas City head coach, Andy Reid -- his gripes were far and few between.

The pad level was too high, he said, which is to be expected early on in camp. Special teams, particularly the kicking unit, wasn't too impressive on a windy, cold afternoon in Laramie.

Though there are plenty of questions surrounding this team, the main one most pose is this: Who will be under center when the Cowboys open the 2020 campaign Oct. 24?

Sean Chambers or Levi Williams?

Better yet, is this even an open competition?

"We're going to certainly be looking at things, we've always done that," he said. "You know, Sean is a little bit ahead, simply because of the number of plays he's played, but Levi does some really good things."

What Bohl's is referring to is Chambers' 11 career starts. The sophomore has won nine of those. He has also been on campus longer, which means more time to pour over the playbook.

There's no denying the running talents of the Kerman, Calif., product. Chambers has amassed 896 yards on 149 attempts. He has also rushed for 12 touchdowns.

It's the passing woes and injuries that have some wondering if Chambers is indeed the guy.

In his eight games last season, Chambers completed just 43 percent of his throws. He eclipsed the 150-yard mark only twice. He connected on just seven touchdown passes. And, more importantly, for the second consecutive season he was lost to a leg injury.

Williams on the other hand, has one start under his belt. That came in last December's Arizona Bowl where he completed 11 of his 26 passes for 234 yards and three touchdowns, adding another on the ground, as the Cowboys rolled to a dominating 38-17 victory over Georgia State.

Williams appeared in just three contest during the 2019 season, meaning he never burned his redshirt and will have an additional year in Laramie.

Bohl has toyed with the notion of using both quarterbacks this season. He said as much before COVID-19 brought the world to a crashing halt.

Bohl wouldn't go as far as to say there is a full-on quarterback battle, but it sounds like, so far, he's pleased no matter which signal caller the program turns to in late October.

"There will be some open competition," he said. "There's no job that secured. Sean has played an awful lot, but Levi is doing some good things there."