(Photo: Scotty Bara/WCSN)
It had been speculated for weeks, but Todd Graham officially named Manny Wilkins the team’s starting quarterback for Arizona State’s opening game against Northern Arizona on Saturday. Graham made the announcement on the Doug and Wolf Show on Arizona Sports Friday morning.
Wilkins, a redshirt sophomore who served as the backup to Mike Bercovici last season, had been engaged in a quarterback battle with redshirt freshman Brady White for the entirety of fall camp. The Sun Devils had made it known for a while that they would take their time in announcing the starting quarterback.
Graham had said in recent days that the team had known internally for awhile who the starting quarterback would be, and that it should be easy to figure out. Considering Wilkins had been practicing with the first team for the vast majority of the practices, he seemed to be the logical choice. Not only was it the fact that he was performing well in fall camp that won him the job, but many perceive him to be the safer option, as he has been around the team longer than any other quarterback.
Even though he is the more experienced option of the two, Wilkins has yet to throw a pass at the Division-I level and won’t necessarily have a long leash. The Sun Devils may opt to use White as well against the Lumberjacks, especially if Wilkins struggles. Having packages tailored for both quarterbacks is something offensive coordinator Chip Lindsey and Graham have hinted at for the last few weeks.
