Fien Settles Quarterback Debate At Idaho

So there’s no confusion: Ryan Fien is Idaho’s No. 1 quarterback.

The intriguing Robert Scott is the No. 2 quarterback and a starting receiver. He will probably quarterback an occasional series this fall, but mostly he’ll be hauling in Fien aerials.

Both were impressive during Idaho’s third spring football scrimmage on Saturday at Lake City High School.

Impressive, that is, when they weren’t fleeing from blitzing defenders.

Fien, a transfer from UCLA, completed 15 of 22 passes for 253 yards and one touchdown. He connected on 11 of his last 12 attempts as the offense dominated the latter portion of the 2-hour scrimmage.

Scott, working mostly with the No. 2 offense, was 13 of 28 for 189 yards and two scores.

“We made a lot of strides,” Fien said. “We’ve got some great receivers.”

Conducted on a chilly, windy afternoon, Idaho moved the ball well, primarily via the pass, but rarely got through a sack-less series.

That’s a good-news, bad-news deal, head coach Chris Tormey said. Idaho’s defensive front seven is a team strength, while the young offensive line is still finding its way.

“Those guys were blitzing probably 70 percent of the time,” Tormey said. “We’re throwing it and catching it a lot better than last year.”

“Our (offensive) line isn’t going to face a better rush than they’ll see here,” Fien said.

Fien wasn’t shy about standing in the pocket. On the No. 1 offense’s first series, he was sacked on the second play. But he followed with a dandy 27-yard sideline throw to David Griffin. In the same series, Fien took a shot from a rusher while connecting on a deep pass to Antonio Wilson. Alas, an official’s whistle blew the play dead to protect the quarterback.

Scott, too, was pressured unmercifully. The fleet-footed sophomore displayed his athleticism on the third play of the opening series. After rolling right and finding nothing he liked, he wheeled back to the left and snapped a 22-yard completion to Pierre Erick.

In the second half, Fien took the No. 2 offense on a scoring drive fueled by a long completion to tight end Jeff Pankratz.

Tormey was bothered by occasional sloppy play, but enjoyed the players’ “effort and enthusiasm.”

“The good thing is we have 32 practices left before we play Wyoming (on Aug. 31),” he said.

Handy cousin

Idaho wide receiver Antonio Wilson is a cousin of Keyshawn Johnson, whom the Jets made the first selection in the NFL draft on Saturday.

Wilson and Johnson both played at West Los Angeles Junior College. At 6-foot-3 and 196 pounds, Wilson is in the mold of the 6-3, 220-pound Johnson.

Each wears uniform No. 3, but it’s not why you think, Wilson warned.

“I originally wanted No. 7 but somebody already had it,” said Wilson, who last visited with Johnson over spring break. “I knew I’d get a lot (of flak) if I wore No. 3.”

Wilson, Scott (6-1) and Deon Price (6-3) give the Vandals taller receiving targets than in most recent seasons.

“We can make big plays,” Wilson said. “We’re harder to jam at the line of scrimmage.”

Notes

Fien taped the NFL draft because he wanted to see where former UCLA teammate Jonathan Ogden was selected. Ogden, an offensive lineman, went fourth overall to Baltimore. “He’s a really good friend,’ Fien said of the 6-8, 318-pound Ogden. “There isn’t any fat on him.” … Post Falls graduate Darrick Pope played sparingly, completing 2 of 5 attempts. … Tormey was pleased with Ryan Phillips, converting from defensive end to linebacker, who was in on numerous tackles. Tormey beamed over Phillips’ quick adaptation to linebacker, recounting a recent play on which Phillips provided good coverage on a 35-yard pass attempt. … Erick, a freshman, rushed six times for 38 yards and senior Joel Thomas went for 63 yards on 14 tries. … Idaho’s annual spring game is Friday at 7 p.m. in the Kibbie Dome.

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