At a press conference yesterday, Michigan football coach Rich Rodriguez said the Wolverines will probably play two quarterbacks at Minnesota on Saturday, and neither of them is redshirt freshman quarterback Steven Threet.
- (Clif Reeder/Daily)
Redshirt sophomore Nick Sheridan — a former walk-on who didn’t even have Division-II scholarship offers out of high school .
And freshman Justin Feagin — a slot receiver who played his first college snaps on special teams in the Wolverines’ loss at Purdue last Saturday.
Threet hasn’t practiced this week after suffering a concussion in the fourth quarter of Saturday’s game. But Michigan coach Rich Rodriguez wouldn’t go as far as to describe Threet as doubtful.
“He would be definitely questionable,” Rodriguez said.
Rodriguez said he couldn’t recall having a quarterback who didn’t practice Wednesday but started Saturday. If Threet can’t go, Rodriguez said Sheridan will start and that he expects Feagin will play, too.
Sheridan started the Wolverines’ opener against Utah. He went 11-of-19 for 98 yards, throwing a touchdown and an interception in just a little longer than a half. In backup duty since then, he has gone 18-of-35 for 164 yards with no touchdowns and four interceptions.
Sheridan averages 4.9 yards per pass attempt and has a 1-to-5 touchdown-to-interception ratio. Threet averages 5.6 yards per throw and has a 9-to-6 ratio.
Rodriguez said Threet might undergo more tests for the concussion after Wednesday’s practice.
Michigan was one of the few teams that recruited Feagin to play quarterback, but the Deerfield, Fla. native has also worked at slot receiver in practice because he has had trouble grasping schemes at quarterback.
“Justin is not even close to being ready at quarterback,” Rodriguez said Oct. 27. “In fact, his move to slot receiver is probably permanent. … He’s probably closer to being able to play at slot receiver than he ever was at quarterback. But for him to be ready at quarterback, he’s not close.”
Rodriguez was reminded about that comment Wednesday.
“Did I say that?” Rodriguez asked with a grin. “He’s closer than he was before. He’s a great young man. He is extremely competitive.”
Rodriguez said the offense would be limited for Feagin, who won’t see as much action on special teams this week.