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Hokies Football: Why Josh Jackson Has a Serious Chance of Winning the Starting QB Job

Yesterday, big news broke regarding Virginia Tech's quarterback battle as Justin Fuente revealed that Josh Jackson was receiving first team reps and said it would be fair to say that the Hokies have a three-way quarterback battle. For months, Fuente had said it was a two-way battle between Jerod Evans and Brenden Motley, but Jackson has earned his way into having a chance to being the starting quarterback. While most may not see Jackson's starting chances as still not being very serious, that couldn't be farther from the truth. From what we've been hearing, Jackson has been impressing in camp this fall and may actually be the best pure passer on the roster. On top of that, Jackson has gotten to be in a collegiate weight room over the past spring and summer so physically, he should be better prepared to handle the toll of playing the position. https://twitter.com/techlunchpaild/status/765669119173791744 https://twitter.com/techlunchpaild/status/765669276040695808 Coming in the spring not only gave Jackson extra time in the spring but it also gave Jackson the chance to practice under Justin Fuente and Brad Cornelsen and learn the full playbook. There is no doubt that if Jackson wouldn't have arrived to the summer, he wouldn't have any chance at earning the starting job. While Jackson is the underdog still despite these factors, Justin Fuente has shown in the past that he isn't afraid to go with a younger, less-experienced QB over a more-experienced player. In 2013, Memphis returned popular starting QB Jacob Karam and while the Tigers were coming off a 4-8 season, Karam seemed very likely to be the starter. Instead, Fuente held a quarterback battle and went with redshirt freshman Paxton Lynch as the starting QB. While the Tigers did finish 4-8 that season, the Tigers improved in the two years after with 19 wins over the next two seasons. Fuente proved then to be unafraid of going with the younger, unproven quarterback and this could be another time where Fuente could go with an even younger quarterback over the veteran Motley and the highly-regarded JUCO QB Evans. Justin Fuente is committed to going with the best quarterback no matter if that quarterback is a redshirt senior or a true freshman. While Jerod Evans and Brenden Motley still seem more likely to earn the starting QB job, Josh Jackson has a serious chance to be the starting quarterback against Liberty while also proving that he is the long-term future at the QB spot in Blacksburg.
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