West Point – So who is it going to be?
Moments after Army finished its first preseason workout in scorching heat Tuesday at West Point, coach Jeff Monken said that any of three players, and maybe someone else, could end up starting at quarterback when the Black Knights meet Tarleton State on Aug. 29 in their 2025 opening game.
Coming off a stellar 12-2 record, including winning the American Conference championship in its inaugural season in the league, Army has to figure out who will replace the graduated Bryson Daily and his 41 combined touchdowns last season.
Only 5-foot, 10-inch senior Dewayne Coleman has game-day experience, leading the Black Knights to an impressive 20-3 victory over Air Force last November, when Daily was out with an injury. On the year, Coleman saw action in six games, and completing just 11 passes for 121 yards and one touchdown and running for 136 yards on 38 carries and one touchdown.
Pushing Coleman for the job are 5-10 junior Cale Hellums and 6-1 sophomore Ethan Washington.
“I don’t know if there is any more key position on our team than quarterback and that is a huge part of every team and program and certainly it is for us,” said Monken, who is entering his 12th year as the Black Knights head coach. “Everyone has a pretty watchful eye on that and see how that is going to play out. I think we got a number of good players there and we feel very comfortable if any one of those guys is our starting quarterback.
“I don’t know who the starter will be in the opening game. I am not going to anoint or name anyone the starter right now. That is for the competition to play out through the preseason camp. Certainly, the most experience guy is Dewayne Coleman and if we had to play this afternoon he would be the starting quarterback, but we do not play for five weeks. So we will see how it plays out and watch Ethan, Cale and Dewayne and the rest of the guys over there battle it out.”
For the most part, Coleman, Washington and Hellums split snaps during Army’s first preseason practice. What will it take to win the starting nod? Monken said it is going to take a combination of talent and leadership to win the nod.
“I think that is the guy that moves our team up and down the field and makes his teammates must productive. That to me is the most important piece for a quarterback. Certainly, we want someone who is talented and can run and throw and distribute the ball, but there are guys who naturally do a good job of leading their unit and lead them up and down the field. The guy who does the best is the guy who needs to be our quarterback.”
