LOGAN — For most people, finding out that T.J. Rubley is the answer to an obscure trivia question wouldn't bring about much of a reaction. But for Matt Wells, just hearing the name of the former Tulsa quarterback is enough to bring a smile to the face of Utah State's head football coach.
A native of Sallisaw, Oklahoma, Wells grew up less than a 100 miles from Tulsa, so he's familiar with the man who currently has the distinction of being the only quarterback at an FBS school to start five season-opening games.
"T.J. Rubley, Tulsa," Wells states. "Yeah, he was there in the late ’80s and early ’90s when I was just getting into high school.
"I've actually met him before, back when I was an assistant at Tulsa," Wells adds.

If things go according to plan for the Aggies, Rubley, who starred for the Golden Hurricane from 1987 to ’91 and went on to to play a few years in the NFL, CFL and the World League of American Football, will soon have to share his membership in the five-timers club.
Utah State quarterback Chuckie Keeton is slated to get the start Thursday night at Maverik Stadium against Southern Utah, which would leave the senior as the Aggies' opening-day starter every year since 2011.
It will mark the beginning of the final campaign for an Aggie that appeared poised to break every passing mark at USU until knee injuries ended his junior year (2013) halfway through the season, and then derailed his first senior season after just two and a half games.
Granted an extra year of eligibility by the NCAA and the Mountain West, Keeton definitely looks bigger, stronger and faster than he did a year ago.
"I don’t see him getting as tired, really, from his knee," Wells says. "I think we saw that a little bit last training camp because he was out of spring ball for the most part. This year it has been full speed through the offseason, every spring practice and through training camp.
"I think he’s as healthy as he’s been and we want to keep him healthy."
For Aggie fans, the hope, of course, is that Keeton can return to his 2012 form when he set single-season records for touchdown passes (27), passing yards (3,373), total offensive yards (3,992), completions (275) and completion percentage (.694).
Keeton was playing at a similarly high level in 2013 before blowing out his left ACL and MCL in USU's sixth game of the season, completing 136 of 196 passes for 1,388 yards with 18 touchdowns and only two interceptions. But during his brief return to the field last fall, Keeton was hardly vintage Chuckie, completing just 51 of 92 passes for 426 yards with two TDs and four interceptions against Tennessee, Idaho State and Wake Forest.
Although he moved well in practice last spring while playing without a knee brace, Keeton's completion rate was still down and his rushing numbers were unimpressive. But there's little doubt that the Houston native, who nearly guided the Aggies to a victory at Auburn in his first career start, understands the game much better.
"Over the last four years, I’ve made strides every season," Keeton says. "I can’t change the exact player I am, I just have to make small adjustments that can help me out. I’m the same person, just an upgraded model.
"I don’t have the knee brace anymore. I haven’t picked it up since the spring. I feel like I’m moving a lot better. Everyone always asks about confidence in my knee. If you have to adjust a knee brace, you’re looking at it every time and that throws something into it. I’m feeling good.”
While Keeton will bring a lot of leadership and a lot of experience to the huddle this season, it will also be his first under new offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach Josh Heupel. While Wells insists there won't be huge changes to the Aggies' offense in 2015, there certainly are some things that Heupel, the former Oklahoma Sooners quarterback/offensive coordinator, has been busy tweaking since he was hired last January.
But Keeton, who spent some time teaching the Aggie offense to Heupel when the new OC first arrived, says that his relationship with Heupel is "very good." In addition, his quarterbacks coach during his first two seasons at USU was Wells, a former Aggie quarterback himself, so he's definitely comfortable running Utah State's system.
"I don’t think you’ll see (Keeton) throw it further or harder or things that you all think are really cool for a quarterback that I don’t put a tremendous amount of stock in," Wells says. "I think you’re going to see a smarter quarterback. I know you have a smarter quarterback. I know that. I’ve been around him. I’ve listened to him in QB meetings.
"He’s in his fifth year in a system that is hopefully an improved model and a little better, but there’s a lot of nuts and bolts that haven’t changed for him. With that comes more freedom and input. I value his input, and Coach Heupel does, too.”
Unlike the past two years, if something happens to Keeton, the Aggies won't be able to fall back on Darell Garretson. Utah State's highly successful backup the past two years, Garretson left the program in the spring and is now enrolled at Oregon State. That will likely leave Kent Myers, who performed well last year down the stretch as a freshman, as Keeton's backup this year.
Should injuries force the Aggies into going four QBs deep again like they did last year, there's also sophomore Damion Hobbs, who sat out last season as a transfer from Oregon, redshirt freshman DJ Nelson and freshman Cade Smith.
If Keeton gets hurt, Myers, Hobbs, Nelson and Smith would be "The Replacements" — which happens to be the name of the 2000 movie for which T.J. Rubley served as the "quarterbacks coach" for actor Keanu Reeves. Reeves, of course, did not win an Oscar for portraying Shane Falco, but Keeton certainly hopes to pick up some hardware of his own during his second attempt at a senior season.
“I’m sure people think my main goal is to stay healthy, but that’s not even on my mind," Keeton insists. "I don’t have any specific stat lines in mind. As long as we can win that Mountain West Championship, I’m cool. We don’t have that trophy or ring yet.
"I held onto the trophy at Mountain West Media Days, and it molded to my hand for a second. Hopefully we can get that back here.”

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