By now, the Utes have seen the future and his name is Byrd. Moments after the Baylor Blowout ended last week, Kyle Whittingham and the rest of his coaching staff should’ve promised Jamarian “Byrd” Ficklin a raise, a starting job next season (quarterback, running back, slot?), a slice of the parking revenues, a car, a boat and anything else they can squeeze out of NIL.
The jury is in: Ficklin, a true freshman, is a true talent. He’s the Utes’ secret weapon this season. The Cougars give you the Bear, the Utes give you, um, the Byrd. Both are quarterbacks, both are true freshmen, both are more run than pass.
The Utes haven’t seen an open-field runner like Byrd since Britain Covey. He’s not even especially fast — 4.5 to 4.6 — but neither was Covey and nobody could catch him. Ficklin sticks one foot in the ground at full speed and he’s going the other way.
Ficklin has seen mostly spot action except for the starting call against Colorado in place of injured starter Devon Dampier. Like Dampier, Ficklin is more dangerous with his feet than his arm.
He began the season as the third-string QB, but that didn’t stop the Utes from giving opponents a small dose of Ficklin now and then. After four games, he had only eight carries. He still has only 47 rushing attempts this season — but he’s turned seven of them into touchdowns, four of them from way downtown.
He ran for a 38-yard touchdown in the second game of the season against Cal Poly. In the sixth game of the year, against Colorado, he ran 63 yards for a touchdown on the second play of the game, the longest run by a Utah quarterback since 2008. He finished the night with 151 yards on 20 carries.
In last week’s game against Baylor, Ficklin ran 67 yards for a touchdown to give the Utes a 21-7 lead. In the third quarter, with Baylor trailing by one score and the momentum having turned in their favor, Ficklin ran 74 yards for another touchdown that triggered a three-touchdown burst from the Utes.
He finished the game with 166 yards rushing and two touchdowns on just six carries in a 55-28 win.
“I kind of came into the season looking to be just that backup guy, be behind Dev, learn from Dev, be better from Dev,” Ficklin told 247 Sports. “And from what’s been happening, I’ve created a bigger role from that, taking advantage of every opportunity that I’m given.”
His season totals: 442 yards rushing, 9.4 yards per carry — almost a first down every time he touches it. His passing game is a work in progress, but isn’t that always the case with Utah quarterbacks? So far, so good, though — he has completed 21 of 34 passes for 301 yards and 3 TDs.
“He’s maturing and becoming more seasoned every single week and he has not had a game that he was inserted (in) where the stage was too big,” Utah coach Kyle Whittingham told 247sports. “He’s responded well every single time he’s been in the game and so like I said, the moment is not too big for Byrd and he’s going to be a really good one.”
The question is, what does Utah do with him now? Dampier, the starting quarterback and Ficklin’s close friend, has another year of eligibility. A two-head QB arrangement next year? Move Ficklin to slot receiver or running back (is there anywhere he couldn’t play?). It’s a good problem. Well, maybe.
There was a time when a team could have two starting-caliber quarterbacks on the roster and they could put one of them in cold storage for a season. Many years ago BYU coaches did just that. They had two future first-round NFL draft picks on their team — Marc Wilson and Jim McMahon had both made star turns — and they were able to redshirt McMahon. He stuck around and resumed his collegiate career.
That doesn’t happen anymore. Use ‘em or lose ‘em. Nowadays McMahon would’ve hit the transfer portal so fast all you’d see was the turnstiles spinning.
Dampier is a good quarterback himself. He’s a strong runner — he’s rushed for 543 yards and five TDs on 102 carries (5.3 per attempt) — and a so-so downfield passer — he ranks 11th in the Big 12 in passing yards (1,668), 13th in yards per attempt (6.8), and ninth in passer rating (141.3). But he has thrown for 17 touchdowns and just five interceptions.
Moving Byrd to another position would fail to fully utilize his game-changing abilities; it would take the ball out of his hands too often. Would the kid even go for it? According to 247 Sports, no other school offered Ficklin, a three-star quarterback from Oklahoma, a chance to play quarterback.
“A lot of big-time programs wanted me at safety,” Ficklin said. ”They didn’t want me at quarterback. Didn’t think I was up to par to play with other quarterbacks against college defenses. Didn’t think I was good enough as a player, as well as they didn’t think I was smart enough on the field or on the board.”
Ficklin has everyone convinced he can thrive at quarterback. Now the Utes just have to decide what to do with him, sooner rather than later.
