With first-year offensive coordinator Bobby Engram coming to the program from the Baltimore Ravens, Wisconsin’s quarterbacks spent a large chunk of spring practices emphasizing the execution of simple fundamentals.
“On the field, I'd say the biggest thing was just decision making and then timing and footwork," Mertz said. "And so that's one thing I took in the offseason, really valuing just the reps I got with the guys during winter conditioning. Throwing routes, making sure our timing’s right, and just try and translate it to spring ball, just to get as many reps as possible. So that's one of the biggest areas of just timing, anticipation, location, cleanup a little bit of footwork stuff.”
Throughout the spring, Mertz worked more under center than he has at any point in his prep or college career, the goal to improve footwork, timing, and accuracy to make everything “mesh together.”
“We're obviously gonna continue to use the (shot)gun, but it's been some intangible things as well, just in terms of his communication,” Engram said about working the quarterbacks under center. “With the guys in the huddle, with the guys at the line of scrimmage. As a quarterback, all of those things matter, so we're chasing every detail, and he's working hard at it.”
Not only is Mertz getting a different voice from Engram, he’s getting coaching from graduate assistant Keller Chryst. The nephew of Paul Chryst, who played at Stanford and Tennessee, Keller is assisting Engram with the quarterbacks after working last season with the Wisconsin defense.
“His approach is holistic,” Mertz told UWBadgers of Keller. “He understands being a quarterback is not just being a quarterback on the field. It's how you carry yourself off the field. How you eat, etc. How you do one thing is how you do everything. And he has kind of brought that into our room.
“Just the drills that he has us doing are fantastic. It's getting into our body, getting into our hips, and kind of getting into our mind, too. He's done a great job with having a consistent approach every day. It's nice because he has that, 'When I was playing, this is how I did it.' He's definitely relatable.”
The Reserves
One of the issues Wisconsin has faced the last two seasons is a sharp drop off in production among the backups at the quarterback position. Wolf had two interceptions, in just 16 attempts, and one touchdown last season. Wolf received a lot of reps throughout the spring, and while he showed growth, doesn’t appear to be a long-term solution.
Hill received substantial work, interchanging at times with Wolf as the second up behind Mertz during practices. Burkett saw limited snaps in the open practices. Both don’t appear to factor into Wisconsin’s plans this season.
The Position Will Be A Success If ...
Mertz finds a rhythm with the abundance of new receivers at his disposal.
Gone are senior receivers Danny Davis and Kendric Pryor, as well as super security blanket Jake Ferguson at tight end, so Mertz delivering throws on target will help flatten the growth curve. The junior quarterback delivered some success in the passing game during the spring, especially when it came to balancing his chances down the field with simple checkdown routes in the flats to move the chains. The good news for Mertz is that sophomore tailback Braelon Allen is multi-talented and a huge danger when he has the ball in his hands. If Mertz can be more of a game manager, opportunities for his natural talent will present themselves.
