BYU football: Cougar QBs continue to impress

PROVO — Prior to BYU's spring practice session Thursday, quarterbacks Riley Nelson and James Lark decided to trade jerseys.

So Nelson donned No. 3 and Lark put on No. 13, as part of a low-key April Fool's stunt.

"James and I couldn't think of anything elaborate," said Nelson, who throws left-handed. "We just switched them for fun. I was warming up right-handed trying to fool the cameras."

Toward the end of practice, during a two-minute drill, Nelson led the offense on a drive that resulted in a 16-yard touchdown pass to freshman tight end Devin Mahina.

It marked the first time Nelson had been able to engineer a TD drive during a two-minute situation this spring — no foolin'.

"It felt really good," he said. "I hadn't been able to complete the objective yet in the two-minute drill, so to be able to do that was really good."

The junior QB praised wide receiver Matt Marshall for making a one-handed catch on the drive and offense coordinator Robert Anae's play-calling.

For the day, Nelson completed 4 of 7 passes for 50 yards while true freshman Jake Heaps completed 5 of 9 passes for 51 yards.

While Nelson is a proven runner and scrambler, he's working on managing the offense.

"I kind of did whatever felt right earlier on in my football career. Now's an opportunity to focus on being the technician in a system," Nelson said. "In other words, being able to just drop back and throw on time, and throw accurate balls, being inside the pocket. If I can do that, and then add the element of being able to escape and to keep positive plays going with my feet, I'll be able to help the program."

Coach Bronco Mendenhall likes the progress of all three quarterbacks, including sophomore James Lark. "All continue to impress," he said. "All have unique strengths, but are leading the team effectively."

Mendenhall said when Nelson is taking the snaps, "what we try to do is basically design the offense to highlight his running skills, then to be able to make the deliverable throws that come off the running game."

The coach compared the skills of Heaps and Lark to former BYU quarterback John Beck, adding that Nelson is "more similar to" last year's quarterback, Max Hall.

"The core offense will be the same either way," Mendenhall explained. "It will just tilt a little bit based on who's in there."