As college football nears, Southern Miss is expected to announce a starting quarterback in the coming days.
Last week, Golden Eagles head coach Will Hall informed the media that he anticipates declaring a starting quarterback between Clemson transfer Billy Wiles and Houston transfer Holman Edwards as early as Tuesday.
During an interview on SportsTalk Mississippi, Andrew Abadie with Pine Belt Sports said the battle between Edwards, a junior from French Camp, Miss., and Wiles, a sophomore from Ashburn, Va., has been a dead heat as fall camp begins to wind down.
According to Abadie, neither signal-caller has had a bad practice so far and the competition between the two has brought out the best performances from both players.
“Neither one has had a bad day. There’s never been a moment to say, ‘Well this guy is trending downward with this,’ or ‘ This guy has had consistent bad days,” Abadie said. “These guys are even.”
While it was speculated that Edwards had separated himself from the pack in the spring, Wiles, who was dealing with a quadriceps lateral injury at the time, has emerged as a viable option to be the primary signal caller during fall practices.
“I think it’s going to come down to what Will Hall wants. I think they both run the offense really well. I think Billy is more consistent and I think Holman Edwards is more of a home run guy,” Abadie continued. “I don’t think there’s a wrong answer with either one. They’re upgrading at quarterback with either guy compared to the last two years.”
Meanwhile, sophomore quarterback Zach Wilcke, who appeared in eight games for the Golden Eagles last season and led the team in passing with 1,151 yards and eight touchdowns, has missed recent practices due to an unspecified family matter. Freshman Ethan Crawford has since taken over Wilcke’s spot as third on the depth chart.
Though a starter will be named prior to Southern Miss’ opening game, Abadie expects both Edwards and Wiles to get playing time in their week one matchup against Alcorn State on September 2.
Watch the full interview with Abadie below.
