Is Fresno State ready for a true freshman as starting quarterback?

Fresno State has had quarterbacks who have played in games as a true freshman and it has had quarterbacks who have started games as a redshirt freshman.

But the Bulldogs have not had a quarterback start a game as a true freshman since 1973, and on Saturday at Bulldog Stadium, against No. 21 Utah, they just might have their first since Rod Kraft from McLane High and Richard Wathen from Memorial were under center 42 years ago.

With the Utes dealing with an injury to their starting quarterback, Bulldogs coach Tim DeRuyter has kept his intentions to himself and has not publicly disclosed who will take that first snap for Fresno State. And he won’t until game time.

“Not if they’re not,” he said, referring to the Utes.

But with starter Zack Greenlee struggling and just this one game to go before the Bulldogs open Mountain West Conference play, DeRuyter and offensive coordinator Dave Schramm could be ready to put the season into the hands of true freshman Chason Virgil, who at this time last year was playing for the West Mesquite High Wranglers just outside of Dallas.

“He’ll play, at some point,” DeRuyter said through a smile.

Virgil has played, at some point, in the Bulldogs’ first two games, a victory over FCS Abilene Christian and a blowout loss last week at Mississippi, ranked No. 17 at the time and No. 15 after its 73-21 rout.

Will he start? Will he again come off the bench?

“It’s my job not to worry about that,” Virgil said. “It’s my job to go out there and compete, keep playing and practicing hard and it’s Zack’s job to do the same thing, it’s Ford’s (Childress) job, Kilton’s (Anderson) job. That’s just what we’re doing right now.”

No matter when Virgil enters the game, an extended stretch on the field against the Utes will be beneficial, just as it was last week at Ole Miss, as the Bulldogs push toward conference play. The plan all along, DeRuyter said, was to establish a quarterback before a Sept. 26 trip to San Jose State.

Said Schramm: “Utah is not going to look the same as they do on film right now, and when he’s in there, they know he’s a true freshman.

“Kyle Whittingham is a great football coach. I mean, they’re not going to just sit there and say, ‘OK, true freshman, we’re going to take it easy on you.’ At this level, nobody cares if you’re a freshman or a fifth-year senior. It doesn’t matter. You’re a quarterback. You’re a tackle. You’re a running back. You’re a football player. They’re going to play as hard as they can play and do what they have to do to win the game, and we have to try to do what we have to do to win. We have to be smart in what we’re asking him to do and just try to execute at a high level.”

Virgil, Greenlee and Childress, whoever is in the game, will have to make the correct reads, flip protections, deliver passes on time and accurately, and lead – all of that quarterback stuff. And they will have to do it against a defense that has in victories over Michigan and Utah State been able to take away a security blanket for young quarterbacks: the run game. The Utes lead the Pacific-12 Conference in rushing defense, allowing 96.5 yards per game, and are third in yards per play at 3.2.

Judging readiness is speculative, based on work in the film room and on the practice field and how that is taken into games. Virgil last week led two Fresno State scoring drives, including a two-minute push just before halftime. He also turned over the ball three times with two interceptions and a fumble.

He has attempted 15.5 passes per game, hitting 20 of 31 (64.5 percent) for 201 yards at 6.5 yards per pass play with three touchdowns and three interceptions. His rating through two games is 131.57.

Greenlee has attempted 18 passes per game, hitting 17 of 36 (47.2 percent) for 169 yards at 4.7 yards per pass play with three touchdowns and one interception. His rating is 108.60. Childress, the junior transfer, took his first snaps last week at Ole Miss and was 0 of 2 with an interception.

But Virgil has moved quickly since graduating early from high school to enroll at Fresno State in time to participate in spring practices.

“Really, from Day One he has been very poised and mature. His knowledge has gotten much better from spring, and it’s good because we put a lot on him,” DeRuyter said.

“He still has a ways to go, but I like how he’s working at it. He understands the big picture. When he makes mistakes, he can communicate what he saw and his thought process. Now, he just has to make that process go quicker and more efficiently.”

Virgil will be asked to put those pieces together against Utah – at some point. And try not to get too far ahead of himself, bite off too much on any one play.

“You definitely sometimes get greedy, but you just have to come back down to reality and just think about the situation in the game, whether you’re up or whether you’re losing, and you just take it a play at a time,” Virgil said. “Worry about the play that’s going on, don’t worry about the last play, don’t worry about the next play. Just focus on the play that’s going on.

“That’s the thing I take into every game: just do your job. At the end of the day, that’s what you can control. Don’t try to do more than what you’re asked. Just do your job whether it’s handing the ball off or going through your reads and completing the pass to your receivers and letting those guys be the heroes. That’s the thing that goes through my head: Do your job and take care of the football. Don’t turn the ball over. I have three turnovers in two games, and you can’t have those.”

This story was originally published September 18, 2015 at 6:03 PM with the headline "Is Fresno State ready for a true freshman as starting quarterback?."