By BRENDAN BURKE
The BYU starting quarterback position is still up for grabs according to BYU football coaches and players.
Junior Kevin Feterik and sophomore Drew Miller are the central players in this year’s quarterback derby.
“There is a competition,” said quarterback coach Robbie Bosco. “This competition is pressing both to play better.”
Miller feels both he and Feterik are being given a fair chance.
“Right now we’re both just battling it out, and we’ll see what happens,” Miller said. “We have to prepare like we’re both the guy.”
Despite the competition felt both this year and last year for the quarterback position, Miller said everyone remains friends.
“It’s competitive, yet we’re all good buddies. On the field is one thing and off the field is another,” Miller said. “Even on the field we’re still good friends.
“You can’t go through a season with just one quarterback. You have to be happy whether you’re a starter or not,” Miller said.
Miller said with the absence of Paul Shoemaker, the other quarterbacks will need to pick up some slack.
“Everybody is going to have to step it up more with Paul leaving,” Miller said. “Hopefully everyone will stay healthy. We definitely have some good quarterbacks though.”
Miller was born in Tacoma, Wash., to David and Sonia Miller. During his years at Lakes High in Lakewood, Wash., Miller shined. He lettered four times in football and baseball and twice in basketball.
Miller was twice named all-state quarterback and was a two-time Washington player of the year. He was also a two-time honorable mention All-American by USA Today and was selected as one of 70 players to participate in the All-American Bowl high school all-star game.
Miller left his name in the Washington record books as the state’s career passing leader with 9,003 yards and 101 touchdowns.
“Drew is an excellent player with tremendous leadership skills,” Bosco said. “He’s going to be a great compliment to our passing game.”
Miller was recruited by Notre Dame, Stanford, Texas, Arizona State, Washington State, SMU, San Diego State, UCLA, Idaho State, Northwestern and Tennessee.
He chose to BYU for several reasons.
“I felt comfortable here,” Miller said. “The coaches were stable and I fit in really well with the offense here. BYU’s offense lets you throw the ball a lot.”
Although some fans say the “quarterback factory” is closed due to the rise of BYU’s running game, Miller disagrees.
“With the running game developing, it’s just going to open up the passing more,” Miller said. “In the past we would have to throw the ball 40 times to get the type of productivity we get in 25 to 30 throws now.”
Despite being non-LDS, the transition to an LDS school and environment was smooth for Miller.
“If my lifestyle were much different, with the lifestyles and the values, I think it would be much harder,” Miller said. “I haven’t had a hard time at all. The people are really nice and I love it here.”
Miller said the Cougar football team will be better this year than last.
“I think we are going to have such a good team. With Ronney Jenkins getting back, our defense returning so many guys and our offense returning a lot of guys, we should be more experienced and a better team,” Miller said.
Miller feels he has something to offer the team.
“I think my strengths are my leadership skills, competitiveness and toughness,” Miller said. “I really enjoy just going out there and battling on the field.”
So for the next few years, it looks like Cougar fans will be able to enjoy “Miller Time” without breaking the Honor Code.
