Jesse Scroggins throws a pass at USC spring practice in 2011. Photo by Kirby Lee/Image of Sport-USA TODAY Sports
The Arizona Wildcats quarterback competition in 2013 just got more interesting.
Former USC quarterback Jesse Scroggins, one of the highest-rated quarterbacks in the 2010 class, committed to Arizona on a recruiting visit last weekend, according to a report from WildcatAuthority.com on the Scout.com network.
Scroggins ran into injury and academic trouble at USC, falling behind other young quarterbacks, before transferring this summer to El Camino College in Torrance, Calif. Trojans coach Lane Kiffin said this summer that Scroggins’ academic eligibility was not going to be a factor had he stayed.
Scroggins reportedly will enroll at Arizona for the spring semester, with two years of eligibility — and no redshirt — remaining.
Scroggins (6-3, 210) was rated the fifth-best pro-style passer in the 2010 class by Rivals.com, which wrote: “He is very mobile for a pro-style quarterback and can buy the extra time in the pocket to extend plays as defenses break down. He also has serious zip and accuracy on his intermediate passes.”
Scroggins, playing competitively this fall for the first time in nearly three years, did not have impressive stats at El Camino, but he has the same raw skills — specifically a rocket arm — that made him so coveted out of Lakewood (Calif.) High.
“He has the strongest arm we’ve seen here, but we want him to tone it down,” John Featherstone, who has been the head coach at El Camino since 1985, told the Torrance Daily Breeze before the season.
“He wants to throw everything through the wall. We tell him just to flick it to his receivers, to go through his progressions, and he’s getting better at it.”
Scroggins, who battled a shoulder injury and missed two games, was 79 of 172 for 1,148 yards, with eight touchdowns and five interceptions at El Camino. He redshirted at USC in 2010 and played one snap in 2011.
So, how does the Arizona quarterback situation shape up after Matt Scott is done following the New Mexico Bowl?
For the spring, UA is slated to have:
–Senior B.J. Denker, this season’s backup to Scott.
–Scroggins, who will be a junior.
–Sophomore Nick Isham, a walk-on who transferred to Arizona this summer after starting seven games as a true freshman at Louisiana Tech.
–Redshirt freshmen Javelle Allen and Josh Kern.
–Walk-on redshirt freshman Jack Nykaza.
Arizona has commitments from two high school quarterbacks — Anu Solomon, a four-time state champion from Las Vegas Bishop Gorman High, and Tommy Woodson from Monroeville, Pa.
How it all plays out is anyone’s guess.
Denker, in an apparent response to Sunday’s news about Scroggins tweeted this:
I’ve never been the one to back down from competition..
— BJ Denker (@VanillaV1ck7) December 3, 2012