January and a QB carousel or competition or controversy

FERNANDINA BEACH, Fla., — The Nebraska game wasn't Jake Rudock's best. Apparently, it was bad enough to open the door to a ... stop me if you've heard this one before ... a quarterback duel or even a controversy.

Iowa offensive coordinator Greg Davis said Monday that Rudock and sophomore C.J. Beathard will share quarterback duties in Friday's Taxslayer Bowl, which pits Iowa (7-5) against Tennessee (6-6) at EverBank Field.

So yeah, here this is again. This time, it's not Beathard and his dad talking to the hometown Nashville newspaper. It's Iowa's offensive coordinator saying both QBs will play in the first half. At halftime, there could be a decision to stick with one.

The quarterback question began in April when Davis and head coach Kirk Ferentz said Beathard would see more than just mop-up time in games this fall. Rudock was the starter and Beathard was mostly on the sidelines. When Rudock suffered a hip injury at Pitt, Beathard stepped in and finished a victory there and led Iowa to a win the next week at Purdue. Then, Rudock reclaimed the job with a spectacular performance against Indiana, when Beathard suffered a hip injury.

Rudock took over and did shut the door on competition talk. And then Nebraska happened.

'I'd be remiss if we didn't say we were disappointed we let the Nebraska game get away,' Davis said. 'That's the reason we decided to open it back up.'

The theme with Rudock's performance against the Cornhuskers, a 37-34 overtime defeat in the season finale on Nov. 28, was lost points.

On Iowa's first series against Nebraska, on a third-and-goal from UNL's 7, Rudock threw an interception. On the next series, Iowa drove to UNL's 8 when Rudock fumbled after being sacked by linebacker Zaire Anderson.

Near the end of the third quarter, Rudock overthrew wide receiver Damond Powell for what would've been a 78-yard TD. Defensive tackle Vincent Valentine beat guard Austin Blythe and ran around center Tommy Gaul and ended up on Rudock's face, but the play was there to be made. Powell crumpled the coverage.

After Nebraska pulled within 24-21 with 13:24 left in the game, wide receiver Kevonte Martin-Manley broke wide open in the middle of the field on a post pattern for what could've been a long gain if not a 58-yard TD. The window closed before Rudock reacted and he threw incomplete on a flat route to fullback John Kenny.

The Kinnick Stadium crowd groaned. Any points in any of those four situations would likely have meant a victory in a game that finished 34-34 in regulation.

'You can certainly make a case for both guys, and that's what I told them,' Davis said. 'But we're not interested in making a case. We're interested in winning another ballgame. We feel like this gives us the best chance. Part of the reason is that competition is good. They both practiced well here and in Iowa City.'

On Dec. 22, Beathard and his father, Casey, spoke to the Tennessean and broached the subject of transferring and unhappiness with playing time. Davis said Monday the decision to play both QBs and to make it an open competition leading up to Friday's bowl game didn't stem from that. The open competition had already started.

Davis wouldn't get into specifics with the plan or who would start. He left the starter question for Ferentz, who's scheduled to speak with the media this morning. Davis did say that both QBs will play in the first and second quarter and a decision to stick with one could be made at halftime.

The key to who stays out on the field will be simple: Who puts points on the board, the missing element against Nebraska and what landed Iowa at 7-5.

Davis bristled at the 'strengths and weaknesses' game with the two QBs. It's something that he went through during his years at Texas with Major Applewhite and Chris Simms.

'Major Applewhite used to say when he and Chris Simms were playing, it's amazing, he said, 'If I make a good throw, it's a tremendous read,'' Davis said. ''And if Chris makes the same throw, it was a great throw.''

By the way, there's no mystery to this. Tennessee coach Butch Jones was asked an hour before Davis' news conference on Monday if he was preparing for both Iowa quarterbacks.

'They are an older veteran football team, so they're able to redshirt their players and their players grow up in their systems,' Jones said. 'When you watch them on film you see a football team that is very, very fundamentally sound in all aspects of football.'

l Comments: (319) 398-8256; marc.morehouse@thegazette.com