With the year of the quarterback over in the Pacific-10 Conference, it is time for a few teams to find their signal-caller of the future.
California, USC and Washington State head into spring practice looking to replace some of the conference’s best. Kyle Boller of California and Carson Palmer of USC are expected to be selected in the first round or possibly No. 1 overall in the NFL Draft in April.
The Pac-10’s Co-Offensive Player of the Year, Jason Gesser, is also expected to be taken in the draft, although not as high.
“We have to find out who the quarterback is going to be,” first-year Washington State head coach Bill Doba said. “I think Matt Kegel is our leading guy. He has been here four years and he has worked his tail off, and he has been loyal to this program.”
Kegel heads into spring camp as the No. 1 signal-caller as the Cougars opened practices Tuesday. For the Golden Bears and Trojans, it doesn’t look to be as easy as they approach the midway point through practices.
USC head coach Pete Carroll is auditioning four players for the top spot. Midway through the team’s workouts, junior Matt Cassell leads the group in the race. But transfer Brandon Hance, from Purdue, is right on his heels.
“They’re real close,” Carroll told the Los Angeles Daily News about the four. “This is a huge week for them. I hope to (name a starter) but I’ve got to see what happens.”
At Cal, the situation is a bit more dire. While the Cougars and Trojans both have quarterbacks who have seen game action — Kegel and Hance — the Golden Bears entered spring practice in mid-March with a group of relative unknowns.
California head coach Jeff Tedford said Reggie Robertson and Richard Schwartz will get most of the snaps, although he does not expect to name a starter until fall practices start.
“No one really has the experience to really have ownership at that position at all,” he said. “It’s
wide open.”

The new guys
Doba and Karl Dorrell are the two newest coaches to join the Pac-10 fraternity. Doba replaces Mike Price, who left to become the head coach at Alabama, at Washington State. Dorrell takes over for Bob Toledo, who was fired after leading UCLA to an 8-5 overall record.
Both have experience in the conference. Doba spent the last 14 years by Price’s side and had been the team’s defensive coordinator since 1994.
Dorrell played for UCLA from 1982-85, and was a graduate assistant for the Bruins in 1988. Before his hiring, Dorrell had been the wide receivers coach with the NFL’s Denver Broncos. He also spent the 1999 season as offensive coordinator with the Washington Huskies.
Both Dorrell and Doba inherit teams that have the potential to finish in the top half of the Pac-10. That march begins in the spring. Washington State started its practices Tuesday, while the Bruins begin today.
“We brought in some new coaches with some new ideas,” Doba said. “They won’t be a whole
lot different.”

Remember him?
As Oregon gets ready to start spring practice Saturday, a look back at the team’s past unveils a player of the week.
No, not in NFL Europe. Tony Graziani, who played for the Ducks from 1994-96, was named the Arena Football League’s Offensive Player of the Week on Tuesday.
The No. 7-ranked passer in Oregon’s history, Graziani threw for 319 yards and six touchdowns in Los Angeles’ 64-63 win over Orlando on Sunday.