HATTIESBURG — Southern Miss football held its 15th and final spring practice on Thursday. Coach Will Hall has not yet named a starting quarterback.
But the quarterback battle took a turn Friday when Billy Wiles entered the transfer portal as a graduate student.
There were clues this week that Wiles, who started 10 games in 2023, could do so.
The Golden Eagles held their spring game on Saturday, and all four of the quarterbacks split reps evenly. On Tuesday, Southern Miss’ next practice, the hints began to drop.
The practice was toned down, with more drills and less scrimmaging. Afterward, Hall was asked about his analysis of the spring game since he was able to view the film. He specifically mentioned that he liked what he saw from Tate Rodemaker, Ethan Crawford and John White — three of Wiles’ competitors for the starting quarterback job. But Hall did not say anything about Wiles.
“I thought our quarterbacks did a lot of good things,” he said. “Particularly, Tate, Ethan and John I thought played really well. They did a lot of good things, which is good to see. We’re progressing right there.”
Southern Miss’ practice Thursday again was toned down. The Golden Eagles did a few 11-on-11 plays, but Crawford — for unknown reasons — was the only quarterback to take snaps. In drills where wide receivers ran routes against defensive backs, the other quarterbacks jumped in, but Wiles didn’t.
In an interview on the “SportsTalk Mississippi” radio show later that day, Hall alluded to the notion that a quarterback could enter the transfer portal.
“I don’t think we’re at the point where we’re ready to name a starter,” he said. “I think there’s been some separation, if you will, from a few at the top to a few below, and that will kind of shake out over the next few days probably as the portal window opens up. That will kind of give itself away.”
TRANSFER TRACKER:Southern Miss football spring transfer portal tracker: Who’s in, who’s out for Will Hall
Although a starter hasn’t been named, the possibilities of who could be under center Week 1 at Kentucky have been narrowed.
Crawford, returning for his sophomore season, is one of them. Rodemaker, a Florida State transfer, and White, a true freshman early enrollee, are the other two. Hall and the other coaches never tipped their hands about who could be the leader.
Rodemaker, at 6-foot-4, 196 pounds, is a lengthy quarterback. He spent four years with the Seminoles and became nationally known last season when he started and won the regular-season finale at Florida. However, Rodemaker suffered a concussion in that game and he missed the ACC championship. Had undefeated Florida State been included in the College Football Playoff, he could’ve been the starting quarterback in the national semifinal.
Crawford tore his ACL late in his senior season of high school and spent most of the offseason rehabbing. As Southern Miss began to lose more games in 2023, his playing time increased until he eventually started the final two games of the season. Crawford is a dynamic runner and has one of, if not the, strongest arms on the team, but he sometimes struggles badly with his accuracy.
White broke the Mississippi high school all-time passing record last fall at Madison-Ridgeland Academy with 15,259 career passing yards. For a freshman, he looked impressively polished, but still had instances where he made freshman-like mistakes.
Sam Sklar is the Southern Miss beat reporter for the Hattiesburg American. Email him at ssklar@hattiesb.gannett.com and follow him on X @sklarsam_.
