Sports

Wednesday, Jul. 23, 2008

College Football: Brennan’s playing days at Poly are over

Former QB, who started playoff games in 2005 and all of ‘06, is no longer with team or in school

Comments (0) |

The Cal Poly football team is just weeks away from beginning its preseason camp, but the Mustangs will enter with only one proven commodity at quarterback.

Matt Brennan, who played in six games at quarterback as a junior last season for the Mustangs, is no longer with the program or enrolled at Cal Poly, said Cal Poly head coach Rich Ellerson.

“He had issues away from the game,” Ellerson said. “But those are his issues, and we’re rooting for him. We’re not mad or angry at him.”

Brennan’s departure leaves only last year’s starting quarterback, senior Jonathan Dally, as the only seasoned quarterback on the roster. It also paves the way for some of the team’s younger talent to step in and fight for the backup job.

Before going into training camp, which starts Aug. 6, Ellerson said either 6-foot-1, 185-pound sophomore Tony Smith or 6-0, 210-pound junior college transfer Harlan Prather has the early edge for the backup job. However, Ellerson wouldn’t rule out other underclassmen becoming the backup to Dally.

“We’re going to be open to whoever,” Ellerson said. “We don’t expect all those guys (in this season’s recruiting class) to stay at quarterback but we want to get a look. We would like to take our time and develop them.”

This year, the Mustangs are bringing in eight freshmen who are listed as quarterback

prospects, including Logan Budd, who had a standout career as a quarterback and defensive back at Morro Bay High. The Mustangs currently have 11 players listed at quarterback, but Dally—the lone senior in that group — and Smith are the only returning quarterbacks from last year.

“It’s a shame to lose someone who has had that many trips out there in game situations,” Ellerson said about Brennan’s departure. “Matt had 1,000 practice reps and it’s no substitute for having those reps, but the good news is we will be able to investigate the younger guys and get them those turns.”

During his three-year career with the Mustangs, Brennan threw for 2,146 yards, 15 touchdowns and 15 interceptions. He also led the Mustangs to the program’s first Division I-AA playoff run during 2005 as a freshman.

Brennan stepped into the starting lineup in 2005 in the eighth game of the season after Anthony Garnett went down with an injury. He led the Mustangs to wins in the final three games of the season to make the playoffs but the team’s season ended with a 14-7 loss in the second round of the playoffs to Texas State.

Brennan held on to the starting job through the 2006 season but he was turned into a backup last year after Dally transferred from Allan Hancock College in Santa Maria. Dally won the starting job early in the season and led the Mustangs to a record-setting season on offense, throwing for 2,238 yards, 29 touchdowns and five interceptions.

Dally also ran for a team-high 763 yards with 12 touchdowns after playing all 11 games in Ellerson’s triple-option offense.

“The good news is we’re looking for who the other guy is going to be and not who the quarterback is going to be,” Ellerson said about having Dally as the starter. “You have to be prepared for that eventually. Certainly we loaded the deck (with new talent.)”