SEATTLE – He is virtually the blue print for a quarterback. He’s got size, charisma, and if not cockiness then extreme confidence. He stands tall in the huddle and the pocket and fires the football downfield with his right arm.
Yes, Johnny DuRocher has it all. Well, except for experience or a starting job. But the University of Washington sophomore hopes to add those traits to his resume this season.
As it stands, DuRocher seems to be the last challenger to Isaiah Stanback for the Huskies starting quarterback job. Carl Bonnell’s thigh injury has set him back and senior Casey Paus, despite coaches proclamations, is not believed to be a legitimate candidate for the job.
“All I know is that they’re giving us all an equal chance,” the 6-foot-4, 215 pound DuRocher said. “I think that’s all we can ask for. All any athlete wants is a chance to show what they can do, and we’ve definitely gotten that.”
Some believed such competition led DuRocher to leave the University of Oregon at the beginning of last season. Not so, says DuRocher.
“That’s just people starting rumors,” DuRocher said. “I’ve never been afraid to compete. That’s what playing sports is about. I left because I wasn’t able to communicate well with the coach and things went downhill from there.”
It was the first bump for DuRocher in what had seemingly been a storybook career. In three years as a starter at Bethel High School, DuRocher had a 34-5 record and never lost a game in the South Puget Sound League. After a junior year in which DuRocher passed for 2,299 yards and 23 touchdowns, he cut recruiting interest in him short by verbally committing to Oregon.
“I just didn’t want to deal with the distractions,” DuRocher said. “Looking back, maybe I should have taken more time, but at the time I just wanted to get it out of the way.”
Without the recruiting distractions, DuRocher passed for 2,255 yards and 26 touchdowns as a senior, finishing his career with 6,781 yards and 67 touchdowns. He was named the Gatorade State Player of the Year and was ranked among the top nine quarterbacks in the nation by SuperPrep magazine.
DuRocher graduated early from Bethel and was on campus in time to participate in Oregon’s spring practice in 2003. After redshirting that season, DuRocher entered the 2004 season feeling like he would have a chance for playing time that year. He found himself in a competition with true freshman Dennis Dixon to back up Kellen Clemens. But he says a lack of communication with head coach Mike Bellotti made him re-think his situation.
“I felt like I had put myself in position to play,” DuRocher said. “And maybe I had. But after awhile, I just wasn’t having fun, and I realized there’s only so much time we have to play college football. I didn’t want to spend it in a situation where I wasn’t having fun.”
After Oregon opened the season against Oklahoma, DuRocher told Bellotti he wanted to leave, not yet knowing where he wanted to transfer to. Soon after, Washington coach Keith Gilbertson offered DuRocher a scholarship, and he enrolled at Pierce College. DuRocher earned his degree from Pierce, allowing him to transfer to another NCAA Division I school and play right away.
“I knew I didn’t want to have to sit out and wait for a couple years to play again,” DuRocher said. “I knew what I had to do to play right away and that’s what I did. It was important that I got to Washington in the spring and started learning the system.”
DuRocher enrolled at Washington in March, in time for spring practice. There, he slowly began to pick up the system of new offensive coordinator Tim Lappano. By the time fall camp started, DuRocher felt more comfortable, and it showed.
“He just has a commanding presence on the field that you need in a quarterback,” Lappano said. “He’s a leader out there, no question. He’s worked really hard to pick things up. And he’s obviously physically gifted. He has a good arm, good touch and he moves around enough.”
“It helped that everyone was learning a new system so I didn’t feel like I was so far behind,” DuRocher said. “But I’ve always been willing to work to get better. Understanding the offense is a huge part of this position. You can have a great arm or you can run fast, but if you don’t know what you’re doing, it doesn’t do much good.”
Stanback is seen to have an advantage over DuRocher because of his experience and his mobility, something that Lappano says he values. Lappano, though, says DuRocher’s mobility is good enough for the offense, and he raves about DuRocher’s work in the film room.
So is that enough for DuRocher to walk on the field as a starter when Washington opens the season Sept. 3 against Air Force? Coaches aren’t revealing that answer yet, but DuRocher said whether he starts or not, he’s happy about the position he’s put himself in.
“I’m a lot happier now,” DuRocher said. “I’ve been given a fair shot at winning a starting job. I like the coaches, I like my teammates. I hope that I get a chance to play, but if not, I’ll just keep working to get better.”
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