Bostick approves backup role for now

Pat Bostick ‘- the quarterback of the future? Before the season it didn’t seem like a question…. Pat Bostick ‘- the quarterback of the future? Before the season it didn’t seem like a question. Then the heir-apparent to the Pitt quarterback job trotted out to take four clean-up snaps and run out the clock in a blowout win at Navy on Saturday, and the question marks flew in like penalty flags. Bostick, a true sophomore, hadn’t played a snap in Pitt’s first five games, and many thought the Pitt coaching staff was using this season to give Bostick a redshirt and preserve an extra year of eligibility ‘mdash; the NCAA grants a college player five years to play four. This way, Bostick could sit out this season with junior Bill Stull as the starter, use the time to mature and internalize the intricacies of the Pitt offense, come back and backup Stull next season, then have two years to start after that. Four snaps squashed all of that. Under NCAA rules, an uninjured player who participates in one play during a season has used his eligibility for that year. So as a sophomore with a junior ahead of him as the undisputed No. 1, where, exactly, does that leave Pat Bostick? ‘ ‘I’m the backup quarterback on a team that’s trying to win a championship,’ said Bostick. ‘I don’t really like to ask a lot of questions or turn it into an ‘about me’ type of thing, but I’ve been taking the bulk of the second-team work, and I’ve been preparing every week like I prepared last year and like I always prepare.’ The original plan, though, wasn’t to have Bostick have to prepare at all last year ‘- the Pitt staff would have liked to have used Bostick’s true-freshman year to redshirt him. But when Stull, the starter in last year’s opener against Eastern Michigan, was lost for the season after suffering a torn thumb ligament in his throwing hand during that game, Pitt ultimately turned to Bostick, who threw for 1,500 yards, eight touchdowns and 13 interceptions in nine starts during the 2007 campaign. Though Bostick showed signs of progress as the season wore, it didn’t overshadow his lack of experience. That is why, when Stull returned healthy for spring practices and won back the starting job, along with the addition of junior college transfer quarterback Greg Cross, it seemed logical for Bostick to get back the year he lost when having to fill in last season. ‘ ‘I think it’s natural for people to think about the future, and I think there could be questions as a result of what happened,’ said Bostick. ‘But I think it’s also important to know that my mindset is to be ready to help this team every week. And if the circumstances are for me to go on the field, that’s what I’m here to do.’ To most, using Bostick’s eligibility this season in a meaningful situation ‘mdash; in case of injury or any other extenuating circumstance ‘mdash; would have been understandable. He could, after all, just take the redshirt next season. But to hand off three times and take a knee at the end of a blowout? ‘We obviously talked about all those scenarios before the game, and the way our season’s been, we haven’t had an opportunity for any other quarterback to really play,’ said Pitt coach Dave Wannstedt on Monday in his weekly press conference. ‘If Pat’s going to be the backup quarterback, and if Billy got hurt on the first snap, Pat’s got to have some playing time. He hasn’t played since last year. That was the thinking behind it. It wasn’t the redshirt. It wasn’t any of those things. It was ‘what gives us the best chance to win?” Stull, who spent two years on the Pitt sideline backing up Tyler Palko, agreed on the importance of any playing time, regardless of the circumstances. ‘ ‘I think everyone wants to play,’ said Stull. ‘Everyone wants to be a part of the team somehow. Just like when I was backing up for Tyler, I wanted to play no matter what, even if it was taking a couple snaps at the end of the game and taking a knee. Whatever I needed to do, I wanted to play.’ Bostick certainly agreed. ‘ ‘Practice is one thing, but being on the field, and whatever the circumstances are, especially an away game, it’s a different type of thing,’ said Bostick. ‘You’re kind of the field general. That aspect is gone in practice because you have the coaches in your ear. As a quarterback, there are 11 guys on the field and you’re the ring leader, and that’s the way it has to be portrayed. That’s why it’s important to get game reps. That hiatus of not being out there for a year, I could tell when getting on the field … it’s a different mindset.’ Regardless of whether or not he’s on the field, if he plays four years in four years or in five, if he is the quarterback of the future or the backup for now, Bostick’s focus won’t change. ‘Coming in, whether they tell you you’re going to redshirt or not, you still have to prepare for your role, and my role is the backup quarterback of the team,’ said Bostick. ‘And that is to help Bill and be positive in practice and help this team win football games. If you’re not thinking about that, then you don’t belong here.’