Fetner, Loper Will Expand Roles In Offense
Quarterbacks Trey Fetner and transfer Ross Metheny participating in position drills.
Head coach Joey Jones said that backup quarterback Trey Fetner’s role in the offense will likely increase as they go forward.
Fetner, the odd man out in the Jaguars quarterback race this season, has found a spot in offensive game plan after all. The redshirt freshman had three carries for 17 yards last weekend in Jonesboro from the wildcat formation.
Fetner also scored the only touchdown against Troy where he had five carries for 21 yards including the three yard score.
“Trey’s a good football player and if there’s a player on our sideline we think can win for us we’re going to try to get him our there the best we can,” head coach Joey Jones said. “He’s really found his niche there (as a Wildcat formation quarterback) and we’re going to expand that package. We talked about that this weekend. He’s going to be a good asset, especially in short yardage. And the thing about it, he can throw it too. It’s not like he’s a Wildcat quarterback who can’t throw, so that’s going to create some diversity in our third-down situations.”
Also you may have seen a new receiver on the field if you happened to watch the Arkansas State game. Gabe Loper, a former defensive back, has transitioned to play in the receiver corps.
During regular season practice one single play stood out to the coaching staff that was looking for a spark on offense. A defensive play he made on a hail mary pass that made them think.
He made the switch during the Jaguars off week which gave him some extra time to get adjusted to the new position. His debut game with an 11 yard reception against Arkansas State, his first reception as a Jaguar and likely not his last. “You never know when coaches are watching and we tell guys that all the time,” receivers coach Jerry Mack said. “Back in fall camp Gabe made an extraordinary catch on a Hail Mary. He jumped over everybody and caught it in the back of the end zone. That’s when he first kind of caught all the coaches’ eyes, especially on offense, that hey, this guy may have a skill set that we can use on offense.”
“As the season went along, we were always looking for that spark, always looking for that guy who could be a playmaker on the offensive side of the ball,” Mack continued. “We decided last week to work him into the receiver rotation a little bit more and it’s been nothing but good news ever since.”