With the Owls’ season-opener being over two months away, the UP will evaluate each position group on the roster. Today, we will look at the quarterback position.

The quarterback is arguably the most important position in football. The man behind center is the captain of the offense, responsible for making plays and scoring points. 

Graduate N’Kosi Perry is returning for his second consecutive season as quarterback, as he looks to improve upon last season. Perry finished last season throwing for 2,771 yards, 20 touchdowns and seven interceptions.

Notably, Perry did not compete in spring action last season for FAU, as he was a late transfer from Miami. With a full off-season of preparation under his belt, the quarterback should feel more comfortable with the coaching staff and teammates. 

When speaking to the Palm Beach Post, head coach Willie Taggart said, “[Perry’s] got someone in there to work with him and that’s great to see, and you’re seeing some of the results on the field from that, especially with some of our young receivers.”

Sitting behind Perry on the depth chart is redshirt freshman Willie Taggart Jr. He has not seen any official game action as a quarterback yet, so it remains unknown how he will perform. 

Rounding out the rotation is redshirt sophomore Michael Johnson Jr., who is looking to learn under Perry and quarterbacks coach Brent Dearmon. The 6-foot-3, 192-pound signal caller was a four-star recruit coming out of high school before signing with Penn State in 2019. 

Both Taggart Jr. and Johnson Jr. are poised to be the future of Owl football in the immediate years to come; Tyriq Starks and Lin Johnson round out the quarterback depth for FAU. However, Perry is the present and should be a strength for FAU heading into the 2022 season. 

Kevin Garcia is a staff writer for the University Press. For more information regarding this or other stories, email him @[email protected], or tweet him @kevingar658.