Coach Ryan Carty has periodically praised Delaware’s talent and depth at the quarterback position.
It may soon to be tested in a particularly competitive and combative environment.
Who exactly will be manning the position against Liberty, however, remains a mystery.
Starter Nick Minicucci, the preseason CUSA offensive player of the year, injured his knee in the second quarter of Delaware’s 42-3 loss at Virginia Sept. 26 and was replaced by Braden Streeter.
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“We don’t discuss injuries or depth charts,” Carty said during his weekly media availability Sept. 30. “It’s been our policy since I’ve been here, and so we’re preparing everybody to go win on Friday.”
When asked if Minicucci would be available, Carty said “Everybody on our team is getting prepared to go play on Friday.”
He also wouldn’t say if Minicucci practiced this week. The media is usually permitted to attend the early portion of one practice per week, when it’s apparent who would be playing. This week, however, no practice session was open to the media.
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Delaware (2-2) faces Liberty Oct. 2 at 7 p.m. at Delaware Stadium, which is sold out. It is Parents and Family Weekend, which always draws a crowd, as do the visiting Flames (3-1). The game is being televised nationally on the CBS Sports Network.
It’s the Conference USA opener for both schools. Liberty has lost to James Madison 20-13 and beaten FCS Gardner-Webb 24-23, Ball State 51-15 and Coastal Carolina 34-17. Delaware had beaten Coastal Carolina 22-14 the previous week.
Delaware suffered its most lopsided CUSA loss last year to Liberty 59-30 in Lynchburg. The Flames, however, finished behind Delaware in the league standings going 4-8 overall and 3-5 in the conference.
The Flames’ quarterback is Deshawn Purdie, who saw mop-up duty against Delaware last year for Wake Forest in the Deamon Deacons’ 52-14 rout.
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Streeter had also stepped in for three series when Minicucci was temporarily sidelined at Vanderbilt Sept. 12 with an arm injury.
At Virginia, Streeter completed just 2 of 16 passes for nine yards and was intercepted twice. He had more success at Vanderbilt, going 4-for-5 for 58 yards.
Streeter memorably threw for a touchdown on his first collegiate pass in 2024 as a freshman against Sacred Heart. For his career, he is 27-for-54 passing for 251 yards with two touchdowns and three interceptions in eight games. He is less of a running threat, with minus-11 career yards.
Behind him is junior Riley Trujillo, who transferred to Delaware after spending his freshman year at Central Florida in 2024. He has appeared in three UD games, including late mop-up duty in the blowout losses to Liberty last year and Virginia last week. He was 1-for-3 for 38 yards while throwing his first collegiate passes at Virginia.
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Delaware has two other scholarship quarterbacks who have not appeared in a game – sophomore E.J. Archield Jr. and freshman Tyler Bell – but have skills that could also benefit the Blue Hens in given situations.
Contact Kevin Tresolini at ktresolini@delawareonline.com and follow on Twitter @kevintresolini. Support local journalism by subscribing to delawareonline.com and our DE Game Day newsletter.
This article originally appeared on Delaware News Journal: Who will be Delaware’s QB in Conference USA opener vs. Liberty Oct. 2?
