Breaking down the Boxers: Pacific football envied by others

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A consistent P.J. Minaya or a healthy T.C. Campbell? Their initialed first names are not the only things these two teammates have in common. They shared the role of starting quarterback since opening day of training camp when Boxer football was reinstated.

Now the question has to be raised; will they continue to share, or will one dominate the playing time and assume the role of solo leader of Boxer football.

How will Head Coach Keith Buckley ever decide? With two starting quarterbacks coming back this fall, the Boxers will have some tough decisions ahead of them.

But isn’t it an envious position to be in?

Every other team in the Northwest Conference is looking at Buckley’s situation and drooling.

A person has got to think a team like Puget Sound would give almost anything to have their hands on either quarterback, let alone both. It’s a further statement into how dangerous the Boxers’ offensive arsenal really is.

Campbell, who led the Boxers to their first win in 2011, had been thought of as the leading man among the ensemble cast of quarterbacks Buckley brought in.

Although he shared time with Minaya, Campbell was considered the starter and Boxer fans expected that would remain true for 2012.

Until a season ending injury sidelined him of course.

Taking over in the wake of Campbell’s injury, Minaya stepped up and delievered three defying wins.

Minaya threw for 21 touchdowns last season, 2,258 yards and maintained a 64 percent completion rating. He turned into a machine.

In his time as a starter in 2011, Campbell threw for 13 touchdowns and 1,858 yards, completing 59.4 percent of passes. But he was also sharing time with Minaya, which took away passing opportunities.

Either way a person cuts it, both quarterbacks perform well under pressure. But with the stats as they are, the choice based on productivity would have to be Minaya.

As 44 members of the team prepare to depart for South America to play in two games as extra practice prior to the fall, only Minaya will be among them.

These are two more games Buckley will have to assess Minaya and two less to look at Campbell. While the head coach, going into his fourth season, has had plenty of time to watch both quarterbacks develop and turn into the leaders they are today, two more outings can’t hurt Minaya’s chances of remaining under center.

Any variety of circumstances could unfold where either Minaya or Campbell could assume the starting role next season. They could also split time as they did throughout 2011.

Either way, the Boxers will be looking at a season in which they have a pair lethal arms waiting to heave touchdowns to the waiting arms of wide receiver Jordan Fukumoto and the rest of the Pacific receiving core.

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