Cowboys QB Cup Overflowing

Clint Chelf is looking for continued opportunities.

Back in the spring, after OSU’s quarterback rank was set – No. 1 Wes Lunt, No. 2 J.W. Walsh, No. 3 Clint Chelf – Cowboys offensive coordinator Todd Monken said he felt like he had three good quarterbacks.

At the time, it sounded like the nice thing to say.

Now, it appears to be the truth.

All three QBs have been called to action and all three have performed admirably.

Chelf, the biggest loser in the quarterback derby as the veteran, is the latest to show he can play at this level (what Iowa State and others wouldn’t give to have him), with a strong second-half performance at Kansas State.

I wrote about Chelf for Wednesday’s paper, you can read it here. But, as always, there was a bunch of great leftover stuff from Monken. And I’m here to share…

“After spring, I really thought we had three good quarterbacks,” Monken said. “We just had made a decision and a pecking order of what we thought. That doesn’t mean the margin of difference in the pecking order was that great.

“It’s not apples and oranges when you’re trying to compare. That’s what makes it difficult sometimes. Someone has to be third.”

That was Chelf.

Now, depending on Lunt’s availability following an apparent concussion suffered at K-State, Chelf could be No. 1.

“I’ve never doubted that Clint had the ability to play at this level,” Monken said.

Another factor was Chelf’s commitment to working on his skills – and his weaknesses – over the summer.

Rather than resign himself to the status of No. 3 quarterback, he got busy, even enlisting his family members, from former Cowboy receiverColton, to mom and dad. Chelf painted a scene of all of them, in triple-digit heat on the turf at Enid High’s stadium, working to help Clint improve.

“That’s a hell of a deal. Give mom an A-plus,” Monken said. ‘They’re good people. That’s a great family. His brother was great for us. Clint is great for us. That’s one of the hardest things we do, have good people not achieve the goals they have. Forget even whether it’s success or not, but just having a chance to play.