Christian Ponder named starting quarterback
The long, long wait is finally over.
After months of speculation, Florida State head coach Bobby Bowden finally ended the suspense following Wednesday's practice and named Christian Ponder as the starting quarterback.
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"Ponder will start the ballgame and we will go from there," Bowden said.
"His footwork is good and he is throwing good," Bowden continued. "I think that is a big thing. It is so tight, it's a tough decision. You couldn't imagine how tough it was."
The decision may come as a minor surprise to some since senior Drew Weatherford has 33 career starts to his credit. Meanwhile, Ponder, a redshirt sophomore, has never started a game under center at FSU. His only experience came in relief of an injured Weatherford in the Virginia Tech game where he played a little over a half of football.
With Ponder getting the nod, it will be the first time since the 2004 season that someone other than Weatherford or Xavier Lee will start for FSU at quarterback.
Even though Ponder will be the first one under center this Saturday, both Bowden and offensive coordinator Jimbo Fisher have previously stated that all three quarterbacks should see action in the first game.
Gene Williams is the founder and administrator of Warchant.com and writes stories and features covering all of FSU's sports with an emphasis on football and football recruiting. For seven years, Williams hosted a weekly sports radio show in Tallahassee. He currently appears as a weekly guest on 1010 XL Sports Radio in Jacksonville and 1270 The Team in Tallahassee during football season. Williams is also a former ACC correspondent for College Football News (weekly national newspaper), and contributes to The Osceola. Story about Gene Williams & Warchant.comClick Look for much more on Warchant.com tonight including a video interview with Christian Ponder.Here to view this Link..
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