North Texas Coach Todd Dodge made a decision over the weekend to move his son Riley Dodge from quarterback to wide receiver. It was a move that makes sense for several reasons. The decision was forced because of injuries to the younger Dodge as a result of surgery coming out of high school and the broken arm suffered in the Arkansas State game last year.

Dodge originally committed to play for Texas as receiver but decided to play for North Texas when his father was hired to be the head coach. While being recruited out of 5-A Southlake Carroll he began to understand because of his height he would be moved to wide receiver in college. Going to North Texas, the redshirt sophomore was able to play quarterback because there was of lack of depth at the position and he had the talent.

Last season he showed he was capable of running the quarterback position effectively but the injuries from high school and college was taking their toll. It was clear during spring practices there was something wrong. He was pulled or would not start a practice because his arm hurt.

In order to find out what was going on, Coach Dodge took his son to get an MRI and the results changed the career path of the quarterback. There was damage to the right elbow ulnar nerve which may require surgery. As a result, both father and son had a weekend to discuss which direction they both should go.

In order to avoid another surgery on his arm, the younger Dodge, with the support of his father decided to move to wide receiver. Playing wide receiver is something the young Dodge did not think would happen in his college career but has accepted the situation and is already playing the position in Monday’s practice.  

Coach Dodge said it was a tough decision for both of them but it was the best thing for the football team.

When a starting quarterback is lost there is normally concern about the position but that is something Coach Dodge will not be as concern about this year. During spring practices it was clear that big sophomore quarterback Derek Thompson may have played his way past back-up senior quarterback Nathan Tune and pushing for the starter’s role. This event with Dodge may have changed the direction of all three players and speeded up the coaches’ decision about the starting and back-up quarterback roles.     

Here is the decision Coach Dodge has to make, it is clear Tune has the experience and the talent to handle the position and can start next season. However, would it be better for the team to go with the future and start Thompson? Coming in this season will be Derrick Teegarden from Odessa, so North Texas does have a lot of options behind center.

As for the move of Dodge to wide receiver, one of the weak areas last year was the wide receiver spot for North Texas. This move will definitely shore up the position and give it depth. Dodge will make the unit better because there is no doubt he will be one of the top receivers on the team. With his presence, other players will have to step up and get better or see their playing time go down.  

The first glimpse of who will run the offense at quarterback will be Tuesday, 4-6-10 at 4:30 when North Texas will have its second scrimmage game of spring practice. The competition between Tune and Thompson will be fierce because they both know the quarterback position is open and one of them will get the call.  

While it is not a good sign for anyone to get hurt and no one wants anyone to get hurt, this time Dodge’s injury may have made the whole offense better.