UL quarterback Brooks Haack, shown here throwing a pass against UL Monroe on Saturday, may be thrust into a premature starter’s role if injured starter Terrance Broadway can answer the bell Saturday at South Alabama. / Leslie Westbrook, The Advertiser
When UL starting quarterback Terrance Broadway went down in the fourth quarter of Saturday night’s loss to rival UL Monroe with a broken right arm, everything backup Brooks Haack has been working for over the last 15 months or so was in his hands.
The redshirt freshman from Katy, Texas, was on the field in a meaningful game that was still very much on the line.
And while the Ragin’ Cajuns didn’t wind up winning, instead falling 31-28 to the Warhawks and seeing their eight-game victory streak come to a close, what Haack did in Broadway’s absence was offer hope he can get the job done when needed most.
He finished 10-of-14 for 126 yards with one touchdown, no interceptions and a long of 42.
“If there was a silver lining,” Cajuns coach Mark Hudspeth said, “I thought Brooks Haack came in – with having played very limited time this year – and I thought he looked very poised sitting in the pocket.
“Made some nice throws. Missed a few. But, you know what? He’ll only get better now.”
Broadway will undergo surgery today on his right, throwing arm, Hudspeth said Sunday.
But the junior from Baton Rouge is “expected” to return in time for UL’s appearance in the Dec. 21 New Orleans Bowl, Hudspeth said.
Broadway was named MVP of the New Orleans Bowl when UL beat East Carolina to win it last year, when he threw for 316 yards and a touchdown and ran for 108 yards and another TD.
This year – his first full season as a starter – he’s thrown 2,276 yards and 19 TDs.
UL’s 2013 bowl opponent has not yet been named, but Tulane (7-5) remains the likeliest candidate.
According to Hudspeth, Broadway broke “a smaller bone” in his forearm.
“It was a very small break,” Hudspeth said. “They even contemplated not doing surgery. What this is is to speed up recovery. They’re gonna put a small plate in to protect it so he can come back.”
Broadway will not, however, play in UL’s regular-season finale Saturday night at South Alabama.
That means Haack will start in Mobile with an outright Sun Belt Conference championship on the line for the 8-3 Cajuns.
A loss to the 5-6 Jaguars would leave UL sharing the title with two-time defending champ Arkansas State.
Haack, though, seems confident he can answer the call.
“I just have to get the people around me to rally around me and play just not to skip a beat – just keep going with this team,” he said after the ULM game.
“I feel like if we keep working and keep going hard,” Haack added, “we’ll be fine.”
Teammates seem to sense the same.
“He looked pretty poised to me,” linebacker Justin Anderson said.
“He’s more than ready,” senior starting receiver Darryl Surgent added. “He works hard at practice, and comes in the game and does what he has to do. There’s no doubt in my mind, as well as anybody else – the coaches, or the other players – that he’ll be ready if he’s needed.”
Prior to Saturday, Haack had completed 6-of-7 passes for 49 yards in mostly mop-up duty this season.
He directed UL two possessions against the Warhawks.
The first went 45 yards, but stalled when he was sacked on third-and-14 and threw a pass that went for negative yardage on fourth-and-17 at the ULM 36-yard line.
But the second started with two minutes and 37 seconds remaining, and ended – after being boosted by a 42-yard completion to James Butler – with a 25-yard TD toss to Jamal Robinson that helped to make it a three-point game with 53 seconds to go. The eight-play drive covered 80 yards in 1:44.
“Giving him some experience will always help him, that’s for sure,” Hudspeth said. “He just needs to gain experience, and he definitely got some (Saturday) in a tough situation, and really made the most of it.”
When Broadway was injured, Haack suggested his initial thought was to focus on the task in front of him.
He knew that’s what Cajun coaches, including Hudspeth and offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach Jay Johnson, would want.
“This is what they’ve been wanting me to come and do,” he said. “It’s one of those things that it’s heartbreaking to see Terrance (Broadway) go down like that, but … we can’t miss a beat.”
Cajun Notebook:
The reason usual starting running back Alonzo Harris didn’t start and didn’t play in the first quarter against ULM was because he was being disciplined for violation of unspecified team rules, Hudspeth said Sunday. Harris, who played beginning in the second quarter, remains in good standing “as long as he does the right things,” Hudspeth added. … Ticket prices for the 2013 New Orleans Bowl remain at $60 and $40 (the same as last year), bowl game executive director Billy Ferrante said Sunday. … Though it never cracked the Top 25, UL received at least six votes in the USA Today coaches’ poll each of the last three weeks. After losing to ULM on Saturday, however, it received none in this week’s poll.