Tulsa Football Position Analysis: Quarterback

Is Kirk Francis the story of legends at TU, or will he even be starting in 2024? Or somewhere in between?

Regardless of what happens, the emergence of Francis at the end of last season has him in the driver's seat in the quarterback competition.

Even though it was only four games. And he didn't even use up his freshman eligibility, using only a redshirt season.

"I think Kirk finished great," said second-year coach Kevin Wilson. "Shows a lot of promise."

Going from a walk-on from Metro Christian to being the starter in a few months at quarterback is an amazing feat. Nobody would have predicted that at the start of the season.

Francis (6-foot-1, 188) impressed early in practice last season. But still, he had three other quarterbacks ahead of him who all started games in 2023 before Francis even hit the field.

"I told him midseason that we were going to put him on scholarship," Wilson said. "That was even before he had played one game here. He was doing a great job."

Braylon Braxton had played a couple of good games after becoming the starter at the end of 2022, and the consensus among many was this was a can't miss guy.

The problem was, Braxton couldn't miss the opposing defensive backs when he was healthy. Throwing 6 interceptions in only 50 attempts and completing only 22 is stuff of horror stories.

After picks on his first two possessions against a gimmie opponent in the season opener. Braxton hurt his ankle and missed almost half of the season. When he came back, he was still unproductive, and he lost his starting job. Never has there been a more predictable transfer.

Cardell Williams looked incredible at times. He led TU in passing with 1,149 yards in 9 games, with 10 TD's and 7 interceptions, completing 59.9 percent of his passes. He won 3 games at QB for the 4-8 Golden Hurricane while averaging 127.7 passing yards per game.

But Williams had trouble staying healthy. His late season injury opened the way for Francis.

"Cardell is lacking some maturity," Wilson said. "He needs to grow up. Needs to take care of the ball.

"Cardell has shown some flashes. He was a part of 3 victories for us, but he had some inconsistent play. He's got to stay healthy."