Grant Wilson has settled into the kind of quarterback job plenty of players would struggle to embrace, but he’s made it look natural at Indiana.
He is not the starter. He knows it.
He accepts it. And by his own account, he takes real pride in it.
“I know my role. I try to be the best teammate I can be.
Whether that’s in the quarterback room, on the sidelines, helping the guys out in scout, anything I can do to make this team better. That’s the role, and I embrace it every single day,” Wilson said after Indiana defeated Howard 55-0.
Josh Hoover is the Hoosiers’ clear No. 1, the quarterback who handles the high-leverage throws and the pressure-packed scrambles that define the position at the front of the line. Wilson’s value comes in a different form.
He helps in the room, helps in practice and helps when his number is called. Indiana coach Curt Cignetti made it clear how much that matters.
“He’s as good of a team player as we have on the team,” Cignetti said, “which was huge in getting him back. Besides having an experienced backup quarterback.”
Wilson’s path to Bloomington already includes 14 starts over two seasons at Old Dominion, but he hasn’t started for Indiana and probably won’t unless something unexpected happens to Hoover. Even so, he chose to stay, choosing the backup role over another shot at being someone else’s starter.
“It’s been a long journey,” Wilson said. “My whole career led me to this moment right here with Coach Cig(netti) and this team. I love it, and I love football so much.”
That love is what carried him into a seventh season of college football, and it’s also what makes the arrangement work. Wilson doesn’t sound like a player chasing attention. He sounds like someone who has found the right place, with or without the spotlight.
“I just love being here and being a part of the team,” Wilson said, “and whatever I can do to help the team win is my No. 1 opportunity and choice.”
There are still moments when he gets to play a more visible part. That happened in the opener against North Texas, when Indiana had already built a 45-16 lead late in the fourth quarter.
Wilson came in for the final offensive drive and wasted no time making it count. On the first snap, a read-option play, he saw the edge defender crash down on the mesh point, pulled the ball and raced through the opening for a 43-yard touchdown.
“He’s got strong legs, he can run,” running back Turbo Richard said about Wilson.
Wilson was back in action a week later against Howard, this time taking the entire third quarter before giving way to Tyler Cherry for the fourth. He led two touchdown drives, finished 2 for 2 passing for 54 yards and two scores, and helped Indiana turn every one of his drives into points.
Two pass attempts, two touchdowns. Three drives, three touchdowns.
As Indiana moves deeper into the season and the margin for blowout opportunities shrinks, Wilson will likely fade back into the background on game days. But his role won’t disappear. It will just be quieter.
If the Hoosiers ever need him in a bigger spot, teammates say they trust him.
“Grant (Wilson) is the type of guy who gets along with everybody in the locker room,” running back Lee Beebe Jr. said, “and if he was to step up, I have no doubt in my mind that he would deliver.”
Cignetti believes Wilson’s value goes well beyond the snaps he gets on Saturdays.
“He probably wants to coach when he’s done,” Cignetti said, “and it looked like that’s where he was heading until things evolved and the opportunity to come back was presented to him. Thankfully, he accepted.”
Wilson’s seventh and final year of eligibility may not bring many more moments under center. He’s fine with that. For him, the job is about helping Indiana win, whether he’s throwing touchdowns, running one in, or standing on the sideline making everybody else better.
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