Following Cunha’s graduation, the competition is wide open to see who will be the Beavers’ signal caller come September.

As MSU spring practice began Monday, senior Andy Jones and sophomore Ben Bolinske are considered the front runners in the position battle.

“We’re treating the spring as a learning period,” Bolinske said. “We’re trying to learn as much as possible in a small amount of time. When fall camp rolls around, that’s when you really start competing for spots and all that. As far as the quarterback group goes, we’re treating this as much as a learning session as possible.”

Jones, a 6-foot, 190-pound native of Proper, Utah, played in six games last season, completing 25-of-46 passes for 274 yards and three interceptions. Jones also had 30 carries for 95 rushing yards.

Garrick Hodge/MDN Minot State quarterback Ben Bolinske, right, participates in throwing drills Monday along with fellow quarterback Andy Jones, left, inside the MSU Bubble in Minot.

“Andy got a ton of work last year, so obviously he’s ahead of Ben as of right now,” MSU coach Mike Aldrich said. “Andy has done some great leadership stuff for us, but I think the biggest thing is both of their abilities to run with the football. We haven’t really seen a whole lot of Ben. He was No. 3 last year and didn’t take a whole lot of reps. “

Bolinske saw limited action in his redshirt freshman season after transferring from the University of North Dakota, but at wide receiver. The 6-foot, 180-pound Minot native has previously said if he doesn’t win the starting job outright in the fall, he’ll transition to wideout full time. But for now, Bolinske has as good a shot at being “QB1” as any.

“I think it’s a big spring for all of us,” Bolinske said. “We have to take each rep and make it count. Coaches look at every single rep, how you lead the team and all these little things you might not think of. You just always have to stay on top of your game.”

Other quarterbacks trying to force their way into the competition include junior Kylar Sharp and redshirt freshman Sean Kuenzinger. MSU signed one quarterback in February, Scott Fallers, who will join the Beavers when fall camp starts.

“I think obviously the quarterback competition is going to have the most noritority,” Aldrich said. “Both Andy and Ben are guys that can run very well. They’re very athletic. Zac was more of a polished pocket passer and so we kind of had two flip sides of the coin last year. But now with Andy and Ben, we’ve got more of a running style quarterback, so we want to utilize that. Especially me being a defensive guy, I know what kind of fits that kind of player can give a defense.”

Garrick Hodge covers Minot State athletics, the Minot Minotauros and high school sports. Follow him on Twitter @Garrick_Hodge