There has been a lot of activity on the transfer market in this college football offseason, but there was one move that could alter the balance of power in the Pac-12 this fall. Former Baylor quarterback Charlie Brewer is now a Utah Ute, and the race in that division just got much more interesting.
In a recent episode of ‘The Late Kick with Josh Pate,’ 247Sports’ Josh Pate explained why Brewer’s transfer might be the most underrated in the entire country. Brewer has a ton of experience at the Power Five level, he has rewritten the record books at Baylor. After an up-and-down 2020 season in the midst of a pandemic, Brewer gets the chance to start fresh at Utah.
“This is a kid who went from Baylor to Utah,” Pate said. “Maybe he’s off your radar too, but this is going to have an impact on the Pac-12 South. You mark my words. Charlie Brewer — I don’t know if your realize this — owns the all-time completions and touchdowns record at Baylor. … It feels like he’s been there forever. He’s probably close to being at that retirement age and collecting benefits from the state of Texas. He’s been there a long time.
“Then last year happens, and not only are they replacing an entire coaching staff, but there’s the pandemic so you don’t get any spring. Then the season was thrown for a loop because they got gutted, man. They had games thrown all over the place. They had postponements. Baylor got hit hard, and nothing clicked for them last year. Charlie Brewer says, ‘I’m going to go to Utah.’ Kyle Whittingham is out there. It’s a proven system. It’s a contending team.”
While Brewer might have a little competition at Utah, Pate does believe Brewer will win the starting job. If that does happen, Brewer could make the Utes a contender within the Pac-12 South in 2021.
“It is a workable quarterback situation,” Pate said. “They’ve got Cam Rising there, but I think Charlie Brewer probably walks in and is the starting quarterback. … Charlie Brewer at Utah could very well be the lynchpin and the deciding factor in the Pac-12 South race. This could actually be a guy that decides which teams shows up in the Pac-12 Championship Game. That’s how important of a role I think he’ll play at Utah.”
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CBS Sports recently ranked transfer quarterbacks by tiers, and Brewer was in the top tier. His experience and skill puts Utah into a good position within the Pac-12 Conference.
“Brewer will face competition from Cam Rising in the preseason, but for whatever it’s worth, he was literally perfect in the Utes’ spring game (15 of 15 for 151 yards and two touchdowns),” writes Ben Kercheval of CBS Sports. “He’s not the most physically gifted player at the position, but he can win games. With a good defense, which Utah should once again have, Brewer can be the type of quarterback to get Utah back to the Pac-12 Championship Game.”
