University of Wisconsin freshman Joel Stave looks like he could have been sent from central casting to play the role of a quarterback in a movie.
He’s 6-foot-5, with short blonde hair and a mega-watt smile.
Put him on the football field and the perception doesn’t change. He appears to have all the tools to play the position.
All of which leads to the question: Why did he only have one Division I scholarship offer — from Western Michigan — coming out of Whitnall High School in Greenfield?
“I guess different people look for different things,” said UW offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach Paul Chryst.
“Size? OK, that can be a reason. Well, he’s got that. Athletic ability? Definitely for that size, but even someone smaller, he’s pretty athletic. Arm strength? I think he’s got arm strength. Mechanically, pretty sound.
“That’s a good question.”
The Badgers had Stave (pronounced STAH-vay) in their summer camp and knew they wanted him, but they also were interested in Jacoby Brissett, the ninth-ranked quarterback nationally by Scout.com, from Dwyer High School in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla.
Being the backup option didn’t matter to Stave. He got the scholarship offer from Western Michigan in late December and a couple of days later, committed to walk on to the Badgers.
Two weeks later, he was enrolled and busy taking classes. So Stave was a bit preoccupied when Brissett ended a drawn-out process by signing with Florida a couple of days after signing day.
“I didn’t really follow it,” Stave said. “One thing my parents would tell me is, ‘Only worry about what you can control.’
“I had no control over whether (Brissett) wanted to come here or not. I just kind of worried about myself and what I was doing.”
Stave got the guarantee UW gives top walk-ons who often have scholarship offers elsewhere: Pay for the first two years and go on scholarship for the last three.
The Mid-American Conference is known for producing good quarterbacks, but Stave grew up wanting to play for the Badgers. He threw for 5,094 yards and 41 touchdowns, while adding 12 rushing TDs, in his prep career.
