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Combined, they have a total of five completed passes for 38 yards.
The life of a backup quarterback isn’t a glamorous one.
But it’s one Taylor Kelly and Mike Bercovici are making the most of.
Kelly, a redshirt freshman, and Bercovici, a true freshman who arrived on campus in the spring, were both three-star recruits out of high school and attracted attention from multiple Division I programs.
But they both landed at ASU, behind the stable arm and solid footing of junior quarterback Brock Osweiler.
Sun Devil coach Dennis Erickson named Bercovici the backup quarterback prior to the team’s first game, but it’s more of a 2A and 2B situation.
In ASU’s season-opening win against FCS school UC Davis, Bercovici replaced Osweiler late in the third quarter but only threw two passes. Kelly took over in the fourth quarter and threw four completions.
Fast-forward to this week and Kelly and Bercovici, who are roommates, haven’t played in a game since.
And with Osweiler lighting up the stat sheet in close games, the duo probably won’t see any field time the rest of the year.
But that won’t stop them from preparing like they are the starter.
“You have to be ready at any time,” Kelly said. “We can’t miss a beat if anything happens. You have to keep the offense going. So I have to know as much as (Osweiler) does.”
During games, the two can be seen on the sidelines with headsets on, often times signally plays into the huddle alongside former ASU quarterback Steven Threet.
“I’ve learned so much, it’s amazing how game plans work,” Bercovici said. “Week to week we watch a different team on film. It’s really amazing to see everything we do in practice relate to what we’re doing on the field.
“To see how our scouting reports works is inspiring when we have positive plays. I try to soak it all in on the sidelines.”
Not only does the pair hear everything said through the headsets, they run through the play like they’re behind the center.
“The coaches call it, then I put it in my head and go through my reads as it happens on the field,” Kelly said. “Seeing what Brock does with the ball on his reads helps me learn with mine too. It’s a really good feeling.”
The pair’s progress over the course of the season is evident during the week leading up to games.
And they’ll need to keep it up for when it’s their time to shine under the lights.
“As a quarterback, the best way to learn is through practice reps,” Osweiler said. “With each and every day they are getting more and more so they’re continually getting visually better each week.”
Reach the reporter at tyler.emerick@asu.edu
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