Tennessee State footballpractice is under way with a battle for the starting quarterback position between returning starter Byron McNair and two transfers − Daylin Lee from Winston-Salem State and Marcelis Tate from South Florida.
Second-year coach Reggie Barlow said no one is ahead of the others as the Tigers prepare for their season opener on Aug. 29 against Jackson State in the John Merritt Classic
at Vanderbilt.All three quarterbacks worked with the first unit at practice on July 31. Barlow said he hasn't ruled out giving freshman Justin Patton from McCalla, Alabama, a shot at the job if none of the older players take the reins.
"Daylin's experience speaks for itself; he had a real good command (at Winston-Salem State)," Barlow said. "Tate,
for a young guy, he looks like an older guy, but he's only played one year. He's a good player. And, of course, we've got Byron, and then there's Justin (Patton), a freshman who's a good football player. He was here in the spring as an early enrollee."
It is asimilar situation to what Barlow faced at TSU last year when three quarterbacks were locked in a battle for the starting assignment among Jonathan Palmer, Caleb McCreary and McNair. Palmer earned the starting position at the start of the season before McNair unseated him in the third game. Palmer returned as the starter later in the season.
The hope is that one quarterback will emerge above the others in the preseason.
"It's a good group, and we like what we've seen so far," Barlow said. "But you always want one guy to step up."
McNair completed 153 of 244 passes for 1,588 yards with nine touchdowns and six interceptions in 2025. Lee was a three-year starter at Winston-Salem State who had 5,616 career passing yards and 55 touchdowns.
Reggie Barlow happy with TSU's offseason conditioning
Barlow said he was pleased with the condition his players showed up for in preseason drills.
Barlow hired Carlton Harris to take over the strength and conditioning coaching position in the offseason. Harris was on Barlow's staff when Barlow was coach of the D.C. Defenders in the UFL.
"Coach Harris and his staff did a really good job this summer with the guys when they could be here, making sure that they had the training stuff that they needed. And then, of course, when we were able to have summer access and getting the guys here, guys came in in pretty good shape," Barlow said. "So we are excited about that."
Reach Mike Organ at 615-259-8021 or on X @MikeOrganWriter.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Tennessee State football opens practice with 3 QBs competing for starting job
