Kare Lyles (left) and Jack Coan are the main competitors for Wisconsin's backup quarterback job

MADISON - Knowing full well the staff has to break in two green quarterbacks, Wisconsin offensive coordinator Joe Rudolph made sure to make it clear to redshirt freshman Kare Lyles and true freshman Jack Coan that they needed to focus on themselves and not the quarterback competition.

Now with a month and a day before the opener it’s game on.

Although the full pads haven’t come on and the sample size is small, both Coan and Lyles have been fairly consistent. There have been interceptions and some receiver drops, but Lyles is 14-for-23 and Coan is 16-for-22, unofficially, between modified team and 11-on-11 drills through the first three days of practice.

“Honestly I want to try to be the best I can be every single moment,” Lyles said. “I’m competing for the starting job. Who wouldn’t? I’m in this opportunity right now, and I want to take advantage of this opportunity. I know what I’m capable of.”

While there are three quarterbacks clamoring for time behind redshirt sophomore Alex Hornibrook, it’s become clear that the main focal points for the No.2 spot will be Lyles and Coan, who have taken all of the modified team reps in practice. Once the starters are dismissed, true freshman Danny Vanden Boom is given a couple reps within the offense.

Although Coan and Vanden Boom are in the same class, it’s evident Coan is well ahead of the learning curve largely by the decision to enroll early. Thrown into the deep end of the pool, the 6-3 Coan made tangible strides from the beginning of spring to the end.

Now with an entire summer of getting the chance to critique himself on film and dive further into the playbook, Coan has settled into a comfort zone with the plays and his receivers.

“I think it’s been helpful for him certainly,” head coach Paul Chryst said of Coan’s spring. “I think that kind of stood out a little bit (Saturday) when you’re going over in meetings. You almost feel bad for the freshmen, it’s the start of camp but it’s midway through the year. Jack had the ability to be in winter meetings and spring ball meetings. I think he’s done a good job of learning and he’s got a lot more to learn. But I think he’s given himself a chance to get value out of the reps, which is huge.”

Lyles is entering his fourth camp at Wisconsin after enrolling early but missed key development time after requiring hip surgery. Needing time to play catch up, Lyles took steps forward in the offseason (he changed his throwing motion prior to spring to make it more compact) and built off that over the summer.

As he enters fall, Lyles is down 20 pounds since April – tipping the scales at 210 – and boasts that his game is as good as it’s ever felt.

“Going back to the hip injury, that stunted my growth a little bit,” Lyles said. “This whole summer I felt like I’ve thrown the best I ever have. I’m just going to have to prove that during camp. I know I have a strong arm. I feel like my accuracy has increased a lot.

“I made sure I truly put myself in the best position during fall camp. I’ve done every single extra thing I’ve had to do, and I will continue to do that, and just get my mental game strong with the film.”

The coaches get minimal time with the players during the summer, but it was evident to Rudolph that both players benefited from the extra reps they received due to the staff only having three quarterbacks in camp.

“I think it helps you understand what it’s like to be in that huddle and just to communicate, come out of the huddle, have to execute, the little things,” Rudolph said. “It’s not just knowing it but it’s being able to cut it loose in the moment and have that type of confidence. I think that changes everything about your preparation. Both of them have attacked it.”

While the group is young, Coan said the learning lessons and competitiveness between the four young quarterbacks has pushed the group forward and put the competition into the background.

“I’m trying to be the best player I can be,” Coan said. “I’m just trusting my abilities and whatever happens, happens. I just want to get better every single day. Whether that’s throwing, my footwork and especially the playbook, just keep getting better.”

While Lyles acknowledges the elephant in the room of the lack of experience behind Hornibrook, he does not subscribe to the theory that the Badgers would be in trouble if the redshirt sophomore had to miss a significant amount of time.

Over 29 practices, Lyles knows what he needs to do to prove himself.

“I know that I will not struggle (if I play) because I know that I’m going to prepare myself every single day,” Lyles said. “Just knowing the player that I am and the capabilities I have as a player, I know that I’m going to be successful and put myself into a successful situation. If it does happen, I’ll be ready for my shot. Everybody who comes in as a college football player, their goal is to be a starter. I’m going to prepare myself as a starter. And if that time comes, I’m going to be prepared for it.”