Michael Collins, Jett Hilding battle for St. Rita starting quarterback position

St. Rita is conducting something this summer it hasn’t done in nearly two and a half seasons: a quarterback competition.

The Mustangs will replace Tommy Ulatowski, who started games during the last three seasons and will play collegiately at Kent State this upcoming season.

While coach Todd Kuska is sad to lose one of the better quarterbacks he’s coached during his time at St. Rita, Kuska is excited for the competition between junior Jett Hilding and senior Michael Collins.

“Both of our returning quarterbacks have great experience with us, they understand a lot of it, but they don’t have the on-field experience,” Kuska said. “You heard us talk about it, you saw Tommy do it. When you’re out there doing it, it’s a little bit different.”

The Mustangs will miss plenty of production on and off the field from Ulatowski. During his senior season, Ulatowski threw for 1,746 yards and 13 touchdowns while also rushing for 345 yards and 13 TDs.

He led St. Rita to back-to-back state-title games and never lost a conference game as a starter since he started playing his sophomore season.

Ulatowski also provided leadership on the field, sometimes reminding coaches about specific plays or routes that they might’ve forgotten.

Collins played some varsity snaps last season, but both quarterbacks will need to gain experience over the summer with a wide receivers group that has many new faces.

“I think right now we’re just working to find our chemistry,” Hilding said. “We want to find what works for us as a team.”

Kuska said both quarterbacks know the playbook well and know what to do in different situations in theory, but each will need opportunities to show they know what to do on the actual field. In the first few days of practice, Kuska has seen some growth but knows there’s still room to grow before the players report for training camp in August.

Hilding wants to grow a tighter connection with the older players on the team so he can get his timing down. He also wants to improve his footwork during the rest of summer camp and on his own because he knows how important his base will be to play at the varsity level.

Collins is working on his short game and making sure he doesn’t spend too much time on his toes since he knows how important the run-pass option system is to what the Mustangs do on offense. He also wants to work on his arm slot, making sure it’s at a high position.

“As time goes and progresses, we’re going to get better,” Collins said.

The two have enjoyed the competition and have used it to make each other better. Both quarterbacks will tell the other what they saw on a play and how they could get better while also making sure to keep the competition something that will benefit the team once the season starts at the end of August.

“It’s been a lot of fun,” Hilding said. “At the end of the day, we’re both friends, we’re both pushing each other to be the best. At the end of the day, the better quarterback is going to start.”