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W LUCAS AT LARGE BY MIKE LUCAS // UWBADGERS.COM For UW's young quarterbacks, time is an ally hether snapping the football to the quarterbacks or pitching one of his favorite sayings to the players, Wisconsin coach Gary Andersen has already put his fingerprints on the program. Curt Phillips is one of the QBs who has taken snaps from Andersen, a former Utah center, before practices. When asked about it, Phillips said, "He's just another one of the guys." So much so that the UW players like to have fun with Andersen's "Wrap your arms around it" commandment. "That's the one we always give him a hard time about," Phillips said. Another message has appeared on the back of T-shirts during the preseason training camp. Time is the Enemy. "I always take it to mean 'What are you doing with your time?' and 'Are you spending it the right way?"' said quarterback Joel Stave. "If you have free time, it can be a bad thing if you let it." Time is the Enemy. "Make sure you make the most of each day and try to get better," said Phillips, lending his own interpretation. "You can never get that time back so you have to make sure you learn from it." UW offensive coordinator Andy Ludwig has his own take on "Time is the Enemy" ― at least for now ― as it relates to quarterback Tanner McEvoy, a junior college transfer from Arizona Western. Time really hasn't been on McE- 14 // VARSITY August 29, 2013 voy's side as far as digesting the Badgers system under Ludwig. "Coming in this summer, Tanner did a nice job throwing some routes with the guys and learning bits and piece of the offense," Ludwig said of McEvoy, who has three years of eligibility. "But systematically it can be a little overwhelming especially since the installation wasn't based on Tanner; it wasn't like we had to have Tanner come in and be the starter. "We said, 'Hey, we've got to get the offense in' so it was front end loaded. He has battled through that and has a grasp of the basics of the offense." McEvoy is raw. He has three years of experience in organized football as a quarterback. Up until his senior year of high school, he was utilized as a wide receiver and defensive back. "The thing that's intriguing with Tanner is his skill set," Ludwig said. "He has a live arm and his feet are off the chart. He brings a different dynamic; we have to be creative in the way we try to use it." The Badgers have already experimented in practice by using the 6-foot-6, 223-pound McEvoy as a wideout. Certainly, he would be an imposing target in the red zone because of his size. "The thing I want to make clear," Ludwig stressed, "is that he's a quarterback that might play a little receiver; he's not a receiver playing quarterback. That's how I see it, that's how he sees it. "But he's got unbelievable hands and natural ball skills. He's an interesting guy. You have to find ways to get him on the field. He can help us win." When Ludwig was the offensive coordinator at San Diego State, he recruited Bart Houston, whose De La Salle High School team was a three-time California state champ and 38-1 during his career. Prior to his UW arrival, Houston had surgery on his shoulder (torn labrum, cyst) and he wasn't able to begin practicing with the Badgers until the first week of November last season. "We offered Bart a scholarship and I'm glad he turned it down and came to Wisconsin," Ludwig said. "He missed a season of college football (rehabbing the injury) so the learning curve is still an issue. "But he's much further along as a quarterback than he was last spring. The thing that intrigues everyone, myself included, is the quickness of his delivery and strength of his arm. You can't coach it. "He's got a chance to be a great player as a true, pro-style dropback quarterback. He's a little bit limited athletically moving around back there, but he can throw the deep ball, the deep out." The 6-4, 217-pound Houston is a redshirt freshman from Dublin Calif. "He's still acclimating himself," Ludwig concluded. "But he's got confidence in himself. He just needs more reps." Time is the enemy. Or maybe his ally.