By Joshua Huff

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The questions surrounding the UK quarterback position entering the 2014 season centered around who was capable and skilled enough to helm a young but talented offense.

Those questions were not answered until the waning moments of fall practice when Patrick Towles competed against a group of inexperienced underclassmen with the likes of true freshman Drew Barker and redshirt freshman Reese Phillips vying for the starting job.

Towles had spent the offseason working with quarterback coaches to tailor his footwork and improve his fundamentals. The hard work paid off as he led a Cats team to a somewhat surprising 5-1 record to start the season in route to a 5-7 ending record.

Behind Towles, UK started the season off in torrid fashion outscoring its opponents in its first six games 235-106. Towles was masterful in his first start against UT-Martin, going 20-29 for 377 yards and one touchdown. He fell back down to earth against Ohio but bounced back against Florida where he put up 369 yards and three touchdowns despite a heartbreaking loss in overtime.

He was thrust into the national spotlight against South Carolina when UK downed the Gamecocks behind his efficient 20-29 for 208 yards game.

Unfortunately for Towles, his fall from grace began after the Louisiana-Monroe game when the Cats bore the brunt of a tough SEC slate. UK never recovered from the 41-3 thumping from LSU, losing five straight games and played themselves out of contention for a bowl game.

During the final six games, Towles had just four touchdowns compared to 10 during the first six games of the season. Granted, some of the blame should be placed on an offensive line that gave up 34 sacks and a receiving core that struggled to find separation against the top tier SEC defenses. However, Towles finished the season surrounded by more questions than answers.

UK struggled throughout the year trying to find a place for Towles. Is he a pocket quarterback who plays not to lose or is he a dual-threat quarterback? The Cats tried to figure that question out during the season but kept waffling on their decision. Some games he would run nearly as much as he passed the ball and some games he would air it out.

In that sense, Towles is a product of the coaching staff’s play calling, but in their defense Towles never cemented himself as any of those types. His struggles to consistently make plays defined an offense that never found an identity with offensive coordinator Neal Brown.

With the season over, UK enters an offseason much like last season, with the exception that the Cats now have a legitimate starter and potentially a new  pass-friendly offensive coordinator. Yet despite Towles’ experience, UK has high school sensation Barker gnashing his teeth coming off of a redshirt season in which he spent improving and waiting in the wings.

Towles will need to show improvement from his inconsistent first season as starter. If a grade was given to Towles based on the two halves of the season, he would get a B for the first six games and a D for the last six.

Overall, his inconsistency and inability to define himself earns him a C for the season.