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Time and again — most recently outside the visitors' locker room after nipping Oregon State in Corvallis late Thursday — Utah coach Kyle Whittingham has said he doesn't favor a two-quarterback system.
So what, then, are we supposed to call this?
Against UCLA, Travis Wilson started, stalled and stepped aside for Kendal Thompson.
Against Oregon State, the roles were reversed, with Wilson retaking the reins at halftime.
And when it was over, and the 5-1 Utes had captured their second consecutive Pac-12 road victory on the backs of their defense, special teams and running game, Thompson and Wilson sat stiffly beside each other while reporters tried again in vain to measure their feelings about the dynamic.
"You've just got to make sure you're prepared every week, and when your number is called, you've got to make sure that you're ready and step up for the opportunity to play," Wilson said. "I think we've done that. He did that in the UCLA game, and [Thursday night], it happened for me."
Asked who will start against No. 22 USC, with No. 17 ASU, No. 9 Oregon, No. 23 Stanford and No. 16 Arizona to follow, Whittingham deadpanned, "We've got to work that out, don't we?"
Here's what is currently known:
• Whittingham believes publicizing a starter is for suckers.
• Whittingham doesn't want to rotate quarterbacks.
• Neither quarterback has been particularly effective.
Thompson sometimes dazzles by retreating to gain space, spinning around defenders and firing on the run.
Wilson throws a harder, often more accurate ball and releases it more quickly. In twice the work, he's taken half as many sacks (five, to Thompson's 10) and made less critical errors (zero picks, to Thompson's two plus a lost fumble).
Combined, though, they are passing for 109 yards per game in three Pac-12 contests — last in the conference by 76 yards entering Saturday's games.
"I don't think it's any one position group, I think it's the offense as a whole," Thompson said of the passing game woes. "There were some drives where we shot ourselves in the foot."
And, in fairness, he's right.
Since the conference opener, Utah's receivers — thought before the season to be one of this team's strongest suits — have dropped multiple passes that would have earned Utah first downs and touchdowns.
Thursday, senior captain Dres Anderson bobbled a Thompson slant right into the hands of a nearby Beaver.
Careful not to say it excused them, Anderson and junior Kenneth Scott talked earlier in the week of the differing spins between the balls thrown by Wilson, a righty, and Thompson, a southpaw, but few will be impressed by that notion.
The prospect of having a working "throw game," as Whittingham calls it, is simply too tantalizing.
There will almost certainly come a time when Devontae Booker meets resistance, or Andy Phillips misses a kick or two, or Utah's defense is outmatched.
Maybe all three at once.
But this team Whittingham has assembled has the makings of a Pac-12 title contender as long it gets something, sometime — no matter who is spinning it which way — from the passing game.
"Going forward, we'll have a solution, but it won't be until we have some thorough film study and decide on which direction we want to head," Whittingham said Thursday night.
Downfield, Ute fans hope.
Twitter: @matthew_piper —
No. 22 USC atNo. 20 Utah
O Saturday, 8 p.m.
TV • Fox Sports 1 —
Wilson vs. Thompson
Travis Wilson • 6-foot-7, 233-pound accurate thrower who is fairly swift for his size and displayed uncanny dedication in returning to football after the discovery of a pre-existing intracranial artery condition late last season. 2014: 63 of 111 (56.8%) for 833 yards, seven touchdowns and no interceptions. Has also rushed 38 times for 78 yards (2.1 average) and one TD.
Kendal Thompson • 6-foot-2, 192-pound dual-threat quarterback who was described by UCLA coach Jim Mora as being a more agile runner than Wilson. Transferred in the offseason from Oklahoma, where he was once thought to be a contender for the starting job. 2014: 28 of 47 (59.6%) for 301 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions. Has also rushed 51 times for 164 yards (3.2 average) and one TD.