Let the 'controversy' begin: Chad Voytik's big spring game could ramp up quarterback battle with Tom Savage at Pitt

And with that, Pitt could have a quarterback battle on its hands.

If you missed the Panthers' Blue-Gold game on Friday, expected backup quarterback Chad Voytik had a huge game. As I wrote earlier, I thought Voytik could have a big night due to some of the second string secondary players MIA, but it went far deeper than that. Voytik not only put up big numbers against the second string defense, but also against the first.

Starter Tom Savage played early, but sat out the rest of the game after just a few series. He finished with a modest 6-11 for 80 yards (no touchdowns or interceptions), but Voytik stole the show. The redshirt freshman was an unreal 27-33 for 358 yards and three touchdowns against no interceptions.

The most puzzling thing, of course, was Savage's short night - but we've already been over that. The more pressing question is should there be a quarterback competition?

Absolutely.

Here's the thing, though. There always should have been a competition - far before this game. I'm not saying there hasn't been, but Voytik should be given a clear shot to win the job. But like I said, that should have been the case before the spring game. One dominant game against a defense that was clearly passive and taking the night off shouldn't be heralded as the 'best ever' performance that it has been.

To now, all of a sudden, declare that Voytik should win the job is foolish. I'm all for giving him a chance to be the starter, but you can't reasonably pick a starting quarterback based on one strong scrimmage.

But what the game did show is that Voytik can play. Pretty well, actually. And if Savage truly struggled this spring as much as it seemed, then why wouldn't you give Voytik a good, long, look?

As I've said before, my preference would actually be to start Voytik. He's the future of the program - not Savage. I'd much rather go into 2014 (when I believe the team will be very good) with a quarterback that's had a year of playing experience than a guy that will be playing his first games.

It will be interesting to see how this plays out, but Voytik has made one thing certain - plenty of fans will be clamoring for him sooner rather than later.

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