David Archambeau/Daily Mining Gazette Michigan Tech’s Jake Brown looks to pass during the spring game at Sherman Field. Brown is set to make his starting debut at quarterback tonight at 7 p.m. against Truman State at Sherman Field.

HOUGHTON — When he signed his National Letter of Intent, Jake Brown knew it would be a while before he could earn the starting quarterback job at Michigan Tech. When Brown started his redshirt freshman season in 2013, Tyler Scarlett was in his junior year of a career that would set 16 school records. But Brown watched and learned from Scarlett for two years, then waited two more years behind Brandon Cowie. 

Finally, it’s Brown’s time. 

Brown will make his starting debut tonight against the Truman State Bulldogs at 7 p.m. at Sherman Field. Tech head coach Steve Olson officially announced Brown as the team’s starting quarterback on Wednesday. 

“His leadership and overall understanding of what we want to do on the offensive side of the ball and his ability to manage a game; those are all things that show up with Jake,” Olson said. “It fits in with his leadership style and the type of player he is.” 

The reality that he was about to be Tech’s starting quarterback for the season-opener began to sink in last week for Brown. He reminisced about his time as a freshman in high school, dreaming of playing at the collegiate level, all the way through to his time at Tech — including the film sessions, workouts and daily grind he went through to get to this point. 

“When you finally get your chance, it’s everything that you thought about since a freshman in high school,” Brown said. “Once you decide you want to play college football and sign that NLI, your next goal is to start. And to get that opportunity after four years, I’m extremely grateful and ready to go.”

Brown is one of the Huskies who was around during the Scarlett era, and the most accomplished quarterback in school history still has an impact on those he was around. After watching Scarlett’s success, it was only natural for Brown to pick up on his habits.

“We still tell stories about Tyler all the time,” Brown said. “He’s helped us even if he’s not here, with how we’re learning, how we’re practicing and going about a game and soaking up the film part of it. So when we get out on the field, we can just react since we’ve already seen the looks we’re getting.”

Scarlett won’t be there to assist Brown on the sideline, but another former Tech quarterback will be making a different sort of debut with Brown: offensive coordinator Dan Mettlach. Last year’s offensive coordinator, Erik Ieuter, is currently gameplanning for the Michigan Wolverines as a member of the Florida Gators’ offensive quality control staff. Mettlach was officially promoted to the offensive coordinator role on July 26 and will handle offensive play-calling duties. 

“I can’t say enough good things about Jake and Garrett Young,” Mettlach said of both quarterbacks. “Jake’s been very consistent in the last two weeks, understands what we’re trying to do with all our checks in our offense and does a good job of keeping us in good situations and managing the football game. He’s just another guy who needs to progress every single day as well.”

Tonight will be the public’s first long look at Brown. Previously in his Tech career, he’s thrown just 12 passes and completed four for 50 yards. Despite the limited game experience, every rep in the weight room and the practice field has led to this moment where all eyes will be on him. There should be no question if he’s ready, because he’s been waiting for this moment before he even stepped foot on Tech’s campus. 

TRUMAN STATE FEATURES YOUTH

The Bulldogs played eight true freshmen last season, and three newcomers led in three major offensive categories: Jordan Salima finished with 696 yards rushing, Drew Slager caught 39 passes for 625 yards receiving and Jaden Barr was named the Great Lakes Valley Conference Freshman of the Year after recording 27 touchdowns (10 rushing) and passing for 1,905 yards and rushing for 537 yards. 

Barr reminds Olson of another dual-threat playmaker in the GLIAC that Tech has faced before.

“(Barr) is a pretty good playmaker, whether it’s with his feet or his arm,” Olson said. “Offensively, they create some challenges for us. He’s a good player and we have to be aware of him, but it’s not a lot different from quarterbacks we face throughout the year. Antonio Pipkin at Tiffin, (Barr) has a lot of those same skills.”

PASS RUSH THREATS 

Truman State’s defense set a school record with 90 tackles for loss in its 8-2 season last year, thanks in large part to defensive ends Sam Reeves and Isaiah Hinton; the duo combined for 25.5 tackles for loss, including 18 of the team’s school record 35 sacks. 

“They got a couple guys who can really rush the edge,” Olson said. “For us, staying in manageable downs and distances so those guys can’t get up and rush is going to be a main key.”

RUN TEST

Getting more production out of the run game has been a point of emphasis for Tech this offseason after the Huskies averaged just 4 yards a carry each of the past two seasons. The Huskies’ revamped dedication to the run game will be tested against a Truman State team that is coming off a season where they allowed just 103 yards rushing a game — 19th best in the country last season.

“It’s a great test for us,” Olson said. “It’s a great football team coming in here, and we’re ready to get after it and play. 

“There will be other great football teams that come to Sherman Field this year, and so this will be a good measure for us from a standpoint of where we’re at in preparation for a lot of good football teams and exciting action that will happen.”