Montana State Bobcats

Rob Ash said on Wednesday that the team is not yet ready to name a starting quarterback for Saturday's game at Portland State, but that defensive end Dane Fletcher took a step in the direction of playing this weekend.

Fletcher was cleared medically to practice on Wednesday. Ash said the Bobcat staff will evaluate Fletcher physically during practice to determine his fitness for action on Saturday. He is likely to be a game-time decision.

The quarterback situation is less clear at midweek, with senior Mark Iddins and junior Cody Kempt "rotating reps evenly in practice," Ash said. He said the decision is likely to be made on Friday "based on a gut feeling by Jim (Svoboda, MSU's quarterbacks coach)."

Ash said there is some merit to the idea of utilizing two quarterbacks based on the strengths of both Kempt and Iddins, and on the team's respect for both players. "I like the idea of keeping them both real involved, keeping both their heads in the game. Right now we're fairly satisfied with the performance of both."

Fletcher's status, Ash said, will likely not be clarified until Saturday morning.