Darell Garretson and Marcus McMaryion each saw significant time under center for Oregon State last season, but the newcomer beat both of them out after just a week of fall camp.
Jake Luton, a junior college transfer from Ventura Community College and former signal-caller for Idaho, earned the starting nod from Beavers coach Gary Andersen, according to Angie Machado of 247Sports.
"Jake will start," Andersen said. "Jake will be the No. 1 quarterback. The other two guys will continue to battle and fight."
Luton, a 6-foot-7, 234-pounder with a big arm who can run when needed, redshirted at Idaho in 2014 before seeing limited action in 2015 behind Matt Linehan. He completed 49-of-78 passes for 383 yards and one touchdown for the Vandals, and he also rushed for 73 yards and five touchdowns in eight games. A three-star junior college prospect at Ventura, Luton set a school record with 3,551 passing yards and 40 touchdowns in 11 games a year ago.
He was the third-ranked pro-style junior college quarterback last year and will have two years of eligibility in Corvallis, Oregon.
Andersen expects Garretson and McMaryion to be ready in a pinch, if needed.
"We know we'll need multiple quarterbacks as the year goes on, potentially," Andersen said. "I think those kids will accept their role. They want to be first team. All three of them want to be the starter."
Does it seem like a quick decision from Andersen, considering there's only one week of fall camp in the books? Yes, but Oregon State opens its season a week early -- on Aug. 26 at Colorado State on CBS Sports Network. The early start meant that Andersen needed to get his eventual starter unquestioned first-team snaps sooner than other schools that open on Labor Day weekend.
