WASHINGTON – As the Georgetown football team prepares for the 2024 season opener against Davidson on August 31, GUHoyas.com will take an in-depth look at each position starting with the team's quarterbacks. 

"We have a very talented quarterback room with just four guys this year," said Quarterbacks Coach Jack McDaniels. "It is a young group but I am very optimistic about the talent in the room. They all have powerful arms and smart minds to help us in the run game and extend plays. To play quarterback for us you have to be a high-percentage decision-maker and be extremely accurate and I think we have four guys that fit that mold."

The Hoyas welcome back juniors Danny Lauter and Dez Thomas as the upperclassmen leaders for the quarterbacks along with returning sophomore Jacob Holtschlag. The Blue & Gray gained a slinger this year with the addition of freshman Jack Johnson. 

Last season, Lauter saw action in one game for the Hoyas where he set a new program record for single-game passing yards with 428 and tied the program record for single-game pass completions with 35. Against then No. 19/21 Lafayette, the Connecticut native threw three touchdown passes, including one for 81 yards.

"After Lauter's first game last season, we were optimistic about his future as long as he continued to develop. He has taken more reps this year so his knowledge and expertise of the offense has risen quite a lot. He has always had a big arm and a lot of athleticism but now he is settling in to do the more mature things of playing the position in our offense. His mental approach has caught up to his physical tools adding to his overall comfort level in this position."

As a sophomore last season, Thomas joined the Hoyas as a transfer from Trinity. The Texas native is now expected to contribute to the GU offense this year.

"Dez is a wild card on the field because of how athletic he is. He is a threat in the run and the pass game, but he adds a second dimension of running extremely fast that can contribute to a scramble situation."

As a freshman, Holtschlag developed throughout spring ball and the offseason to put himself in a position to compete for playing time.    

"Jacob was a developmental guy for us last year. I was impressed with how he embraced that role last year. He worked extremely hard to learn from Tyler Knoop and the other guys in the room and had a strong spring season. He is one of the most mature underclassmen quarterbacks I've ever met on and off the field. When he goes out there on the field, we know exactly what we are going to get from him."

As the only incoming quarterback, Johnson brings a plethora of athletic ability and competitiveness behind the offensive line. The Utah native set the Brighton High School record in total passing yards (7,909), touchdowns (84) and total yards in a game. He also led his high school team to two Region Six Championships. 

"Jack was a very talented recruit last year. We were drawn to him after his junior season for the things he could do off-platform. He has impressed us throughout camp with how smart he is, how much he can handle as a freshman and how well he can play in and out of structure. We are optimistic about his upcoming season and how he will develop down the road."

"We have a very tight-knit group. We preach unity all the time and they're doing a really good job of that. They all know that quarterback is a unique position and there is only one of them out there at a time but they do an amazing job of rallying around that one person and supporting them all the way through."