By Jim Fenton, The Enterprise (Brockton)
BRIDGEWATER, Mass. -- He was the only quarterback to start for Bridgewater State University during the past four seasons.
Mike McCarthy won the job in training camp in 2010 as a freshman and started all 41 games during a record-breaking career.
Now, for the first time since the end of the 2009 season, someone other than McCarthy will be in the starting lineup when the Bears open their schedule on Sept. 5 against Salve Regina University at Swenson Field.
McCarthy is gone after establishing BSU career records for total offense, passing yards and completions while finishing second in rushing touchdowns and third in rushing yards and passing TDs.
The Bears have nine starting positions to fill and finding a quarterback to replace McCarthy ranks at the top of the list.
"That's not going to happen,'' said coach Chuck Denune. "We'll teach somebody else to play the position, but they're not going to replace McCarthy in a year.''
McCarthy threw for 2,000 yards and 18 TDs while rushing for 17 scores a year ago, leaving a gaping hole in the BSU offense.
The Bears opened training camp on Monday afternoon, and Denune and his staff have six quarterbacks listed on the roster to evaluate over the next couple of weeks.
"I think it's pretty safe to say it's open competition,'' said Denune prior to the first workout. "This is pretty similar to 2010 when McCarthy was a freshman. We kind of have our gut feeling towards a couple of guys, but at this point, it's going to have to be a competition and we'll see how it shakes out.''
BSU will have two weeks of practice before scrimmaging Curry College on Aug. 30, so the evaluation process will be done in a hurry.
Sophomore Dan Higgins was with the Bears a year ago and completed 5-of-8 passes for 94 yards and a touchdown in limited action.
Senior Dave Bubar and junior Dillon Hassett, who were on the team in 2012 but did not play last season, return to the roster while freshmen Malik Garrett, Dylan Kierman and Alex McLaughlin are also in the mix.
"They all throw the ball pretty well,'' said Denune, who has 117 candidates looking for spots on the team. "I like quarterbacks who can run, too. That'll play into it a little bit.''
The quarterback who wins the starting nod will have talented skill position players to work with.
Matthew Green of Stoughton, who set school records with 69 catches for 1,315 yards and 16 TDs, heads a deep wide receiving corps.
Green, a preseason Division 3 All-American, is part of group of pass catchers that includes "12 we are confident in,'' said Denune.
Michael Viola was third on the team with 10 catches for 136 yards and a touchdown last season while Michael Cruz had nine receptions for 103 yards.
Running back Blaise Branch of Brockton was second on the team with 547 rushing yards and scored three TDs.
"Whoever it's going to be at quarterback is going to be someone coming in replacing a very stable quarterback,'' said Denune. "We're going to have to try to adjust. Whoever it ends up being is going to have a lot of weapons around him. He'll have to make good decisions.
"I think by the time we get through our scrimmage, after two weeks, you'd like to narrow it down to one or two guys who are getting the majority of the reps so you can start getting them game ready.''
BSU's last starting quarterback not named Mike McCarthy was Steven Clark on Nov. 7, 2009, in the Cranberry Bowl against the Massachusetts Maritime Academy.
McCarthy took over in the 2010 opener and didn't move out of the spot his entire career.
"Look at the body of work his junior and senior years, and the numbers are staggering,'' said Denune.
Beginning this week, the task of finding a successor to McCarthy begins at BSU.