Delaware State has made its first quarterback call of the season, naming senior transfer Ui Ale the starter for Thursday night’s opener against Stony Brook. DeSean Jackson announced the decision on Monday and said Ale had separated himself in the final stretch of camp.
Jackson said Ale had “emerged as the starter right now” over “the past week and a half or two weeks,” a run that turned a quarterback competition into a starter decision before Week One. Ale arrived in Dover after playing at Houston and Troy, and Jackson said the staff believes he can handle the job when the Hornets open the season.
The choice matters because Delaware State did not enter camp with a settled answer. The quarterback room included Ale, Samari Collier and Jayden Sauray, and Collier was added late in training camp after a stint at Coastal Carolina. Jackson’s decision gives the offense a clear name to open with, even if the plan is not limited to one passer.
That is where the next layer of the story comes in. Jackson said Delaware State expects “another guy or two” to take snaps against Stony Brook, and he added that the Hornets are comfortable with Ale and a few others bringing a spark. In other words, the starter has been named, but the opener still may not belong to one quarterback alone.
Jackson’s confidence in the group is rooted in what he saw from the offense last season and in camp. Delaware State led the FCS in rushing during his 8-4 debut, and he said the new look entering Week One will be different from last year. He also said the quarterbacks have helped lighten the burden up front, a sign that the staff is already leaning into a more flexible approach.
For Ale, the assignment is straightforward and bigger than a depth-chart line. He is the first quarterback through the door for Thursday night, but Jackson has already made clear that the job will be shared if the game calls for it. The unanswered part is not who starts; it is how long the opener stays in his hands.
