In less than one week, new head coach Adam Cushing’s football team will finally be seen in action when the Panthers travel to Chattanooga on Aug. 29.

Some of the questions, from an offseason full of questions, surrounding the program will finally be answered. Here are some of the big questions that still remain just a week ahead of the game.

Who is the starting quarterback?

To be frank, there is not one starting quarterback yet. For now, both Johnathan Brantley and Harry Woodbery will be sharing time in the position, much like they did last season.

Similar to last season’s camp when the two were competing for the starting job, neither one has been able to separate himself from the other.

Which is not necessarily a bad problem for Eastern to have. Cushing said on Wednesday that the goal is to figure out which quarterback can better move the offense down the field and that the answer to that question … may be both guys.

Cushing did say too that he has been incredibly pleased with how Brantley and Woodbery have been interacting with one another this year.

“The great thing about JB (Brantley) and Harry (Woodbery) is that they support each other every throw,” Cushing said. “They’re on each other’s hat and high-fiving each other; if a guy makes maybe the wrong read, it’s ‘hey, you got it, you got it.’ They’re the best teammates and that’s what it takes to be a good quarterback, and that’s hard with the guy you’re competing with, so it’s awesome the way those two guys interact.”

How ready is this new team?

When asked how ready all of the new guys on the roster were going to be week one, Cushing smiled and said, “We will find out on Aug. 29.” That should give a sense at just how new the faces on this team are, but while the team will be new to the Eastern fans for the most part, it will also be new to its opponents, which could give Eastern somewhat of an edge during its games.

Cushing, however, is excited about the incoming class of players.

“As coaches, that’s our responsibility to get those guys as ready as we can and we have done a lot of situational football, so when they go through it, it isn’t the first time they go through it,” Cushing said. “We’ll see. I think the great part about this newcomer class is they all love competing and they all know that they came here with a great opportunity to step on the field early in their career here, and I think they’re excited about that.”

What does the offensive line look like?

When asked how ready all of the new guys on the roster were going to be week one, Cushing smiled and said, “We will find out on Aug. 29.” That should give a sense at just how new the faces on this team are, but while the team will be new to the Eastern fans for the most part, it will also be new to its opponents, which could give Eastern somewhat of an edge during its games.

Cushing, however, is excited about the incoming class of players.

“As coaches, that’s our responsibility to get those guys as ready as we can and we have done a lot of situational football, so when they go through it, it isn’t the first time they go through it,” Cushing said. “We’ll see. I think the great part about this newcomer class is they all love competing and they all know that they came here with a great opportunity to step on the field early in their career here, and I think they’re excited about that.”

JJ Bullock can be reached at 581-2812 or jpbullock@eiu.edu.