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Suspension over, Washington names Cyler Miles starting QB

When new Washington coach Chris Petersen named Jeff Lindquist the starting quarterback for the Huskies' opener, many wondered how long he would be able to hold onto the job.

The answer? Until Monday.

At his weekly press conference, Petersen announced that Cyler Miles would be taking over as the starting signal-caller for the team's home opener this week against Eastern Washington.

"We're going to give Cyler a chance to start and get him back into the mix and see what he can do," Petersen said. "He has a really good feel for what's going on. It always comes down, to me, to decision-making and accuracy. I hope he takes a good step forward in that department for us."

Miles was suspended for Washington's game against Hawaii by Petersen for his role in a post-Super Bowl altercation.

The 6-foot-4, 225-pound redshirt sophomore was a highly regarded recruit coming out of high school and made one start last season for the Huskies when Keith Price was out with an injury. He played in a total of eight games during his career in Seattle and has, by far, the most game experience on the roster.

Lindquist will be the backup quarterback after going 10-of-26 for 162 yards, with one touchdown, against Hawaii on Saturday. Redshirt freshman Troy Williams will operate as the third quarterback.

The Huskies' offense struggled in the opener, scoring just 17 points on 336 yards of total offense against a Rainbow Warriors defense that has seen better days. The lack of a downfield passing option made it tough to run the football as Washington averaged just 3.6 yards per carry.

Miles adds much more of a dual-threat dimension to the quarterback position compared to the other players on the roster.

You can follow Bryan Fischer on Twitter at @BryanDFischer.