Richard Torres named starting quarterback at University of the Incarnate Word

SAN ANTONIO – After three weeks of fall camp, Richard Torres was named the starting quarterback at University of the Incarnate Word.

Torres will lead the Cardinals, who start the season ranked No. 4 in the FCS preseason poll, in their season opener on the road Aug. 23 at Nicholls.

“I don’t think there’s any pressure if I just do what I’m supposed to,” Torres said. “I rely on my guys and I really do trust them. So, I think just every day coming in and trusting them and executing the plan, and when coaches put it in, I just do what I do.”

The Southside Cardinals great went to Nebraska right out of high school in 2022. He did not appear in a game for the Huskers that season, redshirting before transferring to UIW.

In two seasons with the Cardinals, he’s played in 12 games, throwing for 608 yards with seven touchdowns and one interception. That experience helped him beat out two other quarterbacks.

“Richie had a little bit of a leg up,” UIW coach Clint Killough said. “Obviously, he’s been here for a couple of years. So operationally, he was ahead of the game. He’d already kind of made some of those mistakes. And the best teacher is reps, and he’s had two years of reps at it.”

Torres is one of the best quarterbacks in South Side history. As a junior, he passed for 1,149 yards and 18 touchdowns.

Unfortunately, his senior season was cut short after he suffered a knee injury. In four games, he threw for 912 yards and 12 touchdowns. He knew how to lead then as a teenager, and nothing has changed in that regard now that he’s 22.

“I think that he’s a natural-born leader,” Killough said. “I think his poise in game is something that really kind of separated himself. I think he’s throwing the ball as good as he’s throwing it right now and making pretty quality decisions. So, he’s going to be the guy.”

The first person Torres told was his mom, Veronica.

“She was really happy,” he said.