KNOXVILLE - Taken out of context, Butch Jones offered the answer Tennessee football fans have been waiting for during his news conference following a weather-shortened Orange and White Game.
"Quinten Dormady won it," the fifth-year Volunteers coach said.
Jones' answer came in response to a question about who won the quarterback skills challenge at halftime.
The challenge to replace Joshua Dobbs as Tennessee's starting quarterback is continuing to the summer as an apparent stalemate, even after a strong performance from Dormady during Saturday's 15th and final spring practice.
Dormady flashed his capabilities to about 20,000 fans at Neyland Stadium during the intrasquad game with a 10-for-10, two-touchdown performance against a shell of the Vols' 2017 defense.
The junior also won the skills challenge by successfully replicating the Hail Mary throw Dobbs made to Jauan Jennings at Georgia last season in a last-second 34-31 Tennessee win. Dormady struck a cardboard cutout of a leaping Jennings from 50 yards away, capping the day's festivities.
Jones announced soon after the quarterback skills competition that the Orange and White Game was ending at halftime because of heavy rain approaching Knoxville.
The offense, dressed in white, beat the defense, dressed in orange, 44-29 under a modified scoring system, ending the spring football session and sending the quarterback competition to its next phase.
"There's no time frame," Jones said of when he may name a starter. "I don't ever believe that you give yourself a set time when you have to name a starting quarterback. I want them to compete. I think competition is extremely healthy, and I think they've all elevated their games because of that competition.
"I was really pleased with the way they performed today."
Dormady's performance stood out, but redshirt freshman Jarrett Guarantano also showed his skills with a 4-for-5 performance in two possessions.
The quarterbacks were off limits to contact and played within a simplified system designed to keep the Vols from tipping their offensive hand to next season's opponents. But Dormady and Guarantano each got two possessions.
Dormady delivered a pair of touchdown drives with the first-team offense, while Guarantano debuted with a three-and-out with the second-team offense. He led the first-team offense on a 13-play, 54-yard drive that ended with a missed field-goal try on his second series.
"There were limitations today," Guarantano said. "We didn't really have a quarterback run game. We didn't have any of that. We had short whistles; we had different things (we weren't able) to do. But I think today was a great day for me and all the rest of the quarterbacks, and it was a good chance to compete, go against the defense and show that Team 121 is here to stay."
Dormady, who hit Jennings and tight end Eli Wolf on touchdown scores, said he thought the offense executed well.
"That's always the goal, is to go out and complete every ball and score points," Dormady said. "I think we did a good job of that today."
Jones' coaching history indicates he could wait until shortly before Tennessee's season opener against Georgia Tech on Sept. 4 to name a starter.
The competition moves on to the summer and player-led workouts before the Vols reconvene as a team for preseason camp in August.
"That's where the ownership kicks in," Jones said of the summer. "They'll run all of our throwing sessions. To me, that's when you really find out. A lot of times, the players decide who the quarterback is by the way they rally around them. It's a great opportunity for them.
"From a leadership standpoint, we will put a lot on their shoulders. It's player-led workouts. That's the exciting thing, and that'll be part of the evaluation tool."
Contact staff writer David Cobb at dcobb@timesfreepress.com.