EVANSTON - Northwestern hosted its first media availability of fall camp on Saturday, and the headliner was not head coach David Braun or a particular player. It was the newly named Northwestern Medicine Field at Martin Stadium.

"Huge thank you to Northwestern Medicine and the Martin Family for their continued support," Braun said in his opening statement. "Pulling this together was no easy task for everyone involved...

"I think the only hesitation from the players' standpoint was just not having a vision of what it was going to look like. 'Excuse me coach, where are we going to play our games?' But over the course of the summer as they've seen this come to life, you can tell there's excitement in the building."

On the field, one of the biggest storylines is who will start at quarterback for the Wildcats. While the program was eager to unveil the name of its new temporary stadium, Braun was not as forthcoming about who would trout out as the first-team quarterback for the season opener against Miami (Ohio) on Aug. 31.

The team held its first scrimmage of camp on Aug. 10 but, to take Braun at his word, there's still a lot up in the air. He said that the battle between grad transfer Mike Wright and redshirt sophomore Jack Lausch rages on.

"It's a full-on competition, still," Braun said. "Jack Lausch is showing some great things through the early stages of camp, as is Mike Wright. The thing I'm most excited about right now, though the [starter] is certainly something we're going to have to figure out, but it's the level of play in that room, the progression and the development."

While Braun would go on to laud each and every quarterback in the room, he made it clear that, while he and offensive coordinator Zach Lujan see the depth of the room as a strength, they have no appetite for a dual-quarterback system featuring both Wright and Lausch.

"The [second-string quarterback] has to be completely involved and understand they're only one snap away from stepping in [due to injury]," Braun said. "But a dual-quarterback system is not a fit for us. We're looking for consistency at that spot.

"I think sometimes when you get into dual-quarterback, where you're truly playing two guys and splitting time, it doesn't allow for that individual to get into the rhythm that's so critical for the quarterback position."

Braun's decision not to disclose a starting quarterback is nothing knew. He didn't publicly reveal his 2023 starter, Ben Bryant, until the opening drive vs. Rutgers, though his staff came to a decision shortly after their second scrimmage. A similar process could play out in 2024, as Braun declined to set a deadline for a decision.

"Obviously, as we get into Miami [Ohio] prep, we'd love to know who that starting quarterback is going to be," he said. "But at the same time, we want to make sure that we let the process play itself out and give both these guys a full opportunity to compete.

"Jack has been in the program for awhile, Mike has been here since June, and we'll see how they navigate fall camp. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't really excited with both of these guys and their progression."

Braun was similarly evasive when it came to the offensive line, middle linebacker and defensive back battles. Any hopes for clarity, or at least publicly stated clarity, were quickly dashed.

"I would really compare our quarterback and offensive line room similarly," he said. "The development in both those areas is really exciting. We're still working to find the right five at the right positions.

"At this Saturday's scrimmage, the offensive line did an exceptional job...I'd compare it to our defensive line last year. There were a lot of question marks but we are excited about the depth and the progression."

MORE FROM FALL CAMP: Northwestern unveils new temporary stadium

Search for a new athletic director continues: After Braun's address and a media tour of the facilities, interim senior deputy athletic director Pat Goss took the time to answer a few questions.

Goss is not officially on Northwestern's search committee for the hire, but has been deeply involved with the department since his promotion on July 1.

"They're going through the search right now and I think they're hopeful to have someone in place early this fall," he said. "I think they're trying to move as fast as they can."

Goss has often served as Northwestern's lead administrator at athletic events since athletic director Dr. Derrick Gragg's planned move to Vice President for Athletic Strategy was announced.

"The biggest thing I've done since July 1 is oversee the day-to-day, which has allowed [Gragg] to focus on the strategy," Goss said about how he and Gragg work together. "That's critical as we head into probably the most pivotal time in the history of college athletics. We've collaborated really well together and it's been a great experience.

"As somebody who's a Northwestern alum and been here my whole adult life, I'm just honored to be here and contribute in any way I can."

Goss was elevated to the interim role after more than 20 years coaching golf at Northwestern. He has been rumored as a candidate for the full-time position, but declined to comment on his role as an applicant or advisor to keep the search process private.

Team enters new era of strength and conditioning: After the program parted ways with strength coach Jay Hooten after the 2023 season, they promoted internet sensation Alex Spanos internally into that role.

Braun said he's appreciated the level of detail in Spanos, who has been with the program since 2015, and his efforts to reach and train players where they are.

"This program has been a developmental one for a long time, and the strength and conditioning piece of that will always be critical," he said. "So proud that Alex is in the role that he's in and he's done a great job of individualizing workouts.

"Cam Porter has been here a long time, Caleb Komolafe is still just developing. Those workouts in the offseason and summer look different for those guys, and they should. Some of the development that we've seen in our younger linemen, some of the fine tuning with our older guys like Josh Thompson and Caleb Tiernan...it's a credit to Alex and his staff being very mindful of the individual."

The program shared its official fall roster of 111 players, eight more than they had last season.

A few notable weight fluctuations from year to year: guard Jordan Knox gained 26 pounds to 326, while Camp Magee put on 18 pounds and is now listed at 223. On the flip side, guard Josh Thompson dropped 14 pounds to tip the scales at 301, while Dylan Roberts lost 15 pounds and is now at 280.

Knock on wood: A week into camp, Braun said the Wildcats have a mostly clean bill of health.

"We have some nicks and bruises here and there but nothing we expect to keep guys out long term," he said. "It's really promising and, knock on wood, that trend continues... We're really excited where we're at with the health of our football team right now."