Nearly eight months have passed but the question remains the same: Is it Cook or is it Maxwell?

Although Maxwell officially is listed at No. 1 on the team’s depth chart, MSU football head coach Mark Dantonio confirmed the duo are splitting reps in practice while trying to find the correct rhythm for this year’s team.

“If (Maxwell’s) capable of playing to a level of winning football, then that’s going to happen,” Dantonio said. “I do think it’s important. We have two quarterbacks the opportunity to play early in the season because I didn’t like the way Andrew had to come in with no experience and perform, and we’re going to see how it all shakes out.”

Maxwell is handling reps with the first team, and Cook with the second team. Redshirt freshman Tyler O’Connor also gotten reps in practice in addition to freshman quarterback Damion Terry.

Maxwell said he feels the quarterback competition is healthy, and understands that he can’t take his starting job for granted.

“At the end of the day, we all have Michigan State across our chests,” Maxwell said. “We didn’t come here to earn individual awards, we didn’t come here to have our names in the paper, we didn’t come here to have our names on billboards.

“We came here to help Michigan State win; to help Michigan State get back to the Rose Bowl.”

As a starter last season, Maxwell ultimately underwhelmed with his inconsistent play, in addition to dropped passes from the wide receivers, leading to a 7-6 record.

Maxwell said there’s no frustration on his end, and he welcomes the opportunity to compete for his starting job.

“I don’t really think there’s room for frustration because it’s reality — it’s the situation that we are in,” Maxwell said. “The good side is that there’s opportunity. I do have another year to play, I do have an opportunity to be the starting quarterback, and I do have the opportunity to be the quarterback of a team who’s poised and ready to do a lot of good things and be very successful.

“That trumps every frustration, and I’m excited to have the opportunity to be the guy and now it’s my job to go out and earn it.”

Cook expressed confidence in his abilities at the media day, and has put in work during the offseason in his quest to nab the starting job.

“The longer you’ve been here, the longer you’ve been in the system, you feel more confident,” Cook said. “You’re gonna have a different swagger, believe in yourself, and take chances that you really wouldn’t have as a freshman. It’s a learning process.”

Cook spent time during the summer months at the Whitfield Quarterback Academy in San Diego, Calif., with quarterback coach George Whitfield Jr., where he worked on several mechanics in his game.

“There were some things I had to brush up on fundamentally, my footwork, and then placing the ball, my release,” Cook said. “We never really worked on anything to recognize coverages and defenses, the mental part. It was just fundamentals and footwork, placing the ball because watching myself in the spring, my footwork was not very good at the time.

“I would just rely on raw talent. I brushed up on all of my fundamentals out in California, and it was very worthwhile.”

Cook said that it’s a four-way battle for the starting job. And he know it won’t be easy.

“The jobs open right now, and every quarterback’s fighting, pulling, scratching, and trying to win the day at every practice, trying to be the best quarterback that they can be,” he said. “The competition is bringing out the best in all four of the quarterbacks.”