PARADISE VALLEY, Ariz. — Zerrick Cooper’s goal is clear: work hard, get better, and win Clemson’s starting quarterback job next spring.

It’s his dream to be a starting quarterback at the collegiate level. In order to make it a reality, he knows he will have to outshine a bright group of talented signal-callers.

 And Cooper isn’t shying away from the competition.

“It’s everything I’ve dreamed of, being a starting quarterback,” Cooper said on Thursday at the Fiesta Bowl Media Day. “Just want to go in the spring, learn, do whatever I have to do and try to win the starting spot.”

Deshaun Watson will be difficult to follow, but his potential replacements have a high ceiling of promising ability.

The highly touted trio of Kelly Bryant, Cooper and incoming freshman Hunter Johnson gives Clemson a dynamic set of weapons and options. The coaching staff has said Bryant will enter the spring as the No. 1 guy, though Cooper and Johnson will get plenty of opportunities to outperform him.

“I’m very excited,” Cooper said. “It should be a friendly competition, and I just look forward to the spring.”

After receiving mostly scout-team reps as a redshirt freshman this season, Cooper was able to turn it loose during the JV portion of Clemson’s bowl practices this month.

The former consensus top-300 prospect nationally from Jonesboro, Ga., enjoyed the action in practice.

“It’s been pretty good, just using my talent and using what I learned to apply my talents to the offense,” Cooper said. “It’s been a great time practicing with the guys and finally getting to play.”

Cooper said he is working the most on improving his speed. In the mental aspect of the game, he said he has made strides since the fall.

“I’ve learned a lot since fall camp, actually,” Cooper said. “I know the majority of the offense. I have a couple things to work on, like protection, but by next year I should be OK and ready.”

Meanwhile, Watson and senior quarterback Nick Schuessler have aided Cooper’s development.

“He’s been helping me a lot,” Cooper said of Watson. “Like on game week, how he prepares for a game. Just taking my time, just learning from him Nick Schuessler and Kelly. Seeing how it is so next year I can be ready and have experience for that.”

After completing 161 of 267 passes for 2,039 yards and 21 touchdowns as a senior in 2015 — and growing as a player during his first year at Clemson — Cooper has confidence in himself as a player.

So, he’s excited to showcase his abilities and vie with top-level talent to become Clemson’s starter next season.

“I know the guys that’s coming in and already here, I know they’ve got a ton of talent and they want the same thing I want,” Copper said. “I just have to stay focused and do what I have to do to win the starting job.”