I agree. We FINALLY will have a legit BCS backup QB. I'm not so much worried about who wins the job, I think we see both this year because neither one has shown that they can stay healthy. The good news is, when the backup comes in this year when we are 4-2, we won't take a HUGE step back like the last couple of years.
I bet they do this. Probably even the second game as well.
Let's be real here. There is next to no chance we lose either of the first two games, even with Schulz as our QB. I bet they split reps games 1 and 2, start off 2-0, make Michigan guess who our starting QB is, decide on a starter at the end of the Fresno game, then give him two weeks with the #1 reps for the Michigan game.
That is what I see happening.
Didn't DC also say that he wants a mobile QB for his offence? This is where I think that Thompson has the edge. If he comes in and at least matches TW in practice, I have to think that he is a lock to start. Am I wrong? Also I wonder how much DC wanting to build his offense up his own way factors into the decision? Thompson stated in an interview that he played in what is essentially DC's offense in HS. This info also has me thinking that unless he stinks it up in fall camp, Thompson has a real edge. Again, am I off on this?
It will be really hard for Thompson to beat out Wilson. Wilson has two years experience, team captain, team lives him, tough, gets in fights with Gionni Paul, etc.
If Thompson beats him out, Thompson will be really, really good.
Also, if DC really prefers Thompson, it wouldn't surprise me if those two split reps the first two games.
"It'd be nice to please everyone but I thought it would be more interesting to have a point of view." -- Oscar Levant
Big concern. I keep telling myself that "he was only a sophomore, he was only a sophomore." A lot of growing up can happen between the SO and JR years.
Also, some of those throws were 100 mph fastballs that were unnecessary that led to tipped balls, which led to INT's. It looks like he is starting to take some off the ball on some of those throws this spring.
He has improved a lot already.
Like I've said 100 times, it will be very, very hard for Thompson to win the job, and if he does, get very, very excited.
Both Whitt and DC have said on the radio this week that Thompson will get the majority of the #1 reps the first week in fall camp to see what they have in him.
Travis is our #1, and I fully expect him to be our starter, but it sounds like Thompson will be given every opportunity to take the job away from Wilson.
Totally agree. I think the significance of K Scott's injury is a little underappreciated. We simply did not have a physical possession receiver on the team last year. If Wilson is countering those blitzes with quick slants to Scott, a guy who has good hands and knows how to use his body to protect the ball, we wind up with completions instead of interceptions off our receivers hands.
Wilson seems to have a very strong connection with Dres right now, and is also targeting Tonga pretty well (ditto on losing Murphy as a big reason Wilson struggled). What I really hope is that when Scott comes back to full activity, Wilson develops a similar rapport with him. That's going to be the key to limiting TW's interceptions.
“To me there is no dishonor in being wrong and learning. There is dishonor in willful ignorance and there is dishonor in disrespect.” James Hatch, former Navy Seal and current Yale student.
Scott's injury alone last year cost us at least two wins last year. Maybe 3. With a healthy Kenneth Scott last year, Utah could have been an 8 win team. Oregon St., UCLA, Arizona and Arizon St. could have all been changed by having his presence on the field Kenneth Scott. He was that missed on offense.
Defenses quickly figured out that they could play extremely physical with Dres and cheat the safety to his side because they didn't have to respect the other side of the field.
I'm just a fan and only played high school football, so what I say about Wilson isn't terribly important. I just saw throws behind the receiver and several "sacks" (they can't touch the QB so the play stops when the defense gets close enough to touch). I don't necessarily blame him for the sacks, and the throws behind the receivers may have been because of poor route-running. I was there from 4:00 to 5:00 and Travis was not having a lot of success during that hour.
"It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye."
--Antoine de Saint-Exupery
"Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold."
--Yeats
“True, we [lawyers] build no bridges. We raise no towers. We construct no engines. We paint no pictures - unless as amateurs for our own principal amusement. There is little of all that we do which the eye of man can see. But we smooth out difficulties; we relieve stress; we correct mistakes; we take up other men's burdens and by our efforts we make possible the peaceful life of men in a peaceful state.”
--John W. Davis, founder of Davis Polk & Wardwell
Oh, it's fine. I wasn't singling you out in particular, you just happened to be the one to post.
Just an observation I'd had recently. You listen to reporters, coaches and the such, and you here a lot of good about Wilson. You then listen to fans, and you hear very few good things about him. I'm just curious if we just remember the bad with him, and not with the other QB's because of the last two games he played in last year (and the UCLA game), or if we just love the backup QB, or if the media/coaches are just blowing smoke, and come this fall it will be Thompson/Manning 1 and 2.
Just thinking out loud I guess.
I'm on the Wilson bandwagon. I was a skeptic, but I jumped on after the OSU game last year, and I never left. That said, there are many QBs in the conference that are better.
Pac-12 QB power rankings:
1) Mariotta
2) Hundley
3) Mannion
4) Kelly
5) Halliday
6) Hagan
7) Kessler
8) Wilson
9) Goff
10) Lindquist
11) Whoever starts at Zona
12) Whoever starts at CU
What did we learn from spring practice? I hope the coaches have a better feel for it than I do because IMO there are more questions now than there were going into the spring. I don't see this team winning 6 games and going to a bowl game. I really hope I am wrong, but right now there are too many question marks for me to predict a winning record.
QB - This is the position that will make or break this season and unfortunately there are still a lot of unanswered questions. Wilson looks like he will enter fall camp as the starter but, IMO, this is due more to the fact that nobody really stepped up than it is due to stellar play by Wilson. IMO, he still holds the ball too long resulting in covered receivers, makes poor reads and is too often inaccurate. He is tough and can use his feet to get yards when he runs but not to move into the pocket to make throws. Manning was a little better than Schulz, but was still behind Wilson. Schulz is still the same guy and Cox does not seem to be in the picture at all.
RB - This group shows the most promise. Poole, Booker, McCormick and Young all showed ability. Lucky will add to the mix and provide a very flexible stable of running backs.
WR - This group is more dynamic than a year ago. It will be nice to have Dres and Scott together and there is better depth.
TE - Another strong group. Tonga, Fakalaitonga and Handley have all done well and Moeai has stepped up.
OL - Still an unknown. I think Aiono and Salt will be solid. Poutasi and Asiata will be improved. Unfortunately question marks abound after these four.
DT - Tough to get a read without Ianu, Tevi and Seni mostly out. It appears that Mokofisi, Fanaika and Dimick can play supporting roles.
DE - We know Orchard can play. Mokofisi, Fanaika and Dimick can rotate in an out and Pita can be a strong pass rusher. Still a lot of guys need to step up.
LB - A lot weaker today with the Hale and Paul injuries and Whittingham still recovering. Three healthy scholarship LB’s in Norris, Masina and recently converted RB Sanders-Williams. This group scares me.
S - Blechen is a known commodity and while many think he is great, I for one have always thought he was heavily overrated. Depending on Carter to step in and start is a real gamble. The backups are Henderson, who can hit, and Corporan who just moved from corner. Scarey thin at safety.
CB - This is the other position that I think solidified itself in spring. With Rowe, Orphey, Porter, Freeman and Smith, it is a deep group with some ability.
"It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye."
--Antoine de Saint-Exupery
"Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold."
--Yeats
“True, we [lawyers] build no bridges. We raise no towers. We construct no engines. We paint no pictures - unless as amateurs for our own principal amusement. There is little of all that we do which the eye of man can see. But we smooth out difficulties; we relieve stress; we correct mistakes; we take up other men's burdens and by our efforts we make possible the peaceful life of men in a peaceful state.”
--John W. Davis, founder of Davis Polk & Wardwell
If there were no question marks at any of the other positions, particularly OL, I would agree. The difference I see this year compared to years past is that there are questions at almost every defensive position group. We will be relying on young, untested guys or guys returning from fairly serious surgery. We probably won't know much about this team until after the Fresno and Michigan, and WSU games. Fresno loses a lot of talent, but they are not a slouch. We will need to play well to beat them. We need to come out of that opening stretch at least 3-1.
Exactly this. I was also really impressed with Hatfield's hands. I think he's another improvement in the WR group. I'm not convincd that TE play will equal Murphy's but at least we have some depth. I don't get too excited about the immediate impact of transfers, but I do think Clay, if he arrives, could provide a much needed spark on ST. It's going to be a fun season, and I think people will be surprised by a few familiar faces: Blechen, Wilson, Poutasi.
One thing to remember, is that every team in the PAC-12 changes every year. ASU lost 9 of their top 11 tacklers. Arizona lost their QB and RB, and are currently trying to decide between 4 QB's. Usually that doesn't mean that they have 4 future NFL guys. Stanford is replacing a lot on their OL, their RB, LB'ers and a lot off their DL. USC is going from a traditional pro-style offense for the past million years to the GFGH offense. With little depth. OSU loses Cook, who made Mannion look really, really good. Michigan will have 4 new starters on OL and 4 new starters on DL, plus a new QB, RB and secondary (we've seen how well those seasons go). Fresno St loses a NFL QB.
UCLA and Oregon are pretty much the only teams taking steps forward this year...and us. We have better depth at QB, HB, WR, LB, and secondary.
Go ahead and be glass half empty, guys. But, this fall will be an exciting fall.
You keep talking about better depth at LB and the secondary, but I think Uteopia is spot on--those areas are HUGE concerns. The defense has a ton of question marks: I think Whit is a defensive witch, but he has a lot of holes to fill.
Of course, all of that is moot if the QB and O-line don't noticeably improve.
Our LB situation is the most depressing. We went from being justifiably very confident about our prospects there to being justifiably worried about them. I understood from what I heard at practice that Gionni Paul probably won't be able to play until October. I hope we have some unexpected depth there.
"It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye."
--Antoine de Saint-Exupery
"Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold."
--Yeats
“True, we [lawyers] build no bridges. We raise no towers. We construct no engines. We paint no pictures - unless as amateurs for our own principal amusement. There is little of all that we do which the eye of man can see. But we smooth out difficulties; we relieve stress; we correct mistakes; we take up other men's burdens and by our efforts we make possible the peaceful life of men in a peaceful state.”
--John W. Davis, founder of Davis Polk & Wardwell
"It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye."
--Antoine de Saint-Exupery
"Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold."
--Yeats
“True, we [lawyers] build no bridges. We raise no towers. We construct no engines. We paint no pictures - unless as amateurs for our own principal amusement. There is little of all that we do which the eye of man can see. But we smooth out difficulties; we relieve stress; we correct mistakes; we take up other men's burdens and by our efforts we make possible the peaceful life of men in a peaceful state.”
--John W. Davis, founder of Davis Polk & Wardwell
I predict we see 4 QBs play vs Idaho St. Then we'll see at least 2 play against Fresno St. Then the bye week will determine who will be the starter vs Michigan. Really there was no reason to keeps Schulz in the fourth quarter vs Weber St last year, other than they wanted to redshirt the other QBs.