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Written by Duane Long
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Tuesday, 19 January 2010 14:18 |
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Recruiting is so much about what ifs. At the quarterback position we are chock full of what ifs. It starts with Pryor. What if he continues his development and becomes the player he was projected to be, an early entry NFL player? Whether he improves that much is a what if. That he is gone in two years is fact. We need to start preparing right now. I don't know about you but what I saw from Bauserman does not give me a great deal of confidence. He is showing a lack of reps. To get Pryor to where he is right now has taken so many reps from Joe as to stunt his development. We know Guiton is as raw as raw can be. The lack of reps is likely hurting him more than Bauserman. Quarterback is the single hardest position in all of sports to master. The more time a quarterback has under center, the better. That is what makes me nervous about Taylor Graham. I love what I saw from him in film. I love that so many quarterback gurus offered him. I think that is a big deal. You know they had a hand in
decision making on offering those quarterbacks they developed. Lets keep in mind that after a year off he came back in camps and combines to get those offers from those quarterback gurus, and he lost that year earlier in his development. But the better part of two years off gives me pause. That bring me to the stellar class of 2011 quarterbacks.
A recent video of Braxton Miller as a junior brought into focus once again just how good he is. Both he and Jones are five star quarterbacks. I would take Jones no matter what. I have had a few e-mails about Jones accuracy. He has completed right around 64% of his passes. He has better than a 3-1 touchdown to interception ratio.I would take Stoudt too. There are some positions that are so important that you always take the opportunity to upgrade them. Quarterback is right at the top of that list. I think quarterback is that important and I think Stoudt is that good. Here is the ScoutingOhio.com video of Stoudt: http://scoutingohio.com/index.php/view-profile.html?task=userProfile&user=2622&name=Cole1818 Tell me that is not a big time kid. He has size and arm strength. He moves very well. Any other year he would be the most talked about QB in the class. The only thing about him that surprises me is that his only offer is Cincinnati.
I want to be clear. Yes, I am saying take three quarterbacks in one class if they are good enough. Stack talent at key positions if you have the opportunity. In the case of this team we have to look at the fact that all three will be arriving the same year that Pryor and Bauserman are seniors. We have a couple of pretty raw guys in Guiton and Graham behind them. Guys that need some work just to get to the point where we say yes, we have us a quarterback. That is the point where start their development. At this point they are more of an unknown commodity than most freshmen. We need to add as many talents as possible to the mix. We recently had a Heisman Trophy quarterback. We are looking at the emergence of another star caliber player at the position. Lets keep that going. Other schools have stacked talent like this. Look at USC. Look where they have been recently. There is an NFL starter who was a backup at USC. That is just ridiculous. Texas has had back to back outstanding quarterback play. We have to recognize the importance of the position in the modern game. Be outstanding at quarterback and you are always a threat to win any game.
I understand the concern of tying up three scholarships at a position where only one plays. We are not keeping them. Might not keep more than one. Quarterbacks transfer at a pretty high rate because only one plays the vast majority of the time. Think about our own history of keeping quarterbacks. Does any other position come close as far as transfer rates are concerned? Be straight with them. You come in here with a couple of other guys. One of you will step up and get the bulk of the reps and be next in line. The others can chose to stay and reap the benefits of Buckeye Nation like Justin Zwick did, and like it appears Joe Bauserman intends to do, or you can transfer. We promise you an equal shot at the spot. Best man wins.
There would only be two things that would dissuade me from this. One, do I have enough practice reps to really get a look at all three, and two, am I really going to have to short myself at another position to do it? A yes to either would force me to just take the two, but I would absolutely take two. We have an opportunity to upgrade the talent at the most important position on the field. That is something we don't get the chance to do around here. Continuing the recent spate of success could change that.
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