Cam hate got me thinking

[W16Ute]

A lot of hate for Cam this morning here. He had a terrible game. I wonder exactly how bad that injury is or maybe he was just off. Either way i thought back to last year and Brewer. Cam comes in and his energy and talent turned around a bad team. I don’t think he’s an NFL starter, maybe back up, maybe.

But i do think he is a good QB overall and a top 5 Utah QB of all time. My ranks:
Alex Smith
Brian Johnson
Cam Rising
Tyler Huntley
Scott Mitchell
I think I’m that order but middle 3 are tight and possibly interchangeable. And I’m looking through the lens of time.

Last i think Nate Johnson should play every snap of the next 2 games. (Assuming no CCG) Time to prepare for next year.

[GameForAnyFuss]

I haven’t seen a lot of Cam hate. I’ve seen a lot of criticism. Hate and criticism are not the same thing. I criticize my coworkers sometimes, and sometimes they criticize me, but that doesn’t mean we hate each other.

I myself have said for 3 weeks that Cam doesn’t look right. I definitely don’t hate him.

Last i think Nate Johnson should play every snap of the next 2 games.

No. Best player plays, period. Especially if there’s still even a remote chance at the CCG. There’s plenty of time to prep for next year during spring, summer, and fall.

Also, I would be shocked if Johnson is QB1 next year. I am nearly certain that QB1 will be a transfer portal guy.

[Xanthis]

Huntley was a better QB than Cam. There was just a lot more talent around Cam. 

[The Miami Ute]

From a talent standpoint, my top four are Smith, Mitchell, Huntley and Ratliff in that order. Saying that Cam came in and turned around a bad team is kind of harsh, I think. As we’ve seen since he left Utah and disappeared off the face of the earth, Brewer was the main reason that Utah looked so bad. In essence, if you have a bad QB, it’s hard for any team to look good.

[RoboUte]

Cam has a lot of upside and I think he’s inspiring at times, something even more talented QBs usually don’t have. But now there’s a big set of lows to go along with his highs and I don’t think theyll soon be forgotten. In the future this game is going to mar the lens which we view his entire 2022 through and that’s too bad since that essentially half of his career here.

[The Miami Ute]

If you’re an NFL scout, what upside does Cam have? Does he have good size? No. Does he have a strong arm? No. Is he mobile? Yes, but he’s not Josh Allen, Lamar Jackson, or Justin Fields. Does he have elite decision-making ability? No. Does he have a quick release? No. Is he exceedingly accurate in the short to mid-range to make up for his lack of arm strength? No. So, based on all that, I don’t think that Rising has much of a shot at playing on Sundays but, as we’ve seen with other QBs, it doesn’t mean that it’s impossible. Right now, he’s not really on anybody’s radar so, if and when he gets his shot, he’s got to make the most of it. I’ll give you the example of Skylar Thompson, the 3rd string QB of my pro team, the Dolphins. He was a 7th RD pick by the Dolphins in the 2022 draft and nobody thought that he would stick with the team. However, he had a couple of excellent performances in the preseason and essentially forced the team to keep him because, if they cut him, some other team was bound to pick him up. That’s what Cam has to do…make the most of his opportunities when they’re presented to him.

[RoboUte]

If you’re an NFL scout none, but I’m not and this Utah football. It’s contextual.

[W16Ute]

I feel like I’ve seen comments like Cam was never good. That is not true and isn’t criticism. I’m ok with criticism but he certainly has talent.

I say he turned the team around last year due to leadership more than ability. They looked bad early and that was on Brewer. Cam much better all around than Brewer.

Hard to know who is better Huntley or Rising. Huntley grew a lot at Utah and i remember the skinny though athletic kid that made bad decisions and got injured as much as the put a lot of weight on and matured version of Huntley. But that’s the fun in comparing year to year is the unknown.

But why best player plays? Why not develop Johnson against Colorado and look to the future?

[The Miami Ute]

To me it’s no contest. Huntley is a legitimate NFL QB and Rising is not. Let ask you a question though, where does Rising stand in the pecking order of PAC-12 QBs? Is he better than Williams? No. Is he better than Nix? No. Is he better than Penix? No. Is he better than DTR? Debatable. Is he better than McKee? NFL scouts would laugh at that. Is he better than de Laura? Debatable. Is he better than Ward at Wazzu? Debatable. So, based on all that, at best Rising is in the upper middle of PAC 12 QBs and at worst he’s in the lower middle. If he’s in the lower middle and additionally plays bad, the Utes little to no chance of winning against good competition. I mean, last night he was outplayed by a QB that played on one leg, that’s the difference in talent between the two.

[Italy88]

Who has said he was never good?

[2008 National Champ]

It’s the internet. You can take offense to anything you want, whether it was actually said or not.

[EagleMountainUte]

Some of the runs make think he isn’t hurt. He had a few where he looked fine the field was affecting his movement a little.
His passing though. His injury must be bothering just one side of his game? But I don’t get how an injury makes you a single read qb who stares down routes, throws at shins and makes decisions presnap.
His vision was completely narrowed against one of the worst passing defenses in the country. It wasn’t even Oregon. It was just Rising.

But like I said those runs he had. Especially late where he tucked it made me think damn he is a Warrior.

[Italy88]

It’s not hate. It’s the reality of the situation last night. He single-handedly lost that game. He also has won a lot of games for Utah too. Lots on the line last night and he crapped the bed.

[The Miami Ute]

The reality is that if Rising plays mistake-free football in crucial situations, the Utes are 10-1 and in the mix for the CFP.

[2008 National Champ]

Immediately handing the ball back to the other team right after your Defense has forced a turnover is inexcusable. To have it happen twice in one game.,, well, at least Reid scored on his turnover so that the offense didn’t waste that one also.

[Trailgoat]

Cam said his knee was good to go. Maybe he reinjured his shoulder, who knows. QB gets all the credit for wins and the blame for losses, it’s the way it goes with the position. Watching Cam on the sidelines vs. Nix last night was telling. Nix could barely hop on his leg, he made no excuses and stepped up to beat Utah without running (-3 yards), good thing or it would of been worse. Nix was on his feet cheering on the defense, firing up his Oline, totally engaged with the team and coaches. Rising looked disengaged on the sidelines, in the camera shots I saw he was mostly sitting on the bench with the head phones on when not in the game and pretty much stood on the sidelines watching the game, showing very little team emotion compared to Nix. Not calling out Cam as I’m sure he was doing more for the team off camera, etc, just going off what I saw watching the game.

Rising did amazing things for Utah football, but could not win the big games on the road in pressure situations. Honestly, this has been one of KWs big weakness as coach unable to mentally handle or manage his team when they are the hunted so I’m sure players feed off KW’s lack of confidence with Utah getting attention as well.

Rising had a long up and down career at Utah, half of it was off the field injured. Interesting to me is Rising stats to date for 2021 and 2022 are very similar. Ludwig got everything he could out of Rising’s talent and capabilities as a QB. CR has a great career ahead of him at whatever he does, maybe it’s just time for him to move on from playing football. I’m sure he will go through the pre-NFL pro day exercises and get closure when he’s not picked up by a NFL team as a free agent. Kids been a joy to watch and made history for Utah in his short time playing at Utah. Hopefully he finishes strong with a win at CU. Would like to see Barnes gets some PT in the CU and bowl game and maybe NJ if the RS can be preserved. 

[Ute Dub]

Good list, but oof, Scott Mitchell had the top college football offense in the country and was a long time NFL starter, so yeah, he’s going to be ahead of BJ in my opinion, maybe some others.  Cam won the PAC 12 title, BJ and Alex won MWC. Alex was at the forefront of the spread, an advantage for sure. Again, good list overall sans the legend of Drew Lisk.