Recruiting highly rated QBs that don’t know how to play QB

[chinngiskhaan]

JJ, Nate, Costelli – Great athletes that are clearly not good enough at the QB parts of playing the QB position.

IMO this is a bad strategy. I don’t think it would be fair to say we have totally relied on that strategy. With Nate we also picked up Rose. JJ came together with someone else as well. However, we have used it to some degree.

I don’t like the idea of someone who is a below average thrower running our offense. I also don’t like the idea of recruiting athletes under the guise of letting them play QB, with the hope that they switch positions later on. I don’t know, I get it from a strategic standpoint, but it bothers me on an ethical level (not the coaches problem, just my problem).

Ultimately, I’d rather have two guys that can sling it in one class rather than one guy that can run, and another guy that can sling it. Seems like the safer approach to me. HOWEVER, I recognize that this may not work out logistically because it might drive QB recruits away.

[Ute Dub]

Getting JJ on the team, in any way possible, was a good strategy. Also, Nate is going to make some big plays for us Utah this year. 

[UteBacker]

Coach Whitt:  “Sling it?… I’m not sure what you mean by that”.

[Hellhound152]

QB recruting from the high school level is likely the most difficult chore in football, at any level.  They are always the best player and likely the best athlete on their team.  They are running basic offenses that don’t require a ton of reads, the throwing windows are huge, and when they tuck and go the coaches are happy.

Unfortunately, you don’t really know what you have until they get here and so all you can do is find the best raw materials you can get and hope that you hit 1 for 3 which keeps you with an high level starter and hope that the program guy who can run the offense can keep you above water if he gets injured.

[Larry B]

I would expect Johnson to become our next great Corner or Safety. That’s just what we do with athletic QB’s that aren’t great passers.

[ProudUte]

We have moved a lot of QBs to other positions where they have had great success.  It has worked out for the players like Kruger, Hansen, Jackson, et al.  It has helped the team.  So, what’s wrong with that?  Guys like Weddle and Covery played QB in high school, but were not recruited as such.  It all works out.

I think they recruited Johnson to be a QB and he may yet be QB1 in the future.  However, if he ends up at WR or CB – I am okay with that.  BYU should have moved Taysom Hill to safety.  He is an amazing athlete that may have been an All-American at a different position.  BUt, he is having a nice pro career and making a lot of money.

I am frustrated that we swang and missed with Costelli and Tuttle.  But that happens with every college team.  The biggest frustration with these two guys is that we had local legacy kids we passed on because we thought these guys were better.  Oh well – that is water under the bridge.

[Larry B]

There’s nothing wrong with it. I actually hope the coaches can find a way to use Johnson. I just don’t think it’s going to be at QB.

[Charlie]

Guessing…

It is part of FB that starts in HS and before. The best 2 FB players on a team will play QB and RB unless the body type is clearly lineman. As the best move on to college there will be position changes. Peterson at TCU once talked about how he preferred HS QBs and RBs for all the skill positions and more. He could even turn them into DEs. As a result, many HS QBs are not playing their natural position and college ball works them into other spots.

Next, I believe coaches often tell HS recruits their skill sets are very good for spots different than their experience. Naturally, kids with multiple possible spots get the chance to begin with their choice. While this is going on most schools recruit 3 or 4 QBs to find a starter. It is a natural FB process but noted more at QB because the HS pool has so many good athletes.

What is important at Utah is the process ultimately is successful. The portal makes it harder to manage a maturation process that takes time. A couple of high profile QB in a row that move to other spots will cause angst in the process. But at the end of the day you have the important Utah theme, ‘You become one of us, we don’t become you’. In part, you morph into the team not the other way around. An alternative in the Pac is simply bring in portal players to supplement the QB room. I prefer our approach but either approach leaves you with years feeling pressure to make an adjustment work. But I agree, the process should be open and honest and I think we are there for the most part.

[UtesRule]

Who’s giving up on Nate Johnson as a QB at Utah?

He’s a RS Freshman going into 2023. It’s not common (unless the QB is a generational talent) for QB’s to start or even play significant time at a high level Power school (which Utah clearly is now) without learning for a couple of years in the system.

We need not look further than our own Cam Rising as an example of this.

He needs to get healthy, work hard this Summer, give it his best effort to be QB2 in the Fall, and then work hard in practice, with a real chance to come in and fight for the QB1 role in 2024, as a RS Sophomore and a lot more experience in the system.

[AZUTE]

This spring was worst case scenario for Nate. He desperately needed these reps to compete with Rose and he got hurt early and missed 1/3 of the practices and what reps he did get were very limited.

Coaches are still very high on him at QB but if he falls further behind Rose and is asked to switch positions it will be to WR. He is ultra dynamic with the ball in his hands. WR screens and jet sweeps would be his bread and butter

[pedro]

You are taking great liberties in your assumptions of what the coaches are trying to do.  You are also painting yourself as to know more than the staff does.  

Not attacking you, but stating my perception.  

Nothing personal, but I’ll trust Whit and Lud over us fans.  

[chinngiskhaan]

Trust them over me? What did I ever do to hurt you? – J/K

Obviously I am taking great liberties. I don’t know much of anything about the ins and outs of the game of football, especially how to run a program. I’m not suggesting that I am right and the coaches are wrong, I just have a different opinion (and it’s not my job to run the programa so my focus is obviously different).

– I’d rather they go after two throw-first guys than 1 of each type. Just my opinion. Also, it just bugs me that we are apparently recruiting guys under the guise of giving them a chance at QB when anyone who watches them play can tell they aren’t good enough at throwing a football to ever play QB for us.

If you want to argue that they are recruiting the best athlete on a HS team that happens to play QB… I would argue that it would be more effective to recruit players that actually play the skill position you want that HS QB to play.

Am I right? LOL, probably not. I don’t really care to put enough logical thought into it to actually be right. I’m just throwing stuff out there.