Monkeypox

It would be an indication, but that's all. You'd have to watch the system of one team and the personnel of another. And then you'd have to project what happens when those two teams come together. No coach in their right mind comes into an already good team and totally changes everything they do. Dickey's all but admitted he has no idea what LSU is gonna come out with. You think it's just a matter of watching OSU's game film from last year and saying "Okay, this is what they're gonna do..."?

They're being nice. While I agree that with a new system and staff, there will be some missteps for LSU, I think it's a bigger problem that they know exactly what we're gonna do and can gameplan for it, while we know virtually nothing of their new system. Of course, it's not like we'd really gameplan anyway, but that's beside the point.

Agreed. But also, I think we won't really know until somebody plays an entire game. Dickey will name a starter, and then he'll put them in rotation. Likely this rotation will only last one game, since we play MTSU in week 2, but as soon as one guy is struggling, the next guy will be put in. That's my guess, of course, but I see it happening until one guy establishes himself above the other. I hate this QB mess, but every school has to go through it now and then. Our defense and O-Line/Running Game have to be up to the task, though. In 2002, we won a game or two where we didn't even throw the ball 10 times. If you're worried about experience at QB, you don't want to put them in a bad position (SEE: OOC Games). Defense must get stingy and put the offense in good position.

from http://rockyhorror.org Where is Denton? There are eighteen (count 'em) Dentons in the US - Arkansas, Georgia, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan, Missouri, Mississippi, Montana (two), Nebraska, North Carolina, New York, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, and Texas (two). There is also a Denton which is a suburb of Manchester, England. Denton is supposed to be "Anytown, USA." The popular belief is that the Denton in the movie is located in Ohio, which has been all but proven to be true with a piece in the Rocky Horror Scrapbook that shows Janet's address as 10 Main Street, Denton, Ohio. This can't be used as absolute proof, however, as the scrapbook was a limited edition piece that came out after the movie, and was mainly put together by Brian Thompson. More likely than not, when the name "Denton" was initially used, nobody gave any consideration as to what state it was in.

Probably. I've never heard them do it, though. I tried listening to that station for a week, and could disseminate no useful information from it.

Monkeypox, giddy as schoolgirl, pulls the name James Mitchell out of his hat. Mitchell, despite his size, was a primetime blocker for record-setter Jamario Thomas last year. Who said a fullback had to weigh in at 250lbs? And when he was needed as a starter, he stepped in and didn't miss a beat. The biggest factor in Monkeypox's decision to take Mitchell off the board in what he refers to as "the steal of the draft, not counting the clipboard I stole," was this factoid: "Did not have a run for negative yardage in 41 carries." That ain't easy, folks. .

GREAT article.

Yeah, at the time I had to leave, he had 1 sack, 2 ff, 1 fr, and 1 int.

He ran for 485 yards and 14 TDs last year, to go with his passing numbers. He's a shifty runner, at the very least. More importantly though, he knows WHEN to throw and when to run. The big difference is the style of offense we run compared to his high school. Lake View ran a fairly advanced spread offense, 4 wides and one back, so there are some things for him to learn seeing as how we're about 180 degrees from that. One thing though is that he doesn't have to put in the time mechanically or in the gym (as much) that you might have to committ to with a QB just out of high school. And you won't be afraid to open up the offense with him. It's also nice to know we've got other top offensive players from Lake View along with him.

We're not a major program.... yet.

Yeah, I think the coaches have Haynes at #3. Ieans is still a developmental guy. He's got bucketloads of raw talent, but pretty soon he's gonna have to turn it on. He may be another Ja'Mel Branch. As far as alternating QBs, I think we'll see it in LSU and some other non-conference games. We play all our conference games close to the hilt, though, so unless we demolish somebody, I dont see it happening there.

Well, to toot my own horn a little bit, I'll quote my own post from a few weeks ago regarding Phillips in the competition for the starting QB.

I don't think they're interested in Washington as a passer. There must be something about his arm (mechanics, strength, etc.) that they don't like, since he was kind of singled out as someone who they're NOT trying at QB. I don't have his exact numbers from high school. I know he threw for around 1,000 yards, but I don't think he had particularly good passing numbers otherwise. He was a runner first and foremost. I would think that even if he were going to be a QB around here, that, like Warren, he would need a year of just learning how to be a passer first. To be fair, the only freshmen QBs I've actually seen play are Warren and Phillips. I believe that Phillips is the most developed passer. Still, none of our guys have experience. And while people like to say that Scott Hall lacked experience or Smith lacked experience, I think they're missing the point. Our expectations have grown. The target on our backs has grown. People want to go undefeated in conference, beat some OOC opponents, and win a bowl game. They've got every right to be nervous with nothing but question marks at one of the most critical positions on the team.

Yeah, I don't see why anybody would be worried about the durability of a QB who's been injured at every competition level since junior high. We need to give him credit for surviving one season where he wasn't a starter, played in 0 games, and received a fraction of the reps in practice? He missed way too much of the spring because he was injured. As soon as he comes back, he starts getting banged up again. Any scout in football's gonna look at this kid and write down "injury-prone." That label might be unfair, but our fears are not. Meager hasn't shown the ability to make it through PRACTICE when taking the majority of reps. No, injuries are not something we have any control over, and sometimes people just get hurt or are unlucky, but the concerns here are legitimate, ESPECIALLY since they're regarding an inexperienced QB who needs all the reps he can get. The advantage of his pedigree is fading every time he gets jostled around in practice. Heck, Meager might make it the next three years without even getting a hangnail, but I wouldn't bet on it. I don't like the idea that my team will have to rely on a question mark. Unfortunately, that's all we have at the position this year, but every day Meager misses a practice is a day that his particular question mark gets bigger.

I doubt he'll get to #2 on the depth chart. He's behind Justin Tuck, who was a star and team MVP at Notre Dame. The Giants drafted him in the 3rd round. Now, Tuck's a little undersized, so Adrian has a shot, and we've had players overcome such situations before (Kassell comes to mind), but it would be an uphill battle for him just to get to #2.

I was on the list, but I wasn't actually affected.

The reason I have Ieans listed last is how bad he's looked at the position in the past. It's the unfortunate side effect of having the reps he's had. By all virtues he could be better than the 2 or 3 guys I've listed whom I've yet to see take a snap for the Mean Green.... but it would be hard. Right now, I don't have enough evidence on any of these guys to REALLY have an idea what they're capable of, and I've got no ponies in this race, so it has to be taken with a grain of salt. Meager: Meager was obviously one of the top two going into the spring.... it was between him and Byerly. In the time he did play, he came out just under Byerly, not enough to really separate, and I figured it would come down to the summer. It did. Byerly didn't pass, and that puts Meager in the driver's seat. He's got the pedigree and the numbers. He was considered a very good recruit, and to some degree I'll defer to those whose job it is to evaluate such things. For now, Meager's the man. Mills: It's not often someone leaves a team and comes back, but these are seemingly desparate times. I'm one of those who feel there's nothing worse than not knowing who THE guy is. Mills has been in the system longest, which, despite the fact that we don't run the Fun 'n' Gun out there, DOES matter. It's a difference in just the TIME SPENT in the college game.... seeing, reading, recognizing. It's also one of the most important features in a backup. You don't necessarily go for the most spectacular here, but the guy who can reasonably get the job done. Haynes: For many of the same reasons Mills will be in there fighting, Haynes will be there, even if only for backup duties. His familiary with the system will place him a little higher than the other guys, and he's looked good in practices. Phillips: If I DID have a bias, it would probably be for this guy, but I've got my reasons. Size, strength, numbers. It also happens to be the guy I've seen and heard play the most, from my time in West Texas over the last couple of years. Although his arrival at North Texas wasn't nearly as heralded as some of the other young QB recruits, I feel he would be the most likely to step in his freshman year and make a difference. He's the most "ready", IMO. That doesn't necessarily mean his has the most upside. Warren: I've also had the pleasure of seeing Warren play. Great kid, superb athlete. Having family in and around Burleson, I've gotten a pretty big picture of Warren the Gamer. What I haven't really seen enough of to feel comfortable with him stepping in is Warren the Passer. Even in our offense, that's what a QB's main responsibility MUST be. Make quick, smart decisions and get the ball to your guys. Because Warren was more of a runner in high school, I'd want a year more to develop his arm, mechanics, decision-making. He appears to be more of a project, but that's not necessarily a bad thing. Ieans: Ieans is kind of an enigma. You can see the athleticism there, but nobody seems to know what the RIGHT position is for him. It's getting a little late in the game for him to be an unknown quality, and he hasn't looked very sharp with the ball in his hands. He could CLICK. Stranger things have happened. In fact, I think that's how it will HAVE to happen for Ieans, if it does at all. I wouldn't mind seeing the light come on for him, at ANY position. Heck, I'd try him at DB. Now, all that said, a moment more on the freshmen. I believe their best chance is with the starting job. I think if they can't beat Meager, then you red-shirt them, and put someone like Mills, Haynes, or Ieans in the backup role. If Meager goes down with an injury long-term, though, you might see one of the freshmen do a leap-frog over the backups to the starting position.

My personal unfounded list, not necessarily how I believe it SHOULD be, but how I would anticipate it shaking out, given the limited info we have right now: 1) Meager 2) Mills 3) Haynes 4) Phillips 5) Warren 6) Ieans

I'd wait until he actually plays his senior year and signs with UT.

Well, since I don't believe any of our guys are in it, I'll have to make comments on other teams. UT represents. Colt McCoy just may have the Longhorns saying "Perri-who?." This Jermichael Finley character, WR at 6'5", 218 lbs.... yeah, read that.... NASTY. Big and strong. May not have the speed at the next level, or may not have the speed for the NFL, but he's a man among boys in this competition, with the best Texas High School players.

I haven't heard anyone say that they wanted him at QB because he was a TRUE QB. I think the difference is that Byerly at least had practiced and PLAYED QB in college, and that he had the reps, and that he was our best performer in the offseason (so far) at the position. I trust THAT over a guy just out of high school not recruited to play QB. They didn't name Byerly a starter his FRESHMAN year , so your analogy doesn't really work. That said, I want whoever performs the best... period. I don't care what position they are slated to play or what scouts thought of them. BUT these guys are TRUE FRESHMEN, and they haven't even gotten any reps at QB. They have no time in the offense, and they need to add some size. Warren only threw for 489 yards his senior year. He'd probably need a year just to develop his passing. Washington threw for 1,000+ I believe, but is lacking in size, and his TD/INT rate wasn't impressive. We don't run the option that often, so I don't much care about the 40-time of our QB. What this team needs on offense is a guy who can make the throws and take pressure OFF of the running game. We've already got two running backs, so unless you wanna go and overhaul our offense, you're going to need a guy with a good arm who makes good decisions. There are plenty of reasons why you shouldn't put these guys in at QB right now. Heck, they could perform, but lots of people MIGHT be able to perform. I'd rather hedge my bets on true QBs OR guys who've been in the system getting the reps. Meager is currently the best bet, even given his health concerns. After that, I'd probably prefer to go with Haynes, Mills, or Phillips before Warren or Washington. The first two have more experience in the offense and Phillips has better size and was more of a true QB in high school (which is going to be more important when you have no college reps).

What indications would you be referring to, because they certainly don't match up with those who saw them play, including the coaching staff?

I still haven't figured out whether it's tougher or easier than last year, as I'm still finding my bearings. One thing I don't get is that they finally do significant changes to the game, but most of them are fairly pointless and stupid. RFTH is the dumbest edition ever... I just don't see the point. Is there anyone here who hasn't BASICALLY played Race For The Heisman every time they've gotten a good recruit? I also don't care much for the rearrangement of the recruiting back to the old "Head Coach/Assistant Coach/Phone Call" system. It was better, IMO for you to just assign the number of points you wanted to give a recruit. So far the only GOOD additions I've seen are making it easier to complete passes in the flat (gimmes in previous year, but nerfed to uselessness last year) and the little bar that keeps track of what you attempted to sell the recruit on.

The mustache alone is worth about 4 tackles per game.

I've kinda been wondering that same thing. I guess it's the Denton thing. Otherwise.....