2021 QB Discussion

Submitted by NeverPunt on December 15th, 2020 at 4:19 PM

Just saw that Texas had a Freshman qb (Ja'Quinden Jackson) enter the portal and it got me thinking about our QB situation going into next season. 
 

If you were in charge of the team (since who knows who will be) are you rolling with Milton, McNamara, McCarthy and Villari? Are you looking for a transfer? 
 

We saw very little of a healthy Milton or McNamara behind a healthy line that it seems hard to know what we have there.

chunkums

December 15th, 2020 at 4:24 PM ^

I would expect to start McNamara, but I wouldn't be opposed to picking up a transfer. Everyone was talking about the Milton v McCaffrey competition in the offseason and completely discarded McNamara. The dude was a solid 4* recruit with an outstanding offer list. He came out of high school with a lot of polish and he wasn't in the discussion in 2019 because he was a true freshman. I thought the offense with him in the game looked similar to what we ran at the end of the 2019 season. He doesn't have Milton's arm, but he definitely has a strong enough arm to be a successful power 5 starter.  

Blau

December 15th, 2020 at 5:09 PM ^

RE: Milton - Just doesn't have enough different pitches he can throw at this point. He's got the fastball and that's it really. Maybe that's something he can work on but players typically revert back to habits when under stress from good D lines.

Also he's not that slow but unless it's a designed run, he's got a little Navarre-statue thing going on. He's got a HUGE frame and maybe working with a speed/agility coach over the off season could see him put a little pep in his step. We don't need 20yd runs but a little slither to escape the pocket would be nice.

TrueBlue2003

December 15th, 2020 at 5:40 PM ^

I don't think he's nearly as statue-esque as Navarre but he's like Ben Roethlisberger early in his career.  Big dude with a little bit of straight line speed (that Navarre didn't have) but not much else in terms of running ability.

I think Milton's biggest problem is that it seems like he can't go through his progressions and can't make reads and the coaches don't trust him with any option calls.  That's a killer.  Maybe it clicks but it's year three so I'm not holding my breath.

It's probably McNamara next year with McCarthy potentially pushing him.  Milton being an option would just be a pleasant surprise.

chunkums

December 15th, 2020 at 8:53 PM ^

I initially wondered if it was a fluke when he let his nuts hang at the end of the Wisconsin game. Then when he came in and did it again against Rutgers, I took notice. We scored a point a minute in regulation when he was playing. Then I thought, okay, it's just Rutgers. He looked solid again at the start of the PSU game before he got hurt.

Gree4

December 15th, 2020 at 4:27 PM ^

I wouldnt be surprised if Milton Transfers. I would expect MacNamara to start and fans to call for JJ every time he has an incompletion. 

ERdocLSA2004

December 15th, 2020 at 5:02 PM ^

I think McNamara showed enough moxy, leadership, and game management to be the qb1 going into next season.  Ideally this gives JJ a year or two to continue to develop.  If Milton has his heart set on qb, probably best to transfer.  If he stays, Funchess V2.0.

Mich04-08

December 15th, 2020 at 4:29 PM ^

Before we get to the 2021 QB, let's see who the coach is and the system they want to run. If it's still Harbaugh, I'll check in after next year's OSU game to see how the season went.

RandallFlagg

December 15th, 2020 at 4:31 PM ^

I watched this kid play a few times in high school and the answer is NO.  He can’t complete a pass to a wide open receiver more than five yards downfield.  Maybe as a RB but definitely not a QB. 

skatin@the_palace

December 15th, 2020 at 4:32 PM ^

There seem to be very few guys locked into starting spots outside of Dax "Please don't transfer" Hill. Kind of wild we're going into 2021 knowing less about the team than we did at the end of 2019. 

Naked Bootlegger

December 15th, 2020 at 4:33 PM ^

I would definitely assess the transfer portal, especially if any of the current QB's on the depth chart dips their toes into said transfer portal.     

I saw enough of Milton to know that despite his pure gold arm strength, he still has accuracy/mechanical issues that rear their ugly head at inopportune times.  I'm not astute enough to know how well he reads defenses and goes through proper progressions.

McNamara seemed to have a better feel for the offense than Milton, but I'm also not astute enough to know whether offensive game planning played a role in this perception.  But the offense moved more smoothly with him at the helm (pre-injury).

IMHO, McNamara is the current 2021 QB1.   But the QB competition should be wide open for anyone to win, including McCarthy or a potential transfer. 

Brhino

December 15th, 2020 at 4:36 PM ^

Dylan McCaffrey sat out this season and "will seek a transfer".  And we tried real hard to make believe it was because he had fallen to third on the depth chart.  Even though he's still on campus, and even though everyone gets some extra options due to COVID, and then the season happened, and yeah... he wasn't going to be the third string quarterback.

So it seems like the issue is, unfortunately, a toxic relationship with the coaching staff.  Which begs the question - if we had a different coaching staff, any chance that relationship could be mended and he could return?  Or has he already done something official that closes that possibility?

ERdocLSA2004

December 15th, 2020 at 5:10 PM ^

if we had a different coaching staff, any chance that relationship could be mended and he could return?  Or has he already done something official that closes that possibility?

We can dream, right?  I don’t believe anything official has been announced, but that obviously doesn’t mean it hasn’t occurred.  If he’s transferring, I’d imagine he’d be enrolling in classes somewhere by now.