Russell Bellomy 1 for 4 yesterday

Submitted by artds on

Should have been 4 for 4 as all 3 incompletions were drops.

He had back-to-back drops by Funchess and Roundtree in the 2nd quarter, and the drop by Jerald Robinson in the 4th (which doesn't show on the stat line since there was Illinois penalty on the play, but would have counted as a completion had it not been dropped).

Then there was the 8-yard completion to J. Robinson right after the drop.

What are everyone's thoughts on Bellomy based on his limited action so far?

 

 

 

 

los

October 15th, 2012 at 11:57 AM ^

I think Devin Gardner will be the QB next year based on his admitted desire to play QB and the fact that both Gardner and the Coaches consider him a QB first. Don't forget he was a highly rated QB coming out of highschool, has more knowledge of the playbook than Bellomy, and is more of an athelete and would provide less of a transitional jolt to the offense and playcalling come next year. Bellomy is looking pretty good, but Gardner's move to WR was due to lack of depth at the position and GArdner's ability to play it. It wasn't due to Gardner getting beat out by Bellomy.

Seattle Maize

October 14th, 2012 at 12:17 PM ^

I really think the kid is going to be a very good QB for us starting next year. As he continues to gain weight/arm strength in the off season, it will help him become a more downfield threat. His biggest strengths are his decision making, accuracy and quick release and with our offense looking more like a traditional power O, he will play very well in my opinion.

teamgreg8

October 14th, 2012 at 12:19 PM ^

A theory of mine is that Bellomy's passes travelled faster than Denard's and the receivers just didn't make the adjustment. Throw in some rain and you have a recipe for some drops. I liked what I saw out of Bellomy yesterday.

Elmer

October 14th, 2012 at 2:52 PM ^

Bellomy's passes that were dropped didn't look like they were thrown harder than Denard does, they were just dropped in the rain.  He doesn't have a gun, but adequate arm strength and he looks to have some nich touch on the ball.

My favorite play was the screen, where his height helped him to dump it over the top of the oncoming rusher and he showed some good agility just to get the pass off.

M - Flightsci

October 14th, 2012 at 7:31 PM ^

On one of the drops he pretty much gunned it over the middle to Roundtree, who was at about linebacker depth.  Looked to me like it was thrown unnecessarily hard for the conditions and 'tree just couldn't hang on.  Bellomy probably had a bit of nerves and was throwing as hard as he could, I know I would in that sort of situation.

MgoDlu

October 14th, 2012 at 12:20 PM ^

I thought that first drop that he threw to Funchess was pretty good considering he's a young QB and had pressure coming at him. Here's to more blowouts that will allow him to get more experience 

denardogasm

October 14th, 2012 at 12:20 PM ^

Until I see him throw a pass longer than 15 yards I'm going to maintain that he is not a Michigan level starting quarterback.  He just doesn't seem strong enough to me.  An experienced career backup is a valuable commodity to have on your team though.  Very possible he beefs up before next year, and I hope he does considering neither of the other two scholarship quarterbacks on the roster will have played the position in a game at any level for at least a year.

ppToilet

October 14th, 2012 at 1:11 PM ^

at the August practice.  He can make all the throws.  He has better touch on the deep balls than Denard and can throw the ball farther than Denard.  He doesn't run as well as Denard but is mobile and showed that yesterday.

The more playing time he gets, the better he'll get and I thought he had pretty good decision-making out there yesterday. The timing with the receivers was off and with the rain, that compounded the problem.

There's a reason Gardner moved to receiver this year. If Bellomy wasn't good enough to be the backup, then that move would not have happened.

 

mgokev

October 14th, 2012 at 12:23 PM ^

Overall, I have mixed emotions about him.  One one hand, he made the throws he was assigned yesterday and was hurt by the drops of his teammates.  That said, it is beyond obvious that the coaches reign in the playbook when he is on the field.  I thought that when he came in for Denard when we were deep in the red zone that play action would be a great choice given our repitition of running plays.  

Of course, a lot of this has to do with having the game already in hand by the time he sees a lot of action, but just from a fan's perspective, I'm anxious to see his arm tested in trips or 4wr sets in meaningful play.

But if I was forced to make a generalization on him as a player without a ton of evidence, I would classify him as fairly accurate but limited in arm strength.  

It will definitely be a tough decision for the coaching staff between our 3 QB's for next year.

 

JayZ1817

October 14th, 2012 at 12:24 PM ^

I thought he looked very good going through his reads and hitting the guys who were open. Even on the one pass where he had a defender breathing down his neck, he flipped it right over him to Funchess, who unfortunately dropped it. He definitely gained some respect from me as far as being the starter for next year.

BlockM

October 14th, 2012 at 12:24 PM ^

Did a good job of staying calm and I think that's going to be the biggest thing we need next year. I hope he doesn't get thrown into an important game situation this year, but if he does I think he'll handle it pretty well.

Perkis-Size Me

October 14th, 2012 at 12:27 PM ^

Glad he's getting some snaps, but I still have my doubts as to whether or not he's he's a starting caliber QB. Doesn't look like he has a very strong arm. I hope he proves me wrong, though.

bacon1431

October 14th, 2012 at 12:29 PM ^

I think we would benefit greatly from another year as a backup behind Devin starting next year. But if he is our starting QB, I don't think it's the end of the world.

Always hard to evaluate backup QBs working with the 2nd team.

TyrannousLex

October 14th, 2012 at 12:29 PM ^

We didn't see anything deep, but he can zing it. I found it interesting that both Funchess and Roundtree ditched their gloves after the drops. Tough time to adjust to a new QB. He can use his feet a little too from the looks of it.

I thought he'd get more time, but it was also a class act by the coaches to let Kennedy take some snaps.

Shane doesn't start next year unless there are injuries or he's leaps and bounds better than everyone else. The question will be whether Gardner decides that his best chance to play on Sundays is as a WR. If he wants the QB spot, i'd assume that it's his to lose.

Monocle Smile

October 14th, 2012 at 12:30 PM ^

This is some love affair.

Bellomy looked unplayable until late in the 4th quarter yesterday. The pressured throw to Funchess was way off target; Funchess made a great adjustment and just couldn't haul it in.

Our running game outside of Denard is struggling, which is partly why I feel that the less time Bellomy gets this year outside of garbage time, the better.

Bellomy does not have great arm strength. He was recruited to be a game manager. To do this, our running game is going to have to step up big time next year, or our offense will suffer.

Monocle Smile

October 14th, 2012 at 12:45 PM ^

And he WAS unplayable until his junior year. He was seventh on the depth chart, considered transferring to Cal, and needed a sports psychologist to help him out.

I fail to see where I said Bellomy will never be a good QB.

Arm strength can only be improved to a point within the time allowed.

I think you missed the entire point of my post.

SalvatoreQuattro

October 14th, 2012 at 1:04 PM ^

That he isn't ready to be the starting QB? Well, duh.A child could see that.

 

You made it sound like people were trumpting this guy as the next Drew Henson when all they were doing were commenting on his potential. Then you decided  to do your best Mel Kiper impression by stating unequivocally what kind of QB he will be.

 

snarling wolverine

October 14th, 2012 at 1:08 PM ^

Bellomy looked unplayable until late in the 4th quarter yesterday. The pressured throw to Funchess was way off target; Funchess made a great adjustment and just couldn't haul it in.

I don't understand how you can say this. On the throw to Funchess, he had an unblocked blitzer right in his face and I thought he did a really good job getting rid of the ball.  That it ultimately wasn't caught is immaterial; a lot of QBs get dropped for a loss there.  The next play he threw a perfectly fine pass to Roundtree that was dropped. We didn't see enough to draw firm conclusions, but I think he shows some potential.

Monocle Smile

October 14th, 2012 at 1:19 PM ^

was merely a response to the idea that the Funchess throw was on the money. I did like how he got rid of the ball...although I wonder how people would react if it was an interception or if Denard threw a pass just as inaccurate in that situation.

I was impressed with Bellomy's accuracy, and he doesn't appear jittery. That said, a guy can have all the typical journalistic "intangibles" in the world and still not have the ability to be a big-time player.

Also note that there were major cries of "put Bellomy in" during Notre Dame (not just on this board), and I still don't understand that mentality. There has been nothing so far that supports that hypothetical decision.

I see people are still missing the point. I never said Bellomy is a bad QB with no future as a starter at Michigan. Never. But given the scary O-line situation next year and the fact that our non-Denard running game is having problems already, I'm worried about next year's offense.

snarling wolverine

October 14th, 2012 at 3:10 PM ^

 

Also note that there were major cries of "put Bellomy in" during Notre Dame (not just on this board), and I still don't understand that mentality. There has been nothing so far that supports that hypothetical decision.

 

In any football game - no matter if the QB is Tom Brady, Johnny Unitas, Joe Montana, whatever - if the starter plays poorly, some fans will call for the backup QB to come in.   You will find that in every fanbase.

Also, going back to yesterday's game, I forgot to mention this above but I was in attendance and I saw Funchess rip his gloves off and throw them to the ground after he dropped that throw.  That looked like the actions of a guy mad at himself, not at his QB.

artds

October 14th, 2012 at 6:48 PM ^

Yes, but his pro career was a different story:

"Howard had been drafted by the Denver Broncos in the fifth round of the 1998 NFL Draft. His professional football career was haunted by fumble troubles, which caused the Broncos to release him before he played a regular season game for them. Howard began to have fumble problems again when the Jaguars acquired and promoted him to a role as a regular player."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chris_Howard_%28American_football%29

 

champswest

October 14th, 2012 at 12:48 PM ^

year, so I would like to see him get lots of game experience this year. His arm is fine. He will give us more of a passing threat next year and he has good mobility.

Jeff09

October 14th, 2012 at 1:09 PM ^

Very difficult to glean anything from spring games where he's running with the 2's and 3's and 4 snaps during a garbage time game against Illinois.  One way or the other I'll be a bit nervous about the situation going into next year until I see meaningful reps with first stringers from either him or Gardner.  It's always tough transitioning from a 3 year starter, we're no different in that regard.

Mich Mash

October 14th, 2012 at 1:36 PM ^

I think we have the best chance to win next year with Gardner starting at quarterback.  This is based on 2 areas of impact: Athleticism and Experience.

 

Athleticism

Gardner's upside is much higher than Bellomy's mainly due to his athleticism.  Gardner is not the most accurate passer, but he is adequate for this offense. What he brings to the table with his mobility is where he has the clear edge.  There is a reason he switched to WR this year and that is because the coaching staff felt obligated to maximize his impact on the field given that Denard would be the starter at QB.  The situation will be the same next year: the coaching staff will look to maximize his impact on the field and that will be at the QB position since Denard will no longer be there.  Mantra: get the ball in this guy's hands.

Experience

Gardner has been in the program longer, seen more game action (both at QB and overall), and he could quite possibly be the starter for two years while the program grooms Morris to be the heir apparent and the first facilitator of Borges's ideal offense (assuming he is granted his medical redshirt).  This would setup Morris to be a 3-year starter with Bellomy a solid backup for multiple years.

Brewers Yost

October 14th, 2012 at 2:03 PM ^

You have to consider if what you potentially gain at QB with Gardner make up for what you lose at wr. Personally, I think you are better off with Bellomy as your starting QB. Gardner has NFL potential at wr, which I have not seen from his QB game. I think it would be a disservice to Gardner to move him back to QB.