Spring Michigan QB Rundown w/ Link to Maize N Brew/resemblance of 20 year old Harbaugh and Speight

Submitted by benjamint1024 on

I liked the write up.  States mostly obvious things.  I'm sure some of you have already read this.  Slow news.

Main reason for post:  Pay special attention to the links in the article that go to pictures of JH and Wilton Speight.  The resemblance is uncanny.  I would have posted the pictures myself, but they stated in the article that they did not for copyright reasons.  If its okay with the board, sombody post them.

 

http://www.maizenbrew.com/2015/3/3/8079969/michigan-football-spring-rundown-quarterbacks

DomIngerson

March 3rd, 2015 at 1:20 PM ^

Morris may not end up being the guy but for anyone to write him off at this point is premature. He's played 1.5 games.

After JT Barrett's first 2 games, people were laughing at him.

Harbaugh will have someone ready. I think it's Morris but if not, I'm confident we'll be in good hands and the best guy will start.




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Tater

March 3rd, 2015 at 1:27 PM ^

I'm not counting Morris out, either.  His senior year of HS, he had mono.  His first two years at Michigan, he had two different David Brandon sock puppets for OC's.  He still has "The Arm" and there is a reason he was once a five-star.  

I wouldn't be surprised to see Morris finally start to realize his potential with the coaching he is going to receive.

DJMich23

March 3rd, 2015 at 1:31 PM ^

Obviously none of us can say for sure who the starter will be, but I say Speight because Morris hasn't done anything to solidify himself as the starter despite numerous opportunities (I know I know small sample size). He barely looked even decent and couldn't take the job last year despite Gardner's severe struggles, that says a lot imo. Malzone is a true freshman who may need more time to develop, although I think he may be a good one. 

I choose Speight because of his measurable and because I just don't think Sugar Shane has "it". IMO, Speight will be able to hold off Malzone to be the starting QB for Michigan.

DomIngerson

March 3rd, 2015 at 1:52 PM ^

Are we sure the coaches were playing the best guys last year? Yes, Shane was awful in the Minnesota game but I don't think it's unreasonable that he could have been outperforming Gardner in practice. Drake Johnson rode the pine until injuries allowed him to play.

We've all heard about Hokes loyalty to upperclassmen and returning starters.

It'll be fascinating to see which guys rise to the top of the depth chart with this coaching staff. I love their approach that it's a "fresh start" for everyone. No entitlement and the best will play.




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DJMich23

March 3rd, 2015 at 2:06 PM ^

But once he got the nod to start, well you know what happened. If Shane Morris played well, hell even decent in that game, there wouldn't be a QB controversy heading into the fall. I'm not convinced he's the guy at this point. All I can go off is what he's shown us, which wasn't much at all.

Honk if Ufer M…

March 3rd, 2015 at 8:45 PM ^

I don't understand why DG got to fail miserably, often worse than anything Shane has done, over and over and over and over again but apart from the one time it was never enough to say he shouldn't be the starter? Can't Shane at least get to fail maybe a tenth the amount Devin did before he's written off?

He's barely played. He's never played under good circumstances. He's never had help from his recievers, running backs, or his line. He's never had an extended period of continuous playing to see if he can pick things up or get comfortable or find a grove. Two years as a back up but never groomed to be a back up, a play here, a play there, once in a blue moon.

DomIngerson

March 3rd, 2015 at 2:34 PM ^

I guess we're all pretty much in agreement. I might just be slightly more optimistic in what JH can do with Shane's raw tools.

Good news is, our head football coach is pretty damn good with identifying QBs and developing them.

Honk if Ufer M…

March 4th, 2015 at 4:17 AM ^

On the Wednesday of opening weekend Hoke announced Drake was in the lead for starting RB after not mentioning him all fall, but then he didn't play and didn't play all year, with no injury announcements ever made about him. So he must have been healthy since the start of the year unless he really wasn't healed yet and Hoke comepletely lied when saying he was in the lead going into the first game as some great strategy for throwing off App State....

MGlobules

March 3rd, 2015 at 7:25 PM ^

was outplaying Shane. Again, memories are short, but Gardner had been the second-best QB in the B1G the year before in a host of categories, including completion %. The opportunity was there for Nussmeier, as the new OC, to make a clean break if Shane was better.

I'm totally cool with Shane taking the job because Harbaugh, but he has never looked good out there. He just hasn't. And he was an overrated recruit who missed bunches of passes. Maybe he discovers some deep wellspring of confidence, but under the even-greater scrutiny of Harbaugh. . . gonna have to come from within him.

DJMich23

March 3rd, 2015 at 2:40 PM ^

Morris actually looked capable in the bowl game vs Kansas State. He looked terrible in the Minnesota game which was months later however. It's all about progression, we'll know a lot more about Morris after spring/fall camp. If he can't pull away from Speight/Malzone then that in itself is very telling about his immediate future in regards to starting at Michigan. If he's as good as many of you seem to think he is, then he should pull away from the rest of the competition very soon.

I personally don't think he will  because if he could, Michigan's QB position wouldn't be up for grabs as it is now.

wahooverine

March 3rd, 2015 at 3:40 PM ^

Fair enough Shane Morris hasn't looked great in the 1.5 games he's played (on a couple of the most disapointing Michigan teams ever).  But on what are you basing your confident prediction that Speight will outperform all other QBs?  Because he is tall?   By that logic, Gentry will start.  I don't think Speight's one year under the tutelage of Borges /Nuss gives him the upper hand over Gentry, or Malzone for that matter.  Devin Gardner regressed under the same coaching.

DJMich23

March 3rd, 2015 at 4:19 PM ^

And by no means am I confident about it. I have zero evidence that Speight is the better QB at this point. I honestly just think Shane is that bad and yes, it's very premature for me to come to that conclusion. I do however think it's safe to say that Speight has an edge over Gentry/Malzone because of the years spent competing at Michigan while they were in high school. Say what you want about Borges/Nuss, but they're better than any coach on Gentry/Malzone's high school coaching staff. At the very least Speight has been practicing against high-caliber athletes.

I'm at a wait-and-see approach at this point when it comes to all of the QB's. The fact that Shane couldn't dethrone Gardner last year is troubling to me. Could the light switch turn on for Shane Morris? Absolutely, especially with Jim Harbaugh at the helm. I just have serious doubts that it will based on the limited sample I've seen from him.

Double-D

March 3rd, 2015 at 5:22 PM ^

ability to develop a QB. Especially a QB who was running for his life half the time. Shane may not be the best QB we have but we have nothing to base that on. I think whoever starts is going to have a nice season and it would not surprise me if it was Shane. All these guys have a nice opportunity based on where the program is right now and each of their starting points. They all seem to be good character guys. And dont sleep on Genrty. Harbaugh has shown he will make a bold upside move.

The Mad Hatter

March 3rd, 2015 at 1:32 PM ^

It would be nice for them to be capable of passing the ball more than 5 yards.  The total lack of a downfield passing threat gave opponents a massive advantage. 

geewhiz99

March 3rd, 2015 at 1:43 PM ^

While not discounting Morris as this is a three-way open competition between Morris, Speight and Malzone, several "sources" have stated that Speight and Malzone have appeared better in the recent practices. The latest quip is from Greg Henson (http://gregghenson.com/rumors-from-michigan-spring-practice/#comment-21…):

"Shane Morris is not performing well so far in spring drills.  Both Malzone and Wilton Speight are off to better starts under Harbaugh"

Given that Morris could not seize the moment when given the opportunity over the last couple of years, my money is on Speight to start in the fall.

maize-blue

March 3rd, 2015 at 2:37 PM ^

If Henson's inside info is trustworthy (*I think it probably is), Hoke ran slow and inefficient practices and starting positions were based on entitlement rather than being earned. There also is a statement alluding to conditioning not being up to Harbaugh's standards. Whether that is a result of off season or an indication of the condition Hoke had the team in, I don't know, probably a little of both. I think from game one we'll see a difference and that the team was indeed ran in a "country club" manner.

Sllepy81

March 3rd, 2015 at 1:44 PM ^

guy big time like harbaugh but not walmart, he probably had a easier up bringing. His High school here in Richmond is about as expensive and fancy as it gets. We'd love to send our kids but im talk $10k+ a year. That being said the kid is very good.

MichiganTeacher

March 3rd, 2015 at 3:14 PM ^

The public school population in NY dwarfs the private school population, and it's the same everywhere, as far as I know.

And yes, $10k is nowhere near the $45k that one old school I used to teach at is charging. It still might be fancy though. Catholic schools in particular get subsidized by the church and can be a comparative bargain.

EastCoast Esq.

March 3rd, 2015 at 3:23 PM ^

Very true on all counts. I mean, with private school costing so much, it would be SHOCKING if the public school population wasn't much, much larger.

 

Also, my point wasn't that you can't get a damn fine and fancy education for $10k. Rather, Sllepy made it seem like the school is fancy BECAUSE it costs $10k a year. At least that's how I took his post.

If you are judging based on cost, $10k isn't all that much.

EDIT: I keep looking at this last sentence and I keep getting sad.

uminks

March 3rd, 2015 at 1:49 PM ^

has the best raw talent but Speight may be able to learn the offensive scheme quicker. I worry about Morris' accuracy but that may have been due to the poor coaching. It almost looked like he was throwing to a spot on the field and either the receivers or Morris were off, or may both were off in timing and down-field placement.  I think it is great to have both compete against each other and may the best QB come out ahead. At least we will have a solid backup QB for the one who comes in 2nd.  If Harbaugh is not happy with either, it would not surprise me if he starts Malzone!

Mr. Owl

March 3rd, 2015 at 2:53 PM ^

2045.

Long time Michigan Coach Jim Harbaugh has decided to retire. The winningest coach to ever coach hands the reigns to 50 year old coach in waiting Wilton Speight. Coach Speight, in his trademark Khakis…

GoBlueTom

March 3rd, 2015 at 3:00 PM ^

But think Speight is going to win the job...Like people said earlier people we're dogging Barrett after a couple of games. With proper coaching hopefully the light will go off on Morris. Help is consisent O-line play, good running game, and Wrs getting open.

victors2000

March 3rd, 2015 at 5:10 PM ^

Barrett pretty much knew he was the man for quite a while before the season began and he still struggled early. Barrett probably got the most snaps and had the mindset that he was the starter while in Shane's case he knew the Senior was going to be the starter and Devin was getting most of the reps. This certainly influenced the coaching Shane got as well as his mindset. It's a new year, Shane is that much better for his experience, and he is the most experienced guy coming back, which is a benefit. I wouldn't sleep on Shane just yet. 

geewhiz99

March 3rd, 2015 at 3:26 PM ^

Irrespective of whether Morris gets better with "consistent o-line play, ...", the question remains: Is Morris the "best" quarterback on the roster. Only an open competition will determine that - all QBs will compete with the same o-line, WRs, etc and the best man will win the job!

Perkis-Size Me

March 3rd, 2015 at 4:06 PM ^

Its hard to discount anyone at this point considering the coaches gave everyone a clean slate, but for the time being, I think Speight will get the nod come game time vs. Utah. He just looks like he most fits the mold of what Harbaugh wants in his QB with regards to what we have on the roster right now. He's been on campus for a year, in the weight room, and let's be honest: while the O-Line didn't do Morris any favors, Morris looked pretty bad in the time he was given, and couldn't wrestle much playing time away from Gardner. That's saying something, regardless of the quality of coaching we had.

But if you asked me who might be starting in the next year or two, I'm thinking it'll be Gentry. He's not even on campus and he's already 6'6, 230 lbs. He's got a big arm, he's mobile, and he's just big in general. I am not comparing Gentry to Andrew Luck, but he's certainly built like him, anyway. I think he's EXACTLY what Harbaugh wants in a QB.

But for all I know, Morris will come in and blow everyone away, wrestle the starting job away from Day 1 and never look back. That's the beauty of competition like this. Whoever starts on Sept. 3rd will be the best option.

Wolfman

March 3rd, 2015 at 4:15 PM ^

and their decision making ability on who should play and who should not. It was clear by the the fifth game last season that Brady was completely lost. Who knows who made the decision on qb? Was it BH or Nuss?  The man was simply in wayyyyyyyyyyyy over his head and if his indecision and questionable actions were clear to someone watching on t.v., I imagine the entire staff, team and anyone associated with that mess was shaking their heads half the time at anything the man did.