Early Guess at QB Position
This is my first post on the blog so if this is being discussed already, I apologize.
I was just wondering who everyone was thinking will be the starting QB on opening day for Michigan. I realize this is way in advance, but it now seems like we have options at the QB position. If Robinson loses out on the job, could he switch to another position?
February 5th, 2009 at 1:09 PM ^
Threet and D.Rob with Tate doing the clean up work in the 4th quarter...
February 5th, 2009 at 1:12 PM ^
Some people think Threet is out because RR will want a running QB in for his game plan. Others, myself included, think that Threet will start, Tate and Denard will get worked in slowly, and one of them will be starting by the 3rd or 4th game. And, yet another group thinks that Threet will start all season.
So, I would say 2/3ish of the MGoBloggers think that Threet will start on opening day and the rest think Tate.
February 5th, 2009 at 1:32 PM ^
...and I like him. I really do. But I personally like Forcier.
I think Threet would do alright if he could stay healthy but I think he'd be best as a backup (or 3rd string if Forcier AND Robinson are doing well handling the offense. In that case, I wouldn't mind seeing Forcier/Robinson kind of like Leak/Tebow at Florida a few years back, except in our case it'd be with more speed.
Pretty much every time Tebow went in people knew they were going to run but I think Robinson can throw it well enough and Forcier can run it well enough to keep people guessing...throw in some run plays for Forcier and some pass plays for Robinson so we can utilize both of their strengths while keeping everyone more off-balance. At least more off-balance than last year when every play seemed to give the QB the option but he opted to hand it off nearly every time.
February 5th, 2009 at 1:36 PM ^
I think Threet WILL start at the start of the season. He was placed in an awful situation and simply wasn't that bad. He was a pocket passer in a spread offense, with one returning wide receiver and one returning lineman, and yet he had a 100-plus passer rating, a 50-plus completion percentage and more touchdowns than interceptions on the season.
How often did Threet get to sit in the pocket and find a receiver? Practically never. Watch Sam Bradford, Colt McCoy or Graham Harrell and you'll understand why they put up record numbers — they had great protection.
On top of that, Threet injured both elbows, which clearly had a negative effect on his play down the stretch. This year, the receivers and linemen can only be better, barring epic crises, and Threet will have another year of experience in the system.
He'll clearly be preferable to a freshman, at least at first. I agree that Denard will likely get sprinkled in at some points, as long as his passing is decent enough to provide a threat. (not like Feagin) Forcier could take Threet's job as the season goes on, but IMHO, it's Threet's job to lose.
I wouldn't be surprised, though, if either Forcier or Denard ultimately gets redshirted. That way we'd have one QB who's at least decent in three straight graduating classes.
February 5th, 2009 at 1:38 PM ^
Threet over an entire NCAA season and seeing Forcier over zero games. I would have to give the edge to Threet, if healthy.
February 5th, 2009 at 1:44 PM ^
I think Forcier will start. Did I watch a different Threet than some of you? I saw a Threet who was awful and I don't think it is all curable. Sure he can't run, but that will still be the case. He won't fit the system any better this year. Further, he constantly missed open receivers. That is not a system issue, it is an accuracy issue. I'd be surprised if he started. Rod can't say that because if Forcier and Robinson flop, Rod will want to keep Threet's confidence up, but that has to be what he is thinking.
February 5th, 2009 at 1:50 PM ^
Another vote for Tate
Its just a feeling I have. Tate is a better Spread QB than Threet and there is no disputing that fact. I think Tate's accuracy will be the difference maker in the competition. Tate just "fits" this offense better than Threet.
Faster, quicker, better arm, more accurate=Tate is the starter.
Threet has the experience and size advantage. Thats big, but talent will win out.
February 5th, 2009 at 2:21 PM ^
"Tate is a better Spread QB than Threet and there is no disputing that fact."
Really?? How many snaps have you seen Tate take out of the spread for Michigan? ZERO. There is a lot more to playing QB than wearing the color coordinated wrist bands. Tate may be great, he may start opening day. He may also suck. We don't know.
What we do know is that QB is a position where decision making is probably the single most important skill. That is a skill honed with experience and repetition. So assuming a true freshman will be able to make better decisions than a player who took the majority of the snaps in roughly 2/3 of the games last year is a big stretch.
February 5th, 2009 at 2:06 PM ^
spring practice. If Tate has a good spring he is a lock. Threet just doesn't have it and I am not sure he ever will.
February 5th, 2009 at 2:16 PM ^
Accuracy...thats all i have to say. threet came into college known as a pocket passer, and he failed miserably at that. even when protection was good towards the end of the season, he failed to hit open recievers down field, and he was absolutely incapable of hitting players in stride on the screen pass. he just coodnt get it done, and i really dont think any amount of experience will help him in these two facets. he offers very little in terms of speed and athleticism, so im really not sure what the upside is here.
tate forcier was rated by rivals as being the #1 QB in terms of accuracy. that alone is enough to tell me that hes the guy i want in. because nothing hurts my heart more than to see wide open recievers get overthrown by 15 feet (see massey's missed TD). in addition, forcier offers infinitely greater athletic ability, which will help him keep plays alive wen protection breaks down (watching his tapes, you have to love the way forcier's eyes stay fixed down field while hes scrambling to elude a rusher). Plus the potential to qb sneak gives our offense an additional weapon that defenses will have to protect against.. and as far as experience goes, forcier ran a spread offense in high school. it is also important to remember that forcier ran a spread offense in high school, which means he should be quick to pick up the RR system.
finally denard robinson was noted by Rich Rod as being one of the fastest kids in the class. plus hes got a live arm, which means he wont just be the latest version of the justin feagin offense (dont even bother covering the pass wen hes behind center). weve all seen wut type of production rich rod can get out of these type of athletes at QB.
bottom line, expect threet will start game 1, but i expect hell be splitting snaps by the 2nd half of that very first game.
February 5th, 2009 at 2:16 PM ^
I expect that Threet will start and that Tate will get early playing time. I think Robinson will take a little longer not being an early enrollee and being a little more raw than Tate and will take him most of the non-con season to get in a position to really play.
Tate being there for Spring Practice could lead to a Henne situation where he is under center against WMU for the first snap. That would be a good thing given his skill set, because Threet showed flashes as freshman that when healthy he can run this offense.
February 5th, 2009 at 2:30 PM ^
"even when protection was good towards the end of the season, he failed to hit open recievers down field"
Do you remember how he was hurt? Bad elbows and concussion? He was clearly less productive at the end of the season. Now he wasn't great in the beginning. Will he fix his mechanics? I don't know. But he is tough and stuck it out when it would have been easy to give up.
February 5th, 2009 at 2:42 PM ^
So he didnt play well at the beginning of the season wen he was healthy, and he didnt play well at the end after gaining a seasons worth of experience.
So what has he done exactly to earn another year starting. If he cant do wut he was brought here to do, and that is pass the ball effectively, then what exactly is he offering us.
He had all of last winter, summer, and the season to improve his mechanics but obviously coodnt do so. all of the in-game experience in the world is not gonna help if he cant hit open recievers. so wut does he have over forcier and robinson.
P.S. the fact that he played hurt does earn him any brownie points in my book. If hes not the better QB come game 1, id bench him without thinking twice about it.
February 5th, 2009 at 2:47 PM ^
Has anybody pointed out that Threet was a redshirt freshman last year? Yeesh. It's not like every other freshman QB completes 65% of his passes and throws 25 TD's.
February 5th, 2009 at 2:47 PM ^
I have no idea who will start.. I liked Threet's toughness in a near impossible situation, but he definitely struggled.
I do want to point out 1 thing that I think everyone is missing. Threet actually ran the ball pretty well until he got hurt in the Penn St. game, from that point I think they tried to protect him. Threet's main problem was accuarcy which has been discussed many times before could have been:freshmen, horrid line, inexperienced WR's, he's not very good. We're not sure. I would just ask you to review his time early in the season he was ugly doing it but he ran the ball decently, definitely good enough to have an effective offense if we could complete a forward pass.
February 5th, 2009 at 3:00 PM ^
If "Threet's main problem was accuracy," that has nothing to do with "freshmen, horrid line, inexpeerienced WRs." Accuracy problems fall squarely on his shoulders.
I think some posters are painting an overly rosy picture here. Threet had difficulty just throwing spirals last year. He consistently missed open receivers (and by open, I mean yards of separation). He rarely hit receivers in stride. His mechanics were all over the place. We are now months removed from the 3-9 disaster and have either blocked many memories from our minds or are trying to put a positive spin on the situation.
And Threet's running ability is definitely limited. Sure, he had the one long run against Wisconsin and many of the 4-7 yard variety, but those 4-7 yard runs are more the product of the offensive scheme than any true running ability by Threet; with Forcier or Robinson at the helm, those 4-7 yard runs can become big first-down gains or even touchdowns.
February 5th, 2009 at 2:49 PM ^
Go back and read the UFR's. While he was no Colt McCoy, for a Freshman, he was improving and playing well in stretches. Most encouraging were his reads. He did have accuracy problems and I think that will eventually sink him sooner rather than later.
February 5th, 2009 at 2:51 PM ^
looks like the "Threet" thread has been deleted - probably for the best.
February 5th, 2009 at 2:54 PM ^
It's gotta be. Furrha in garbage time.
February 5th, 2009 at 4:47 PM ^
I hope Threet starts, I think he wasn't that bad last year until he hurt his shoulder. But based on what I've seen from Rodriguez, I think Forcier will end up starting from Day 1. He doesn't seem to worry as much as previous regimes about how old a guy is. If he thinks Forcier is the right guy for the position, he will play immediately.
February 5th, 2009 at 8:43 PM ^
With all the rumors about how Tate's being kept warm in the cold here a snippet on his facebook wall. Some brotherly advice from Jason Forcier
Why do you have a profile picture with a girl from hs???? Your in college now buddy! Grab that net and go catch those butterflies.!!!!!
February 5th, 2009 at 10:24 PM ^
Threet will start the season off, Forcier will spell him from time to time BUT....................Denard will be the "diamond in the ruff" that nobody EVER talks about. EVERYONE ALWAYS seems to think that Forcier will end up beating out Denard for the starting spot...........................WRONG, WRONG, WRONG. Forcier may have been "coached" up more or has he, none of us really know this for sure. DENARD ROBINSON WILL SURPRISE MANY OF YOU IMO. I've observed this board for the last year (recently joining) and noticed that Beaver was never given a chance against Tate in most of your opinions either, while all along I thought he would be the better choice of the two. DAMNIT I HOPE ALL OF YOU ARE RIGHT ABOUT TATE BEING THE "NEXT GREAT QB" AT Michigan.
Oh yeah if Robinson "loses" out he won't switch to CB because he would have went to Florida to play CB and IMO he is a more raw talent on offense and will be a vitale tool in RR's spread offense.
February 6th, 2009 at 1:33 AM ^
Threet will start the first few games, ONLY BECAUSE its the experience thing. Tate will take over as the main guy.
People who say Denard, please tell me why you think so? You prob never even seen Denard play or seen highlights. He would be the perfect fit at WVU, because they cant get qbs like Tate. Tate is going to win, hands down.
February 6th, 2009 at 1:34 AM ^
Robinson won't be a "QB", he'll be that guy taking a snap at qb, snap at RB, snap at WR. He'll be all over.
February 6th, 2009 at 8:16 AM ^
We get it. You are 100% certain Shoelace will fail at what he was brought in to do. No need to post it 50 times.
Better idea - why not realize he and Tate have strengths and let the coaches sort it out? Speaking with such authority is just stupid at this point in the game.