Nakos on TN quarterback search

#53
#53
I agree we hear about greatness when every 5 star steps on any campus. To be honest I was never in awe of anything I ever saw on Nico’s film before he came to Tennessee. Most of it was in pajamas playing 7 on 7, or playing against mediocre high school defenses. I hope hopes he’ll might develop into a 5 star player. But put the tape on Brandon, he is a FLUID and natural instinct runner and he has a great arm and his passes are right on the money. I am much more impressed with his film even before his senior year than any film I ever saw on Nico. Nothing more than a honest comparison of their film. Brandon looks more polished at the same point of their careers. I’m not saying he is gonna win Heismans or whatever, I am just saying his film says he is a better prospect. But by no means does it guarantee him to start as a freshman. But I do expect him to push em.GBO
 
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#54
#54
Hank Bukowski said:
Good points. But, forgive me, I’ve heard this claim too many times before with other QBs who’ve yet to even enroll at Tennessee. We have a tradition of not starting freshmen QBs unless we have no choice. We’ve had many, many good-to-great QBs at Tennessee and I can remember none, not a one, who competed for the starting job the moment they stepped on campus. Conversely, I can remember a boatload of highly hyper-hyped freshman QBs coming in and who simply proved they weren’t ready for the big time their freshman years. I think Peyton played as a freshman but I can’t remember if he actually started a game as a freshman. Magbe he did when the QB in front of him, Jerry Colquitt, broke his leg in the first game of the season. Maybe I’m wrong about Brandon. I hope I am and he turns out to be a Heisman winner and HOF QB. Time will tell.
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Clausen was an all sec freshman, Ainge and Schafer split time starting as freshman. That is just off the too of my head.
 
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#55
#55
Hank Bukowski said:
Good points. But, forgive me, I’ve heard this claim too many times before with other QBs who’ve yet to even enroll at Tennessee. We have a tradition of not starting freshmen QBs unless we have no choice. We’ve had many, many good-to-great QBs at Tennessee and I can remember none, not a one, who competed for the starting job the moment they stepped on campus. Conversely, I can remember a boatload of highly hyper-hyped freshman QBs coming in and who simply proved they weren’t ready for the big time their freshman years. I think Peyton played as a freshman but I can’t remember if he actually started a game as a freshman. Magbe he did when the QB in front of him, Jerry Colquitt, broke his leg in the first game of the season. Maybe I’m wrong about Brandon. I hope I am and he turns out to be a Heisman winner and HOF QB. Time will tell.
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Clausen was an all sec freshman, Ainge and Schafer split time starting as freshman. Dobbs started 4 games. That is just off the too of my head.
 
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#56
#56
perico said:
Brandon is on another level from the 2 kids we have now. That’s not to belittle their potential to develop into starters, but look at Florida and South Carolina last year with their two freshmen. Brandon is on that level at the minumum.

He’s not a development project. JM and GM are players you develop to reach the level that would see them become good starters in the SEC. Brandon is a kid who will compete for the starting job when he steps on campus.
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Even if he is more advanced than Nico, Mac, and Merk he will benefit from a redshirt. Plus if we have solid QB play with him redshirting and our offense isn’t something that’s holding us back there won’t be people screaming “we’re paying him 2M to sit the bench) because his NIL deal wasn’t publicized. The move that will put our QB room in the best position now and going forward is to bring in the best player possible that’s capable of running the offense. If he’s able to do what Hooker did and play really good as a junior and elite as a senior and allows Faizon to sit back and learn the offense that’s even better. That scenario likely ends up with Merk transferring in the winter, but our QB room was never going to have Merk, Mac, and Faizon in it for more than a year anyway. Let Mac (RS So) and Faizon (RS Fr) battle it out until the end of fall camp 2027 and we still have 3 scholarship QBs in 27 including whichever freshman we have. Then I’m sure whoever loses that job will portal out at the end of the season. This is the cycle now and we have to accept that. With how well we’ve recruited the position and the landscape of college football our QB room will always be the starter, a RS Fr or So and a true freshman for the most part and we will lose 1 every winter portal window. So we better swing for the fences over the next few days. The SEC is too competitive now to just decide to punt for a season and take a mediocre QB
 
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#58
#58
Start Merk. Bring in a serviceable QB from the portal. Make him the backup. If Merk isn't working out 3-4 games in, bring in the portal guy. That give the portal guy a month more to learn the program. If he fails, bring it #3........
This season is going to be anxiety inducing........
 
#60
#60
xpsyclonex2002 said:
Start Merk. Bring in a serviceable QB from the portal. Make him the backup. If Merk isn't working out 3-4 games in, bring in the portal guy. That give the portal guy a month more to learn the program. If he fails, bring it #3........
This season is going to be anxiety inducing........
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Our 3rd game is GA. If we're going to have any chance at all, we need to have a QB prepared for an extremely tough, aggressive defense by that game.

I'm not at all convinced we could expect that from Merk nor G-Mac.
 
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#62
#62
SayUWantAreVOLution said:
Our 3rd game is GA. If we're going to have any chance at all, we need to have a QB prepared for an extremely tough, aggressive defense by that game.

I'm not at all convinced we could expect that from Merk nor G-Mac.
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SayUWantAreVOLution said:
Our 3rd game is GA. If we're going to have any chance at all, we need to have a QB prepared for an extremely tough, aggressive defense by that game.

I'm not at all convinced we could expect that from Merk nor G-Mac.
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You think we're bringing in a guy at the end of spring practice and giving him only fall practice to learn everything he needs to know to beat Georgia by the 3rd game?
Not a chance. Completely unrealistic. Georgia is not a game we should be building season around knowing what just happened. Alabama and Florida are still winnable games. We asked Nico to step in for the first time in a bowl game. We should have the same expectations from Merk. Jake had a wobbly scrimmage last week. I get it. Everybody is panicking. But Milton was beating Hooker in practice and got the start in 2021. We all know how that turned out.
 
#64
#64
volfeeva said:
If we bring in a hired hand, top level QB, how do you keep them all happy when they all want to play? For those of us who didn't watch the Orange/white game why not just go with Merk as starter, maybe bring in a 3 rd string QB to compete for the job down the road? If you bring in a starter type QB even for 1 year, wouldn't you risk losing Merk ?
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Merk was not planning on seeing the field this year, really should not repel him from the program.
 
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#65
#65
Hank Bukowski said:
Okay. Thanks for refreshing my memory. I do remember now that you’ve reminded me. Has any freshman QB started regularly since Peyton?
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Schaeffer and Ainge

Schaeffer became the first true freshman quarterback to start a season opener for an SEC team since freshman eligibility was restored in 1973 and the first in 59 years.
 
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