Anything New About Barker?
- Thread starter El Gato Calvo
- Start date
This is wrong. SJ did drastically improve his short passing the last few games. I don't know who you think we need at QB - you don't say, but Aaron Rodgers isn't walking onto the practice field at UK anytime soon. Me, SJ at QB won't be the reason we're not successful in 2017.
Yet people here bash SJ as a fumbler but it was a fluke the HT winner fumbled & so SJ didn't really outplay him. LOL. Either fumbles are a reason to disparage a QB or they're not.
I am Thankful for Drew Barker, but don't blow off SJ's performance on the road against the number 9 team in the country and most hated rival. That was a great performance. I can't think of a better QB performance at UK.
It's interesting how you hang on to an embarrassing Loss at home to Southern Miss as Drew's Masterpiece, as if he got zero help from Gran and Hinshaw.
But, if the guy who replaces Drew, outperforms him and wins 7 games its because he had:
1. Gran and Hinshaw
2. Weak secondaries to throw against
3. Boom and Benny
4. Our Oline
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Maybe we all should just take a deep breath. Looking at our opponents last year, how many teams would either SJ or DB start for (less than half, for sure)? When you answer that question honestly, you can see why so many of us posters have reservations about both. Someone needs to step up and be better than last year for us to take the next step. SJ certainly had some good games and there were others where the running game pretty much won it without much help from him. We don't need Heisman-caliber QB production to win 8+ games next year but we do need more consistency in the short passing game, fewer turnovers, quicker decisions, etc. from whoever the coaches deem the best option. Luckily, we've got 3 guys who should be able to do the job from Day 1 and a true freshman who has the potential to be really good, too.No reason to think all 3 won't be better than last year, which is a great sign of better things to come.
A case can be made for either Johnson or Barker to be the starting QB and those that say either one are trash are just not being objective. That being said, I don't expect there will be an opportunity to see how the competition goes this fall as I fully expect Barker to transfer over the summer.
Two main things I learned about our offense from this past season: (1) I trust Gran and Hinshaw. And, (2) I trust Hinshaw and Gran.
Off season discussions and debates are fun. But, I trust our coaches to put the best possible product on the field. If that is Johnson at QB, Barker or Hoak, or any other player on our staff, I trust that those coaches will make the best decisions and will create an offense that maximizes our players' skills and minimizes our weaknesses.
That is one glass of Kool Aid I plan to keep drinking until it proves wrong.
Off season discussions and debates are fun. But, I trust our coaches to put the best possible product on the field. If that is Johnson at QB, Barker or Hoak, or any other player on our staff, I trust that those coaches will make the best decisions and will create an offense that maximizes our players' skills and minimizes our weaknesses.
That is one glass of Kool Aid I plan to keep drinking until it proves wrong.
Be thankful Stephen Johnson performed as well as he did due to outstanding coaching and skills he utilized to become a leader on offense. Yet, to denigrate Barker because he wasn't an instant hero goes back to this board's scathing attack on Mike Hartline's early failure to win. Fans go with who's winning as that is our nature. If for some reason, Johnson falters in 2017, there will be screaming for Barker or Hoak. Passion, loyalty and bourbon are sometimes a toxic mix in the world of sports
Are you seriously comparing Drew Barker's skills to Morgan Newton and Patrick Towles? Seriously?
True. If Newton and Towles were highly touted 4/stars, would they have signed with UK?
Which is something that we haven't had in a while, a real competitive QB battle with two talented players plus others.
Yeah, people seem to ignore the fact that Lamar Jackson fumbled the ball a lot more than Stephen Johnson did. It's not a fluke the way that game played out. Johnson was just better on that day. It really is that simple.
this is the point some are not considering. Johnson had some bad habits, and inconsistent throws early on, but improved and corrected these issues steadily and IMO rapidly as the season went on, and culminated in a game MVP effort against The Ville. I think Stephen is one of the truly great stories in college football 2016.
A qb must be steady and competent. He shouldn't lose games but should win a few. He's got ten other guys on the field with him plus eleven of defense. Let them help. Don't get in their way.
The strongest arm is not a detriment but it doesn't end there. Towles for instance.
The head is a must. Without that chaos.
The strongest arm is not a detriment but it doesn't end there. Towles for instance.
The head is a must. Without that chaos.
I will admit the fumbling part was me being sarcastic and I don't have the exact stats, but the difference between 60% and 70% is little at best so not sure why you use that argument when the point is we run the ball the majority of the time and when you do that it isn't just because you have good running backs, it is because you have a weakness at QB. Also, SJ was near the top of the league as was UK for turnovers per game, so you can take it how you will I stand by the fact he isn't a good hall handler in the pocket. My meaning was not that he had a weak arm, but that he had no accuracy because of poor mechanics and that he could not hit a short pass and he cannot. Again, take it for how you will, but I stick with my opinion. I like the kid, but he is not a complete QB and his skill set is average at best and until we upgrade that position UK will not make huge strides on offense.
Drew is on schedule in his rehab and will be able to participate in spring practice in a limited way. Barker recently applied to graduate and as a graduate he could transfer to any school without sitting out.
His options are:
1) stay here and 'compete' for the starting job knowing he's likely the backup this fall and then have to compete again next spring (with then only one year to play) against Hoak, Clark, Walker & Williams with no guarantee he would win that competition or
2) go somewhere else as a graduate (being eligible to play immediately) to a situation where he is likely to win the starting position and start for two years (sans new injury).
My heart tells me he stays, my head tells me he will leave. What would you do?
If the goal is the NFL then you transfer to a better opportunity to be the starter. If he doesn't start this year he will be hard pressed to win it in 18.
Leading is more about having the respect and the desire of your teammates to follow and fight for you...not so much about being the best player. It is true in team sports that often the collection of the 11 best individuals doesn't result in the best team.
I don't care from where production comes...just the combination that results in the best opportunity to win football games.
I think if he stays and starts the season as #2 he will get PT along the way and can work his way back into a position as a starter in 2018. Any team he might transfer to he will likly have to win the job.
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DB=?...SJ...7-3 as the starter, mvp in Otis game over the HT winner...unless DB really kicks some serious a$$ in the spring and fall I look for a much improved SJ to be the starter on 9-2.
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If you truly mean what you say here vs. your earlier post, you're not over the top. But you toned this down considerably while trying to make the same points.
Yes, when SJ first had to start, QB was a weakness but more an unknown. Hell, any first time starter anywhere is a weakness - you make mistakes regardless of your talent. Net, we turned to the running game & succeeded with it more than I think the staff expected - meaning the OL succeeded above expectations & Benny Snell even more so. That allowed SJ to be brought along at a reasonable pace & by the end, he was not a weakness imo by a long shot; i.e., he has talent.
Barker is coming off an injury that has limited him tremendously. The best senerio for him is to get brought back in slowly. I don't see DB really competing for the Starting Qb position in the spring. I think it will take him until fall to get back to game ready condition. Im predicting Johnson to start game 1, and the real battle will be if Johnson starts to falter. DB will get some playing time especially if we are killing a team in the 4th quarter.
No, If you speculate on Newton and Towles in context with our current QB's, I suspect Johnson, Barker, Hoak, Clark and Williams possess greater potential.
I remember the early rating. At times, he showed great promise as in leading us to a win over Auburn. Mostly, he seemed to struggle which may be due to weak teams. One may speculate how he might have performed in a Hinshaw/Gran offense with much better offensive lines.
Stoops and Gran will say it's an open competition and it will be but both also know Johnson is the one to beat in their minds because they saw the chemistry he started to find with the offense and how much he grew into the position himself. By the UL game he started to really get a feel for the read option, when to give, when to keep and mix in the deep throws to keep teams honest. You could tell he felt more confident about what he was doing and the last thing a Coach is going to mess with is confidence.
They know his limitations but won't want to mess with momentum they saw late last year so unless Barker just blows the doors off it's Johnson's team to start.
And if he is able to fix his release point to enable him to create touch to make the short and over the middle throws and if he can secure the ball then he is not only the starter but a damn good one to head into next season with. And Barker will be a damn good back up.
They know his limitations but won't want to mess with momentum they saw late last year so unless Barker just blows the doors off it's Johnson's team to start.
And if he is able to fix his release point to enable him to create touch to make the short and over the middle throws and if he can secure the ball then he is not only the starter but a damn good one to head into next season with. And Barker will be a damn good back up.
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