Will Tuberville Pull a 5* QB

[Aubie27 0]

I mean seriously I want a QB that ends up playing QB (Cotton/Furr)? When are they going to be talking about a stud AU QB during one of these Gameday segments...

Give us UGA's Matthew Stafford, UT's Colt McCoy, OU's Sam Bradford, Mizzou's Chase Daniel's, OSU's Pryor, etc. and I think we are firing on most cylinders at this point and time...maybe not all, but most....

Oh wait, how silly of me, I forgot we got a scouts rated 5* QB in 2007...but he's planted squarely on our bench....

[TitanTiger 20,498]

Chase Daniel was a 3* in 2005: http://auburn.scout.com/a.z?s=6&p=8&am...amp;nid=1166259 (same rating on Rivals)

Colt McCoy was a 3* in 2005 as well: http://auburn.rivals.com/viewprospect.asp?...mp;pr_key=22880 (he was a 4* on Rivals)

Sam Bradford was a 3* on Rivals and a 4* on Scout.

Stafford and Pryor were 5* on both.

Go back and look over the list of top QBs over at Rivals the last few years. You'll be surprised at how many classes have only one or two of the top ten that have made anything of themselves the last few years. It's not an exact science.

Granted, we need better QB play. But these guys routinely disappoint while unknowns become stars.

[Justin5 20]

Yeah, its not like we arent trying.

2006 - 4* Neil Caudle

2007 - 4* Kodi Burns

2008 - none worth noting

2009 - 4* Raymond Cotton

2010 - ?? B.J. Chitty

(all are Rivals rankings)

[metafour 4,969]

If its anyone it will be Cotton. There are maybe 2-3 QBs in this class with as much pure upside as him.

[subterranean_jack 112]

Even when Auburn has successfully recruited top QBs, it has taken 3-4 years before they played like one. Jason Campbell was a Top 5 QB, but he didn't start playing like one until the latter part of his junior year. Obviously, Kodi Burns has the raw skill to be one of the better QBs in the SEC, but he may not start playing like one until another season or two (of course, he also needs to be given the reins for better or worse so he can get more experience). Cotton falls into this category also. I would argue D. Craig did as well.

This seems to be the type of QB Auburn can successfully recruit. They are great athletes, but they need time and coaching to reach their potential as a QB. Why can't Auburn recruit an elite QB ready to play as a true freshman?

Look at the offense over the last 8 years. Only in 2004 and 2005 was the pass emphasized and became consistently successful. Why would an elite QB come to Running Back U? Auburn has an image problem. Until Auburn makes a commitment to throwing the ball will the top QBs give Auburn a shot, same goes for top-flight receivers and pass-blocking linemen.

Tuberville understands the problem and is trying to turn the ship around by hiring Franklin. It is also obvious Auburn doesn't have the players necessary to implement the spread offense. It may take 2-3 years before they do.

Changing the offense isn't the problem; it had to be done. In hindsight, the offense needed a major overhaul and infusion of talent starting in 2006. Tuberville realized the only way to recruit top offensive talent was to update the offense.

Yes, Auburn needs to run the ball to be successful, but they also need to be just as effective at throwing the ball to be successful on a national stage. Right now, Auburn can't do either well. It hurts. The transition is painful and it will continue to be painful. The emphasis has not been on the offense for a long time and it will take time to fix all the problems.

Tuberville is man enough to make a change instead of continuing down the same path which would win 8-10 games a season but would not lead to national titles. It wasn't an easy decision or a popular one, but it was the right one.

If Franklin is not the man to lead the offense, then Tuberville will make another change. Maybe Franklin's hiring was a bit of a knee-jerk reaction to the frustrating ineffectiveness of last year's offense, but Tuberville will fix the situation. The problem has been brewing for years, it will take more than 1 season to fix it. Maybe there needs to be more turnover of offensive coaches, maybe they have gotten stale or refuse to consider new schemes or just aren't adequate recruiters. I'm not calling for anyone to be fired; I just think every aspect of the offense needs to be examined, the problems identified, and corrections made. I don't think we can expect Tuberville to get it right the first time every time either. He obviously made an excellent decision to hire Rhoads. We need to trust that he will everntually make the best decisions in regard to the offense.

Recruiting and better performance on the field will follow.

[quietfan 233]

What was Jason Campbell's recruiting rating? Wasn't he Mississippi's #1 player out of high school his senior year?

[ssgaufan 0]

If its anyone it will be Cotton. There are maybe 2-3 QBs in this class with as much pure upside as him.

Well I guess he's doomed if he comes here then. Apparently Tony Franklin doesn't know how to coach up a QB, because Burns has alot upside too.

[Ravad 77]

Yeah, its not like we arent trying.

2006 - 4* Neil Caudle

2007 - 4* Kodi Burns

2008 - none worth noting

2009 - 4* Raymond Cotton

2010 - ?? B.J. Chitty

(all are Rivals rankings)

I think we will find Barrett Trotter may be the best of the bunch (to run this offense)...only time will tell.

[Justin5 20]

Yeah, its not like we arent trying.

2006 - 4* Neil Caudle

2007 - 4* Kodi Burns

2008 - none worth noting

2009 - 4* Raymond Cotton

2010 - ?? B.J. Chitty

(all are Rivals rankings)

I think we will find Barrett Trotter may be the best of the bunch (to run this offense)...only time will tell.

True. My point was the claim that we weren't recruiting highly ranked QB's.

[AUBURNJAC 53]

Good post Sub! I have been waiting/defending/and now bitching about CTF all season so far. Today, I got to thinking. Why am I (as well as the rest of the fans) being so impatient? I guess we've all been so frustrated for the last 3 years that we kind of felt like it was our God given right to have a badass, explosive offense right from the start. There have been many excuses tossed around by coaches/player/and fans, but thus far no one has come up with an answer. I think the obvious answer is just as Sub put it. We have to be patient with CTF and CTT, and with the team. Now, with that said, we need to get down with some plays that WE CAN RUN with the players we have on the field now. At this point, I'm completely willing to take a HUGE GAMBLE and make Kodi the started for the rest of the year. We may lose every game, or we might win every game. Who knows? The positive would be that we have an EXPERIENCED 4* quarterback to lead our beloved Tigers in 09'.

[subterranean_jack 112]

I'm all for putting the players on the field now which give Auburn a chance to win an SEC title in 2009, because, with the offense playing this bad, a 1-2 pt win over an SEC bottom-feeder feels almost as bad as a blowout loss.

[Proud Tiger 4,261]

Allan Tillman was a 4/5 star QB out of Mississippi who in essence was a bust. Lloyd nNx was the QB on our 1957 NC team. Lloyd, #44. was a RB forced intp playing QB. He couldn't run or throw. All he knew was how to win. Stars aren't the guarantee of success.

[Mikey 16,614]

Question: What do Jeff Burger, Reggie Slack, Patrick Nix, D. Craig, Ben Leard and Jason Campbell all have in common?

Answer: They were all 4th year juniors before they effectively led the offense.

Playing Burns this early in his career may not make him that great next year. It takes time. The shame of the Burns situation is that we couldn't red-shirt him last year.

[mcgufcm 4,101]

Why are we so obsessed with finding a QB to play as a freshman? Seriously. What QB started as a freshman and won anything? Tebow was a fullback. McCoy's head exploded down the stretch (the last two years). Chase Daniel didn't start. Stafford led arguably the worst year of the Richt era.

The only guys who won anything of note are Bradford (Big 12 champ) and Leinart (split national title). That's the whole list as I can think of it. Wouldn't you rather develop guys and stagger them? Wouldn't the optimal approach be a QB with great upside, that delivers on that upside as a Junior, brought in every 2-3 years? That way you'd have QB1 at the top of his game (JR/SR) for two years while QB2 is developing and so on and so forth. That way you never have a valley. That's what I want. I don't give two craps whether we get a guy that can start as a freshman.

I'd rather have Stan White's final season followed by Pat Nix' next two years followed by Dameyune Craig's next two years... I'd like to get that perpetuated, but I guess that's just me.

[IndyTiger 3]

The only guys who won anything of note are Bradford (Big 12 champ) and Leinart (split national title). That's the whole list as I can think of it. Wouldn't you rather develop guys and stagger them? Wouldn't the optimal approach be a QB with great upside, that delivers on that upside as a Junior, brought in every 2-3 years? That way you'd have QB1 at the top of his game (JR/SR) for two years while QB2 is developing and so on and so forth. That way you never have a valley. That's what I want. I don't give two craps whether we get a guy that can start as a freshman.

Sounds like the USC formula, they seem to have a QB ready to step in right when a great one leaves.

[Hoopie 6]

Why are we so obsessed with finding a QB to play as a freshman? Seriously. What QB started as a freshman and won anything? Tebow was a fullback. McCoy's head exploded down the stretch (the last two years). Chase Daniel didn't start. Stafford led arguably the worst year of the Richt era.

The only guys who won anything of note are Bradford (Big 12 champ) and Leinart (split national title). That's the whole list as I can think of it. Wouldn't you rather develop guys and stagger them? Wouldn't the optimal approach be a QB with great upside, that delivers on that upside as a Junior, brought in every 2-3 years? That way you'd have QB1 at the top of his game (JR/SR) for two years while QB2 is developing and so on and so forth. That way you never have a valley. That's what I want. I don't give two craps whether we get a guy that can start as a freshman.

I'd rather have Stan White's final season followed by Pat Nix' next two years followed by Dameyune Craig's next two years... I'd like to get that perpetuated, but I guess that's just me.

I think that the folks you are complaining about gained their sports aptitude from ESPN.

[mowegl 4]

The only guys who won anything of note are Bradford (Big 12 champ) and Leinart (split national title). That's the whole list as I can think of it. Wouldn't you rather develop guys and stagger them? Wouldn't the optimal approach be a QB with great upside, that delivers on that upside as a Junior, brought in every 2-3 years? That way you'd have QB1 at the top of his game (JR/SR) for two years while QB2 is developing and so on and so forth. That way you never have a valley. That's what I want. I don't give two craps whether we get a guy that can start as a freshman.

Sounds like the USC formula, they seem to have a QB ready to step in right when a great one leaves.

Leinart was actually a sophomore in 2003. It also helps when you have guys like Reggie Bush, Lendale White, Steve Smith, Keary Colbert, Mike Williams, and Dominic Byrd surrounding you on offense.

And I forgot to add freshmen QBs are a recipe for disaster..or at least mediocrity.

[mcgufcm 4,101]

Oh yeah. You're right. Wow, I really thought he was a Frosh, but I guess he was just a first time starter. Huh. Memory fails me.

[mowegl 4]

Oh yeah. You're right. Wow, I really thought he was a Frosh, but I guess he was just a first time starter. Huh. Memory fails me.

Well don't feel bad..I checked to make sure. I just knew he was in the class of 06 with Young, Cutler, Bush, etc (even though Bush was just a junior)

[mugz 0]

The only guys who won anything of note are Bradford (Big 12 champ) and Leinart (split national title). That's the whole list as I can think of it. Wouldn't you rather develop guys and stagger them? Wouldn't the optimal approach be a QB with great upside, that delivers on that upside as a Junior, brought in every 2-3 years? That way you'd have QB1 at the top of his game (JR/SR) for two years while QB2 is developing and so on and so forth. That way you never have a valley. That's what I want. I don't give two craps whether we get a guy that can start as a freshman.

Sounds like the USC formula, they seem to have a QB ready to step in right when a great one leaves.

USC has a grapevine that they pick them from. That is the beauty of California is it has a lot of recruits and seems to have great QBs come from there.

[Hoopie 6]

If its anyone it will be Cotton. There are maybe 2-3 QBs in this class with as much pure upside as him.

Well I guess he's doomed if he comes here then. Apparently Tony Franklin doesn't know how to coach up a QB, because Burns has alot upside too.

What about CAB...he wasn't able to coach him up either....abd CAB "fixed" Jason Campbell.

[Hoopie 6]

The only guys who won anything of note are Bradford (Big 12 champ) and Leinart (split national title). That's the whole list as I can think of it. Wouldn't you rather develop guys and stagger them? Wouldn't the optimal approach be a QB with great upside, that delivers on that upside as a Junior, brought in every 2-3 years? That way you'd have QB1 at the top of his game (JR/SR) for two years while QB2 is developing and so on and so forth. That way you never have a valley. That's what I want. I don't give two craps whether we get a guy that can start as a freshman.

Sounds like the USC formula, they seem to have a QB ready to step in right when a great one leaves.

USC has a grapevine that they pick them from. That is the beauty of California is it has a lot of recruits and seems to have great QBs come from there.

California has approx 60 mil residents.....That's like Fla..to the Carolinas.....over to Texas. There are about only 3 legitimate D1 programs from the state. That is a huge gene pool to pick from. Not nearly as many total number of kids play HSFB there, but the good athletes do play....so there are a ot of good atheletes to pick from. The kids aren't nearly as intense.