Will Rogers

[Bdawg]

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[Bdawg]

I've never coached qbs but I have coached a lot of pitchers in my day and while not an expert I know throwing mechanics fairly well. I went and rewatched the game last night and just focused on Wills throws. When Will actually uses his lower body he has pretty good arm strength. One example on the next to last drive in the 4th quarter he threw about a 12 yard out from one hash to the other side of the field and the ball had plenty of zip on it and was right on the money. That's a tough throw and he made it with ease because he used his lower and drove the ball to that spot. On the downside Will sometimes gets lazy with his lower half and his motion becomes elongated(not just him this is a fairly common flaw in young throwers, Dart does it as well as many others) and he doesn't have enough natural arm strength to compensate for not using his lower half and that's when you will see the looping throws that are usually overthrown. Heck my youngest son used to drive me crazy because his velo would be all over the place for this very reason. He would throw bb's for an inning and then all of a sudden his velo and commmand would be down and then all of a sudden it would comeback(inconsistent with the lower half). Will made some really impressive throws with velo and accuracy Monday and then he made some terrible throws because he didn't engage the lower half and drive the ball. So many young pitchers/qbs are just not consistent with the lower half and keeping their motion short,compact and powerful. Just watch Tom Brady as an example. Dude is 46 years old and can still wing it because he steps into every throw with a short compact delivery and drives the ball. In baseball we call it a repeatable delivery and that's what ever pitcher(and qb) should strive because it gives you consistent velo and accuracy. Just my observations(which don't count for much)because there are certainly people that now way more than me.

Most throwing motions I?ve ever been taught have been based off good footwork. More accuracy and more power!

[Bdawg]

I'm not doubting that. But he does pretty well overall.

Look. Will is not a bad and is a winner with great attitude. He?s the best we got. But don?t come on here saying he can throw like Mahomes and be ok. People like Mahomes and Rodgers are ultra talented with guns. Their talent lets them get away with what they do. Brady isn?t as talented as them, but he has pocket awareness, good mechanics, super accurate, and a brain. Will should emulate him.

And for the record, I don’t think we are bashing, Will. I think what we are talking about would help his arm strength mostly and accuracy( which is still pretty good).

[basedog]

Look. Will is not a bad and is a winner with great attitude. He?s the best we got. But don?t come on here saying he can throw like Mahomes and be ok. People like Mahomes and Rodgers are ultra talented with guns. Their talent lets them get away with what they do. Brady isn?t as talented as them, but he has pocket awareness, good mechanics, super accurate, and a brain. Will should emulate him.

And for the record, I don’t think we are bashing, Will. I think what we are talking about would help his arm strength mostly and accuracy( which is still pretty good).

Wasn't comparing him to anyone, just saying some QB have issues that work. I didn't blast anyone either, but I'm tired of reading the bashing Rogers takes overall. That is my point.

I understand what many are saying. I also realize he has some issues, so what, we all do! LOL

[StarkVegasSteve]

It's probably already been discussed so sorry if so as I am coming into this thread late. Will's issue is that he's scared to get hit. He is scared to step up in the pocket and let someone hit him under the chin while delivering a strike. Will's mechanics are fine and if you give him a clean pocket to throw he's good. Problem is we play in the SEC. There's no such thing as a clean pocket all the time. If Will feels pressure he immediately either A) eats it and takes a sack or B) floats it off his back foot. So you either have to roll the pocket and let him step into throws that way or you have get him outside the pocket which is the probably the least likely of the solutions because he's a statue. We are gonna need an elite play caller and schemer to be able to mask Will's deficiencies for another season. And that's not impossible. Dan masked both Relf and Fitz's deficiencies when everyone knew EXACTLY who they were as QBs.

And again, this is nothing against Will as a person. He's a great kid and great ambassador for the University.

[Bdawg]

Wasn't comparing him to anyone, just saying some QB have issues that work. I didn't blast anyone either, but I'm tired of reading the bashing Rogers takes overall. That is my point.

I understand what many are saying. I also realize he has some issues, so what, we all do! LOL

True that! I just want Will to be his best because as of late, he hasn’t played his best. And he has said the same.

[MaroonFlounder]

And BTW, if Will doesn't throw the pick in the end zone early in the game, we wouldn't have needed a 4th down TD.
No to mention the other pick.

The 1st INT was tipped.

And the 2nd was as good as a punt. It was on 3rd and Long

[basedog]

True that! I just want Will to be his best because as of late, he hasn’t played his best. And he has said the same.

I agree!

[Lord McBuckethead]

That is all we all want to happen, is Will Rogers play exceptionally well.
No one is disputing it. No one is rooting against him. We are all rooting for MSU.

But.... there are reasons why we played in the Reliaquest Bowl and not in the college football playoff and QB play is the biggest piece.

[Percho]

I have to laugh as many comments about foot work, ket me say this, Will is gonna continue to be what he is, now can he improve, of course. I've been way more concerned with dropped passes the last few years than Rogers foot work. One thing I will say, Will is a winner, you don't put up the numbers like he has with having "a problem" with foot work. It works for him and many other QB's with faults. Hell Patrick Mahomes throws from all kinda different angles, off balance, side arm, under arm, leaving his feet to throw as well as having perfection in form.
Will's footwork isn't his problem, again he is what he is and that is a winner.

Btw, if there is a better QB next year, I'm for it, but I'm doubting there will be and believe me, in private I have doubts at time, but I ain't gonna blast him publicly like many.
Enough from me, carry on and I hope like hell win win 9 games next year with a QB who has terrible fundamentals.

I surely feel for Bucky, I can understand him defending Will. I imagine I will be reading some bad things about my grandson this spring.

Excellent post Base

James 3:1-12 should be read by many before posting.

[BuckyIsAB****]

It's probably already been discussed so sorry if so as I am coming into this thread late. Will's issue is that he's scared to get hit. He is scared to step up in the pocket and let someone hit him under the chin while delivering a strike. Will's mechanics are fine and if you give him a clean pocket to throw he's good. Problem is we play in the SEC. There's no such thing as a clean pocket all the time. If Will feels pressure he immediately either A) eats it and takes a sack or B) floats it off his back foot. So you either have to roll the pocket and let him step into throws that way or you have get him outside the pocket which is the probably the least likely of the solutions because he's a statue. We are gonna need an elite play caller and schemer to be able to mask Will's deficiencies for another season. And that's not impossible. Dan masked both Relf and Fitz's deficiencies when everyone knew EXACTLY who they were as QBs.

And again, this is nothing against Will as a person. He's a great kid and great ambassador for the University.

He def has a habit of scrambling out or backwards instead of stepping up. But he has gotten absolutely destroyed in the pocket the past few years against good teams. The problem isnt his toughness. The problem is all over. Will OL and WRs. Our WRs disappeared in just about every big game we have played since 2020. Physical secondaries eat us up. Teams figured out they could put 6 in the box and play man free and it was trouble for us. Leach rules were 6 in the box=throw it. And our WRs couldnt separate

[bulldawg28]

He definitely stops his feet when he attempts to run.

Lol...mannnn.

[Jarius]

The 1st INT was tipped.

And the 2nd was as good as a punt. It was on 3rd and Long

And we scored 13 offensive points. He was awful. Again. Just like he was in most of the SEC games he played. He's not any good in the SEC. Period.

[StarkVegasSteve]

And we scored 13 offensive points. He was awful. Again. Just like he was in most of the SEC games he played. He's not any good in the SEC. Period.

I'm not saying he's great but to say he's not good is going completely the other direction. He's a solid SEC QB. He's going to keep you in games and he may even win you some games, but he'll also lose you some. We should look to upgrade if the opportunity is there. But don't just bring unnecessary competition and risk Will leaving. Because I guarantee you don't want true Freshman Chris Parson starting.

[bulldawg28]

I'm not saying he's great but to say he's not good is going completely the other direction. He's a solid SEC QB. He's going to keep you in games and he may even win you some games, but he'll also lose you some. We should look to upgrade if the opportunity is there. But don't just bring unnecessary competition and risk Will leaving. Because I guarantee you don't want true Freshman Chris Parson starting.

TBD...

[Prediction? Pain.]

And we scored 13 offensive points. He was awful. Again. Just like he was in most of the SEC games he played. He's not any good in the SEC. Period.

Losing points on that first interception was a bummer, especially since it capped off one of our only decent drives of the first half. And Will certainly wasn't as good in that half overall as he could have been. But our offensive output against Illinois really wasn't that bad under the circumstances. As I said in another thread, Illinois' defense is elite:

Scoring D: 1st nationally
Total D: 3rd nationally
Opponents' yards-per-play: 2nd nationally
Opposing Passer Rating: 1st nationally
Red Zone TD% D: 1st nationally
% of opponents' drives that end in TDs: 2nd nationally
3rd down % D: 9th nationally
Total INT: 1st nationally

Seven of the 12 teams they played before us scored less than 13 points, and three of the other five barely scored more than us. (Minnesota scored 14, Michigan St. scored 15, and Michigan scored 19.) Only four of the 13 teams they played this season scored more than one TD against them.

Also, we moved the ball on them better than anyone all season -- we put up more yards (390) and yards per play (5.82) on Illinois than any other team, including Michigan's Top 10 offense. And Will's passer rating against them was the third highest of any opposing QB all season.

So even if the offense was frustrating to watch, especially in the first half, I don't think it's fair to say that it just sucked without explanation or that Will was abysmal.

And as for "he's not any good in the SEC," that sort of ignores 2021, doesn't it? Our offense was in the top third of the conference in SEC-only total offense, scoring offense, and 3rd down %, and Will was 6th in the conference in SEC-only QB rating. Not elite, but certainly a solid, competitive SEC offense.

[msstate7]

Probably worth noting at least 2 of their best defenders (CBs) sat out. Of course we were without rara.

Also interesting, Will's last game with a passer rating of at least 140 was ark 10/8. I threw out Etsu

[Prediction? Pain.]

Probably worth noting at least 2 of their best defenders (CBs) sat out. Of course we were without rara.

Also interesting, Will's last game with a passer rating of at least 140 was ark 10/8. I threw out Etsu

No doubt. But I sort of view it as a wash -- they were missing two of their best DBs and their DC, we were missing our HC/OC, our leading receiver, and our co-starting RB.

Re: Will's passer rating, that may have something to do with the competition. In the six FBS games after we played Arkansas, four of our opponents were in the Top 15 nationally in total defense and the Top 20 nationally in FEI defense rating. (And three of the four were in the Top 5 in defensive FEI.) Those four teams combined had eight games where they allowed opposing QBs to have passer ratings above 140. And four of those eight games included Tennessee (x2), LSU, and Ohio St. (The other four were S. Car., Texas, and two random cupcakes.) And of course Illinois allowed zero QBs to get that high. Also, Auburn, one of our other two FBS games in the back half, only allowed four QBs to cross 140, and two of those were Bryce Young at Bama and Sean Clifford at Penn. St. Will ended that game with a 135.

[Todd4State]

No doubt. But I sort of view it as a wash -- they were missing two of their best DBs and their DC, we were missing our HC/OC, our leading receiver, and our co-starting RB.

Re: Will's passer rating, that may have something to do with the competition. In the six FBS games after we played Arkansas, four of our opponents were in the Top 15 nationally in total defense and the Top 20 nationally in FEI defense rating. (And three of the four were in the Top 5 in defensive FEI.) Those four teams combined had eight games where they allowed opposing QBs to have passer ratings above 140. And four of those eight games included Tennessee (x2), LSU, and Ohio St. (The other four were S. Car., Texas, and two random cupcakes.) And of course Illinois allowed zero QBs to get that high. Also, Auburn, one of our other two FBS games in the back half, only allowed four QBs to cross 140, and two of those were Bryce Young at Bama and Sean Clifford at Penn. St. Will ended that game with a 135.

Really good stuff!

[NCDawg]

He def has a habit of scrambling out or backwards instead of stepping up. But he has gotten absolutely destroyed in the pocket the past few years against good teams. The problem isnt his toughness. The problem is all over. Will OL and WRs. Our WRs disappeared in just about every big game we have played since 2020. Physical secondaries eat us up. Teams figured out they could put 6 in the box and play man free and it was trouble for us. Leach rules were 6 in the box=throw it. And our WRs couldnt separate

I think this is pretty accurate. I agree Rogers doesn't move around very well, but if you give him time, he's very accurate and will complete passes most of the time. Of course like the above poster says, our W/R's disappear sometimes in the big games and he obviously can't complete passes if nobody gets open.