Demry Croft: Burn the 'shirt??

[killme]

How do we know they are lousy in practice? Has this ever been stated by a coach?

Please note, I think Mitch should be the starter. I'm just trying to break this strange narrative.

Who said they are lousy in practice?

 

[Pompous Elitist]

I'm not sure i should justify this post, but go back about two posts.

he bold point is on point. I would add, what kind of message would you send to your team if you have someone who is lousy in practice

Numerous posters have predicted armageddon if Mitch goes down for any length of time. How do we know this is warranted?

Your emotions are getting the best of you guys. Mitch is the starter, but we don't know the level of drop off between him and the backups.

 

[Spoofin]

Who said they are lousy in practice?

No one. Folks see/read what they want to see/read. Facts be damned.

 

[Pompous Elitist]

No one. Folks see/read what they want to see/read. Facts be damned.

Your constant snark...I don't know. I don't like to personally attack people like some but you've really go to accept that sometimes thing written without benefit of body language, tone or inflection, etc can be misconstrued. Even by you. I know, it's hard to believe.

Facts...there are NO facts in this little debate were having. That's my point. Pure speculation about the abilities of the backups vs Mitch. We know what we have in Mitch.

 

[goldy93]

Mitch is the starter, but we don't know the level of drop off between him and the backups.

Yet people are constantly clamoring for the backup QB as if the coaching staff does not know the level of drop off. We do not have preseason games to kick the tires on a back up QB.

 

[HoustonTXGopher]

[/B]

What's the point?

The point is, almost exclusively national championship teams have extremely athletic QB's, I want one of those at Minnesota! Croft is certainly more athletic than Leidner. Both Winston and Jones are extremely athletic, get my point. Those dudes are elusive and extend plays with their legs. We don't have that, we need that immediately.

 

[60's Guy]

The point is, almost exclusively national championship teams have extremely athletic QB's, I want one of those at Minnesota! Croft is certainly more athletic than Leidner. Both Winston and Jones are extremely athletic, get my point. Those dudes are elusive and extend plays with their legs. We don't have that, we need that immediately.

Well, to me the first difference is the ability to pass better. The second difference is decision making much more so than athleticism in my opinion. A feel for the game....a swagger...the intangibles...to me that's the difference.

 

[Spoofin]

The point is, almost exclusively national championship teams have extremely athletic QB's, I want one of those at Minnesota! Croft is certainly more athletic than Leidner. Both Winston and Jones are extremely athletic, get my point. Those dudes are elusive and extend plays with their legs. We don't have that, we need that immediately.

So all you are hoping for is a Heisman candidate?

 

[60's Guy]

So all you are hoping for is a Heisman candidate?

Boom!

 

[MNVCGUY]

Your constant snark...I don't know. I don't like to personally attack people like some but you've really go to accept that sometimes thing written without benefit of body language, tone or inflection, etc can be misconstrued. Even by you. I know, it's hard to believe.

Facts...there are NO facts in this little debate were having. That's my point. Pure speculation about the abilities of the backups vs Mitch. We know what we have in Mitch.

That really is the heart of the issue. The only thing we know as fans is that when the coaches look at the QB's on the roster right now and evaluate them the one they feel gives us the best shot to win is Mitch. Coaches make mistakes but the whole idea behind this thread of pulling Croft's redshirt just to see if he can do it is stupid. Mitch hasn't done enough to be the unquestioned starter so when the coaches feel they have another guy capable of running the show and doing a better job then Mitch you can bet they will hand over the reigns because there is far too much riding on this for them not to.

Still too many people that can't seem to grasp that if the coaches felt Croft would play better then Mitch they would play him. Same can be said for Strevelar and Perra, it really is that simple. The other guys just haven't done enough to knock Mitch from the starting job, sad as that may be given his obvious limitations at QB. Not meant as a slight to Mitch, he is what he is, he was never supposed to be a top flight QB coming out of high school.

 

[Pompous Elitist]

Yet people are constantly clamoring for the backup QB as if the coaching staff does not know the level of drop off. We do not have preseason games to kick the tires on a back up QB.

I have never clamored for the backup. I do think its sensible to sit someone down , temporarily if they are ineffective and hurting the team.

Mitch is our guy, lets hope he and Limey can continue to progress.

 

[oleboy41]

The point is, almost exclusively national championship teams have extremely athletic QB's, I want one of those at Minnesota! Croft is certainly more athletic than Leidner. Both Winston and Jones are extremely athletic, get my point. Those dudes are elusive and extend plays with their legs. We don't have that, we need that immediately.

That's not true though. The BCS era started in the 98 season. The only champions with truly athletic, dual threat QBs were 05 Texas, 08 Florida, 10 Auburn and 14 OSU. That's 4 of 17. So actually championship teams have almost exclusively had pocket passing QBs

 

[West Fargo Gopher Fan]

Justin Conzemius had a very interesting take on this on KFAN this morning. Going to paraphrase:

"Coaches do not like to leave talent on the bench. If Croft is ready and can contribute even as a roll player then he should be playing now. We are recruiting another QB from Michigan that will be competing for playing time in a couple of years."

Conzemius is supportive of Leidner and has said the problem is more on the offensive line. I think the point he wanted to make is that fans look at redshirts differently then the coaches do. Coach Kill will play the quarterback that gives us the best chance to win. None of us know how good/ready Croft is and none of these guys are five star recruits.

 

[dpodoll68]

Justin Conzemius had a very interesting take on this on KFAN this morning. Going to paraphrase:

"Coaches do not like to leave talent on the bench. If Croft is ready and can contribute even as a roll player then he should be playing now. We are recruiting another QB from Michigan that will be competing for playing time in a couple of years."

Conzemius is supportive of Leidner and has said the problem is more on the offensive line. I think the point he wanted to make is that fans look at redshirts differently then the coaches do. Coach Kill will play the quarterback that gives us the best chance to win. None of us know how good/ready Croft is and none of these guys are five star recruits.

Conzemius also cited Duke playing a lot of freshmen on their national championship team as evidence that you should do the same in football, so I would take most everything he says with a block of salt.

 

[gopher56]

Justin Conzemius had a very interesting take on this on KFAN this morning. Going to paraphrase:

"Coaches do not like to leave talent on the bench. If Croft is ready and can contribute even as a roll player then he should be playing now. We are recruiting another QB from Michigan that will be competing for playing time in a couple of years."

Conzemius is supportive of Leidner and has said the problem is more on the offensive line. I think the point he wanted to make is that fans look at redshirts differently then the coaches do. Coach Kill will play the quarterback that gives us the best chance to win. None of us know how good/ready Croft is and none of these guys are five star recruits.

I was listening to that too while stuck in the morning rain traffic. Didn't he also say something to the point of him not being surprised if the Gophs put Croft in if they get up 28 quick? Unfortunately he said that while I was trying to merge over two lanes so I may have missed some of it.

 

[West Fargo Gopher Fan]

I was listening to that too while stuck in the morning rain traffic. Didn't he also say something to the point of him not being surprised if the Gophs put Croft in if they get up 28 quick? Unfortunately he said that while I was trying to merge over two lanes so I may have missed some of it.

Yes he did.

 

[wait!what?]

Conzemius also cited Duke playing a lot of freshmen on their national championship team as evidence that you should do the same in football, so I would take most everything he says with a block of salt.

fully agree. I heard that and thought...this guy is still making stuff up as he goes along.

 

[oleboy41]

Justin Conzemius had a very interesting take on this on KFAN this morning. Going to paraphrase:

"Coaches do not like to leave talent on the bench. If Croft is ready and can contribute even as a roll player then he should be playing now. We are recruiting another QB from Michigan that will be competing for playing time in a couple of years."

Conzemius is supportive of Leidner and has said the problem is more on the offensive line. I think the point he wanted to make is that fans look at redshirts differently then the coaches do. Coach Kill will play the quarterback that gives us the best chance to win. None of us know how good/ready Croft is and none of these guys are five star recruits.

Backup QBs aren't role players unless you carve out a specific role for them ala Freshman Tebow. If Croft isn't going to be the starter he needs to sit. The real issue is that he may very well be the #2 guy if Leidner gets hurt. Ideally he redshirts but what happens if you sit him all year and then Mitch gets hurt in week 8 or 9 and your best option is a guy that you didn't get any snaps to all year? That's the scary part. But you don't want to get him a few mop up snaps and look back at the end of the year and realize you burned his RS for mop up duty snaps.

 

[West Fargo Gopher Fan]

Backup QBs aren't role players unless you carve out a specific role for them ala Freshman Tebow. If Croft isn't going to be the starter he needs to sit. The real issue is that he may very well be the #2 guy if Leidner gets hurt. Ideally he redshirts but what happens if you sit him all year and then Mitch gets hurt in week 8 or 9 and your best option is a guy that you didn't get any snaps to all year? That's the scary part. But you don't want to get him a few mop up snaps and look back at the end of the year and realize you burned his RS for mop up duty snaps.

I'm not saying what they should or shouldn't do just thought the take was interesting. It is simply don't leave talent on the bench. Maxx Williams was recruited as a quarterback but was so talented they found another place for him to play. Play your best players no matter what.

 

['13Gopher]

If Demry is as good as everyone claims he is, it makes perfect sense to me to save him for the next 4 years when we have these stud receivers coming and Jeff Jones will have a larger role. With Jeff Jones, 4-star and ESPN top 100 recruit Dredrick Snelson and Demry Croft all coming next year I am certain Jerry has unbelievable aspirations for the coming years. This year is no doubt important but Jerry Kill has been doing this for a long time and has done nothing but meet or exceed expectations. I trust him, and don't see why anyone else believes Jerry would do anything except make the right decision.

 

[West Fargo Gopher Fan]

If Demry is as good as everyone claims he is, it makes perfect sense to me to save him for the next 4 years when we have these stud receivers coming and Jeff Jones will have a larger role. With Jeff Jones, 4-star and ESPN top 100 recruit Dredrick Snelson and Demry Croft all coming next year I am certain Jerry has unbelievable aspirations for the coming years. This year is no doubt important but Jerry Kill has been doing this for a long time and has done nothing but meet or exceed expectations. I trust him, and don't see why anyone else believes Jerry would do anything except make the right decision.

+1. Well said.

 

[Spoofin]

If Demry is as good as everyone claims he is, it makes perfect sense to me to save him for the next 4 years when we have these stud receivers coming and Jeff Jones will have a larger role. With Jeff Jones, 4-star and ESPN top 100 recruit Dredrick Snelson and Demry Croft all coming next year I am certain Jerry has unbelievable aspirations for the coming years. This year is no doubt important but Jerry Kill has been doing this for a long time and has done nothing but meet or exceed expectations. I trust him, and don't see why anyone else believes Jerry would do anything except make the right decision.

I agree with your last sentence. I'm in favor of RS Croft, but the problem with doing it for next year when we should have a better offense is that our defense will not be as good next year. The only theory I buy for possibly playing Croft now is that this year may be our best shot at the Division and he needs to be ready if ML7 does get hurt.

 

[dpodoll68]

I'm not saying what they should or shouldn't do just thought the take was interesting. It is simply don't leave talent on the bench. Maxx Williams was recruited as a quarterback but was so talented they found another place for him to play. Play your best players no matter what.

In the interest of accuracy - the Gophers recruited Maxx as a TE from the beginning. He played QB (among many other positions, including P) in HS, but was never a FBS prospect as a QB.

 

[oleboy41]

If Demry is as good as everyone claims he is, it makes perfect sense to me to save him for the next 4 years when we have these stud receivers coming and Jeff Jones will have a larger role. With Jeff Jones, 4-star and ESPN top 100 recruit Dredrick Snelson and Demry Croft all coming next year I am certain Jerry has unbelievable aspirations for the coming years. This year is no doubt important but Jerry Kill has been doing this for a long time and has done nothing but meet or exceed expectations. I trust him, and don't see why anyone else believes Jerry would do anything except make the right decision.

You don't purposefully not play your best player at a spot hoping to 'save' him. That's how coaches get fired. You never know what will happen later. A kid could get hurt, get in trouble, get homesick, any number of things. Then you've short changed yourself for no reason. These coaches need to win this year like every other coaching staff.

 

[Old Goph]

I agree with your last sentence. I'm in favor of RS Croft, but the problem with doing it for next year when we should have a better offense is that our defense will not be as good next year. The only theory I buy for possibly playing Croft now is that this year may be our best shot at the Division and he needs to be ready if ML7 does get hurt.

Haven't heard this before. Why is it that our defense won't be as good next year?

 

['13Gopher]

You don't purposefully not play your best player at a spot hoping to 'save' him. That's how coaches get fired. You never know what will happen later. A kid could get hurt, get in trouble, get homesick, any number of things. Then you've short changed yourself for no reason. These coaches need to win this year like every other coaching staff.

I could not agree any more with your statement...which is why Demry is obviously not as ready as some of you think he is......................

 

[Spoofin]

Haven't heard this before. Why is it that our defense won't be as good next year?

I'm making an assumption - based on the Seniors on the team this year that won't be on the field next year. I expect us to be good on D, but wouldn't be surprised if we take a step back. Hope I'm wrong - haven't thought too hard about next year yet, but we will lose some very key DBs.

 

[Old Goph]

I'm making an assumption - based on the Seniors on the team this year that won't be on the field next year. I expect us to be good on D, but wouldn't be surprised if we take a step back. Hope I'm wrong - haven't thought too hard about next year yet, but we will lose some very key DBs.

OK, got it. Thanks. I hope you're wrong too. There's been steady improvement in the D the last few years, with guys getting drafted last spring, and presumably more to follow next year. I don't think the defenses of the last couple years are flukes, but that something is being established here. Hopefully the offense will catch up soon.

 

[Donovan]

I was not able to see all of the CSU game. Regarding the O-Line struggles, were they having trouble in pass protection in non-blitz situations? If the struggles were basically on blitzes, that I'm afraid will fall back on Mitch to some degree. If a team keeps blitzing you, the QB has to show the ability to punish the D by completing passes to receivers in single coverage.

 

[GopherOhana]

I was not able to see all of the CSU game. Regarding the O-Line struggles, were they having trouble in pass protection in non-blitz situations? If the struggles were basically on blitzes, that I'm afraid will fall back on Mitch to some degree. If a team keeps blitzing you, the QB has to show the ability to punish the D by completing passes to receivers in single coverage.

always liked John Madden's take on this. he'd tell a QB if someone gets through, he's yours