AK... Do I have this correct?


He plays like the game is too fast for him, and he has terrible mechanics in his throwing motion and footwork.
And his throwing motion is inconsistent. He threw with a different, more consistent motion last year. This year his arm angle on release is all over the place, like I said in the pre-season 30 sec clip. Also, I don't know if he did the same thing last year but his short passes are way too fast to react to and catch, especially because they are rarely accurate.
Haven't rewatched or studied any of this...but if someone was paying attention...(coaches) it's obvious he is different in how he does things...routinely...and that is not a formula for consistency or improvement.
Perfect practice makes perfect...not just any ol' reps.
 

for those commenting on the fastballs being a problem, what pass did you see that the fastball was the problem this week? II watched it back and he threw 29 passes
1: roll out pass to Taylor; nice touch and hits him right where it needs to be. Big gain.
2: downfield to Crooms; it's high and behind him; miss off the fingertips. could it be caught? sure, but the ball should be better. However this is 20 yards down the field and ball gets there on time
3: underhanded pitch pass to Crooms
4: the pick; uncovered blitzer (bad shuffle by the line who double team the tackle and completely miss the blitzer, which maybe AK is counting on them picking up) and he's waiting for BSF to get out of his mesh. feet get happy and he sidearms it so the pass is off. This is a mechanical issue and the coaches need to talk to him about this. Happy feet=inaccuracy unless you're Mahomes
5: Deep out to Crooms; solid ball thrown with pretty good timing. solid chunk gain
6: Deep shot to Crooms; this one is absolutely there and he leads him too far down the field rather than Crooms who's reading to the sideline. This is a miss from AK.
7: swing pass to Tyler; ball is behind him but the play is going nowhere
8: ball to CRAB on deep out (what is with the 12 yard outs to the deep hash??); CRAB falls down on the cut but ball looks like it's probably going to be high and outside with AK under pressure
9: Crosser to Jackson; ball is late and behind him
10: crosser to BSF; goes through his hands. That is 1000% a catchable ball. If you feel that ball was thrown too hard, idk. could he throw it softer? sure. but he's trying to get it to him quickly and let him catch and run. BSF has to catch this ball.
11: under pressure; scramble throw away
12: read is right. Jackson falls down on his break on what is a TD if he stays on his feet.
13: Fade to Jackson. Unsure about the concept that you throw it to Jackson. Huzzie makes a nice play throwing the hand up and getting on it, but that ball needs to be back pylon if you're throwing it to Jackson.
14: pressure; thrown away
15: ball off the helmet. this is a blown call from the officials. He hooks him before it's thrown. Kind of a weird play but that read is not very open though should've stood as a penalty.
Next pass attempt is a PI; ball a little underthrown but it works out
16: Deep out/hitch again to Brockington. Great ball thrown on time.
17: deep out to Crooms; perfectly thrown and on time. another nice gain
18: pass to BSF on the roll out left. AK seems to struggle with these rather than setting his feet he throws again with bad mechanics. Misses BSF a little behind. Still a completion but limits the YAC
Next attempt picked up for a PI where they blow up Jackson early
19: pass to Tyler rolling left off play action. Decent ball (its a little behind him so good catch from Tyler) for good catch and run
20: drilled into Brockington. Another good catch and run
21: late to Jackson on the crosser. misses him by 2 beats on timing and then the ball is behind him. This is a bad throw with a late read
22: weird ass middle screen on the 3rd and 10; he's under a bunch of pressure but gets it there. no idea what we're doing with this play call
AK cramp run
23: deep throw to Brockington. He and AK are on wrong page. AK falls backward and throws it to side with Brockington going deep (seems like he locates late losing it in the sun). AK misses another one that should be a cheapy for a home run/TD and a possible tie game. This kind of play cannot happen as a QB. There was a 15 yard box he could put it in and it's at minimum a 30 yard game and a decent ball is a TD.
Kramers one pass..... holy fuck there's so much field to throw the ball to (and multiple guys) for big gain/TD. Threw it in the one place that's a disaster. Jackson has literally no one to the center of the field on that pass. He has maybe a 20 yard box to the middle of the field that that's a TD
24: outstanding ball on a quick out to Crooms. Perfectly on time and with perfect velocity. Probably his best throw of the day where he throws a guy open
25: he and Crooms not on same page. Tough window to fit ball into and the ball is poorly thrown
26: tries to sling it in. This is a horrible read.
27: Jesus christ Spencer. Ball hits him in the teeth. this would've been a great gain. Perfect ball
A comment on the bootleg on 3rd and 2. UNC knows the exact play. BSF pushes their DE into AK for some reason? so many micro things that were idiotic on this one.

2 min drill at end
28: BSF hit in the hands again that he tries to rocket in there. BSF should catch this ball as well. It is thrown where it needs to be
29: pressure coming. Tries to make a play and it should've been picked. Another bad decision. He misses both Jackson and Crooms who are open.

He added some nice things with his feet as well.

Overall: he is erratic with the ball which is more the issue. They're also giving him a ton of "tough" routes to throw. It clearly seems like an NFL concept route tree with a lot of stuff to the sidelines/boundaries and across the field (so many deep outs). He hits most of the high percentage ones. add in 3 drops (2 from BSF, 1 from Spencer; not going to hold the fingertip one on Crooms nor the ones that are behind to Jackson), 2 WRs falling down, and 2 throw aways and it could've been a real different looking day.

The WRs: Brockington needs to be on the field a hell of a lot more. He is open consistently. He, Jackson and Crooms should be the sets. Spencer should not see the field. I'd also take some 4 wide when CRAB is healthy and see if that helps get some more plus matchups. we don't use BSF in a way where he gets plus matchups often enough. (why is there not a trips set with him iso on other side of the field for fades/hitches where you dare them to either roll 2 guys to his side or live with that matchup 1v1 with a guy who will be smaller than him?)
Hey this is the gopher hole!! If your going to present logic and facts into your argument your going to ruin all the knee jerk preposterous rants we have come accustomed to.
 

What about Adam Weber? Ryan Cupito? AbdulKalik ? Where do they rank?
Here you go...sorted by NCAA Passer rating.

ATTCOMPCOMP-%INTTDYDSYDS/ATTTD/ 100 ATTINT/100 ATTTD RUSHNCAA Pass Rtng
MORGAN106366162.18%32659,4698.96.13.08151.2
CUPITO91851355.88%25557,4468.16.02.70138.3
ABDUL-KHALIQ84748156.79%26556,6607.96.53.116138.1
FOGGIE62831149.52%32345,1628.25.45.124126.2
SAUTER94553957.04%33406,8347.24.23.58124.8
WEBER1,59490957.03%517210,9176.84.53.210123.1
ECKERS26214756.11%171518847.25.76.51122.4
COCKERHAM48525251.96%24293,4837.26.04.912122.1
LEIDNER102958056.37%32367,2877.13.53.133121.2
GRAY29515050.85%11142,0537.04.73.712117.5
HOHENSEE72239254.29%31334,7926.64.64.35116.5
SCHAFFNER51527853.98%22213,4726.74.14.36115.5
KALIAKMANIS19910552.76%741,3927.02.03.52111.1
SCHADE62732251.36%23223,9866.43.53.72109.0
FLEETWOOD87646553.08%44185,2796.02.15.015100.4
DUNGY58627446.76%35223,5156.03.86.01697.6
CURRY50522644.75%24163,0606.13.24.81496.6
STEPHENS29710033.67%27131,5715.34.49.11774.4
COX1063734.91%1275084.86.611.3NA74.3
 

And his throwing motion is inconsistent. He threw with a different, more consistent motion last year. This year his arm angle on release is all over the place, like I said in the pre-season 30 sec clip. Also, I don't know if he did the same thing last year but his short passes are way too fast to react to and catch, especially because they are rarely accurate.
Haven't rewatched or studied any of this...but if someone was paying attention...(coaches) it's obvious he is different in how he does things...routinely...and that is not a formula for consistency or improvement.
Perfect practice makes perfect...not just any ol' reps.
I'm really starting to wonder if he has a shoulder injury or something like that, which is causing him to change his motion?
 


Here you go...sorted by NCAA Passer rating.

ATTCOMPCOMP-%INTTDYDSYDS/ATTTD/ 100 ATTINT/100 ATTTD RUSHNCAA Pass Rtng
MORGAN106366162.18%32659,4698.96.13.08151.2
CUPITO91851355.88%25557,4468.16.02.70138.3
ABDUL-KHALIQ84748156.79%26556,6607.96.53.116138.1
FOGGIE62831149.52%32345,1628.25.45.124126.2
SAUTER94553957.04%33406,8347.24.23.58124.8
WEBER1,59490957.03%517210,9176.84.53.210123.1
ECKERS26214756.11%171518847.25.76.51122.4
COCKERHAM48525251.96%24293,4837.26.04.912122.1
LEIDNER102958056.37%32367,2877.13.53.133121.2
GRAY29515050.85%11142,0537.04.73.712117.5
HOHENSEE72239254.29%31334,7926.64.64.35116.5
SCHAFFNER51527853.98%22213,4726.74.14.36115.5
KALIAKMANIS19910552.76%741,3927.02.03.52111.1
SCHADE62732251.36%23223,9866.43.53.72109.0
FLEETWOOD87646553.08%44185,2796.02.15.015100.4
DUNGY58627446.76%35223,5156.03.86.01697.6
CURRY50522644.75%24163,0606.13.24.81496.6
STEPHENS29710033.67%27131,5715.34.49.11774.4
COX1063734.91%1275084.86.611.3NA74.3
No respect for Rhoda SMH.
Just kidding, thanks for posting!
 

Here you go...sorted by NCAA Passer rating.

ATTCOMPCOMP-%INTTDYDSYDS/ATTTD/ 100 ATTINT/100 ATTTD RUSHNCAA Pass Rtng
MORGAN106366162.18%32659,4698.96.13.08151.2
CUPITO91851355.88%25557,4468.16.02.70138.3
ABDUL-KHALIQ84748156.79%26556,6607.96.53.116138.1
FOGGIE62831149.52%32345,1628.25.45.124126.2
SAUTER94553957.04%33406,8347.24.23.58124.8
WEBER1,59490957.03%517210,9176.84.53.210123.1
ECKERS26214756.11%171518847.25.76.51122.4
COCKERHAM48525251.96%24293,4837.26.04.912122.1
LEIDNER102958056.37%32367,2877.13.53.133121.2
GRAY29515050.85%11142,0537.04.73.712117.5
HOHENSEE72239254.29%31334,7926.64.64.35116.5
SCHAFFNER51527853.98%22213,4726.74.14.36115.5
KALIAKMANIS19910552.76%741,3927.02.03.52111.1
SCHADE62732251.36%23223,9866.43.53.72109.0
FLEETWOOD87646553.08%44185,2796.02.15.015100.4
DUNGY58627446.76%35223,5156.03.86.01697.6
CURRY50522644.75%24163,0606.13.24.81496.6
STEPHENS29710033.67%27131,5715.34.49.11774.4
COX1063734.91%1275084.86.611.3NA74.3
What, no Croft? Joking.
 

Smart and accurate is where it is at.
This is the right answer. His brain is the issue at this time. Accuracy comes with experience, confidence and knowing where to go with the ball.

Throwing fastballs, off timing etc. is a recipe for dropped balls and poor completion %. We definitely need someone to push IMO.

Simon and Harbaugh need to step up as well.


Watching the CSU vs Colorado game was annoying. Two OC’s identified holes in the defenses and just kept going after it. CSU freshmen was 72% and Sanders 80%. I just want 60% consistently.
 
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This is the right answer. His brain is the issue at this time. Accuracy comes with experience, confidence and knowing where to go with the ball.

Throwing fastballs, off timing etc. is a recipe for dropped balls and poor completion %. We definitely need someone to push IMO.

Simon and Harbaugh need to step up as well.


Watching the CSU vs Colorado game was annoying. Two OC’s identified holes in the defenses and just kept going after it. CSU freshmen was 72% and Sanders 80%. I just want 60% consistently.

After seeing some analysis of the game, there were plenty of open receivers that could had resulted in huge gains with better accuracy and no drops. I felt better about the OCs after seeing that. Fleck mentioned that in the press conference too.
 


I'm really starting to wonder if he has a shoulder injury or something like that, which is causing him to change his motion?
Well, we would never know if that were the case but golly do we have so little faith in the backups that we would would play a guy so obviously struggling IF we knew the cause of his struggles and ignored them?
But, history says you need to go to the hospital mid game to lose your spot.
 




As “up north kid” mentioned on pass play #4 as well as other. Offensive linemen didn’t see the blitzer to block him. Because he had his fxxxxx head down. We need anOline coach who teaches the blocker keep your dam m head up and eyes open so you can see the defensive stunts. Block with your eyes- just as important as your hands. Absolutely ridiculous we don‘l drill this 50 times per day and a 100 in pre-game.
 

Here you go...sorted by NCAA Passer rating.

ATTCOMPCOMP-%INTTDYDSYDS/ATTTD/ 100 ATTINT/100 ATTTD RUSHNCAA Pass Rtng
MORGAN106366162.18%32659,4698.96.13.08151.2
CUPITO91851355.88%25557,4468.16.02.70138.3
ABDUL-KHALIQ84748156.79%26556,6607.96.53.116138.1
FOGGIE62831149.52%32345,1628.25.45.124126.2
SAUTER94553957.04%33406,8347.24.23.58124.8
WEBER1,59490957.03%517210,9176.84.53.210123.1
ECKERS26214756.11%171518847.25.76.51122.4
COCKERHAM48525251.96%24293,4837.26.04.912122.1
LEIDNER102958056.37%32367,2877.13.53.133121.2
GRAY29515050.85%11142,0537.04.73.712117.5
HOHENSEE72239254.29%31334,7926.64.64.35116.5
SCHAFFNER51527853.98%22213,4726.74.14.36115.5
KALIAKMANIS19910552.76%741,3927.02.03.52111.1
SCHADE62732251.36%23223,9866.43.53.72109.0
FLEETWOOD87646553.08%44185,2796.02.15.015100.4
DUNGY58627446.76%35223,5156.03.86.01697.6
CURRY50522644.75%24163,0606.13.24.81496.6
STEPHENS29710033.67%27131,5715.34.49.11774.4
COX1063734.91%1275084.86.611.3NA74.3
Interesting that the oft-maligned Morgan is the ONLY QB in this analysis that exceeded 60% completions.
 

Gophs could benefit from offensive coaches studying film of how Iowa consistently and successfully gets their tight ends OPEN, especially downfield. Nothing wrong with copying someone else's success. IMHO Gophs' offense too frequently puts BSF into routes that have low success probability.
 

Great work detailing all the passes! I agree with those who have said he throws fastballs too much, but based on your list, I think only #27 & 28 fall in that category. That said, both of those drops were completely on the WR, not AK's fault.

Those drops also were indicative of something bad that Fleck has to fix: giving up early. Yeah, a comeback was unlikely at that point but it wasn't impossible and you have to play to the final gun. On both those drops, it looked like the guy had already given up for the day.

What makes it worse is that we already saw this week 1 vs Nebraska. A drive or 2 before the fumble, we went 3 and out, which included a drop (Jackson, IIRC) and all the guys had just terrible body language.
 

There's a few AK posts out there. So this feels a bit like beating a dead horse. My apologies.

I've been thinking about it, and here's my "take" -- which is really more of a hypothesis than an assessment.

AK is not predominantly anticipating. He is seeing.

So his QB "operations" are: look; see opportunity; determine that window of opportunity is closing; rush through throwing mechanics; and fire a hard pass (because the window is closing). This leads to rocket passes that are likely to be erratic.

When the game slows down for him, he will both identify (i.e., see) opportunities earlier and even anticipate opportunities, which is to say that he will "see" them without needing to see them. This will give him more time to go through his throwing motion and permit him to deliver a softer ball when appropriate -- because the window of opportunity will have been expanded.

If there are former QBs on here, I'd love for you to chime in.
 


He is bad right now. Stares down receivers, happy feet in the pocket and is really inaccurate cuz he doesnt step in to his throws. I really cant believe after three years they havent fixed his lower half when he throws - drifts on everything. Thats coaching.

I think he will get better.
 

To me it is as simple as this. Last year when he came in he knew he wasn't the man. Right or wrong, it was Tanner's job and he was simply filling in. He was loose and just played ball. It is different when you are the real QB1 and you have the weight of the world on your shoulders. He is thinking and not playing.

With that being said, some get over it and go back to just playing. Others can't get over it and simply can't do it.
 

At this point I'm just hoping he has the mentality of resilience with a fantastic short term memory.
No time to dwell, just look forward AK.
 

At this point I'm just hoping he has the mentality of resilience with a fantastic short term memory.
No time to dwell, just look forward AK.
He will be ok. As bad days go, he had one of the worst. He is way better than that and showed it last season against Wisconsin, Nebraska, and until he got hurt against Cuse. Even his first start in a Happy Valley whiteout he had some poise against a superior team.

He is feeling the pressure of being the guy everyone is counting on. He’ll be ok.
 

Here you go...sorted by NCAA Passer rating.

ATTCOMPCOMP-%INTTDYDSYDS/ATTTD/ 100 ATTINT/100 ATTTD RUSHNCAA Pass Rtng
MORGAN106366162.18%32659,4698.96.13.08151.2
CUPITO91851355.88%25557,4468.16.02.70138.3
ABDUL-KHALIQ84748156.79%26556,6607.96.53.116138.1
FOGGIE62831149.52%32345,1628.25.45.124126.2
SAUTER94553957.04%33406,8347.24.23.58124.8
WEBER1,59490957.03%517210,9176.84.53.210123.1
ECKERS26214756.11%171518847.25.76.51122.4
COCKERHAM48525251.96%24293,4837.26.04.912122.1
LEIDNER102958056.37%32367,2877.13.53.133121.2
GRAY29515050.85%11142,0537.04.73.712117.5
HOHENSEE72239254.29%31334,7926.64.64.35116.5
SCHAFFNER51527853.98%22213,4726.74.14.36115.5
KALIAKMANIS19910552.76%741,3927.02.03.52111.1
SCHADE62732251.36%23223,9866.43.53.72109.0
FLEETWOOD87646553.08%44185,2796.02.15.015100.4
DUNGY58627446.76%35223,5156.03.86.01697.6
CURRY50522644.75%24163,0606.13.24.81496.6
STEPHENS29710033.67%27131,5715.34.49.11774.4
COX1063734.91%1275084.86.611.3NA74.3

AK has faced mostly quality P5 competition with very few gimme games to pad the stats. He's young. He clearly has the arm talent and by all accounts is a nice young man.

But seeing him as the lowest rated Gopher QB since Beanie Babies were the hot new thing and the Gophers were 10th in the Big Ten isn't good. It's predictive and not in a positive way.

I really hope it's something that can be sorted out in the film room and that the guy we saw against wisconsin is the real AK.
 

AK has faced mostly quality P5 competition with very few gimme games to pad the stats. He's young. He clearly has the arm talent and by all accounts is a nice young man.

But seeing him as the lowest rated Gopher QB since Beanie Babies were the hot new thing and the Gophers were 10th in the Big Ten isn't good. It's predictive and not in a positive way.

I really hope it's something that can be sorted out in the film room and that the guy we saw against wisconsin is the real AK.
11 games to go. He’ll be fine.

I’m more worried about a No. 2 back. Taylor can’t carry this much load all year. He’s going to get dinged somewhere along the line. Don’t think Tyler is enough.
 

11 games to go. He’ll be fine.

I’m more worried about a No. 2 back. Taylor can’t carry this much load all year. He’s going to get dinged somewhere along the line. Don’t think Tyler is enough.
I see what you did there ;)
 

Wow! Lots of future HOF coaches posting here. If only Fleck would read and follow every criticism the team troubles would be over! (Sarcasm intended)
 

Fleck has been unable to recruit a QB and other players who can play at a level I expected in year 7. Maybe it is a combo of coaching and players but I do believe in the old saying: "Jimmy's and Joe's beat X's and O's".

Maybe many of you were expecting to see a drop-off like this but I was hopeful PJ would bring in players who could play at a higher level than what we are experiencing this year. Other than Taylor, I am not expecting any major improvement over what we have seen. If we see improvement then we will exceed my expectations and that will be great. I will remain a season ticket holder and go to every game but I can't get over this level of play in year 7. I thought we would be better than this; maybe I was unrealistic to think that. I think we have hit the ceiling with PJ at the helm.
 

All it took was one bad game and the boo birds are circling. Give the kid a chance. Let’s see where we are at the end of the season.
 

All it took was one bad game and the boo birds are circling. Give the kid a chance. Let’s see where we are at the end of the season.
Yep, it’s just that the NC performance was so bad I’m running scared on our QB play. Had too high of expectations to begin with. This is a good week for him to get right or at least on the right path.
 




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