MarQueis Gray

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Gophers_are_Golden

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Watching the St. Petersburg Bowl last night, I saw Rutgers use their true freshman Mohamed Sanu in the way the Gophers should be using MarQueis Gray. Sanu ended up with 4 rec. for 97 yards and 1 TD, and 13 rushes out of the wildcat for 41 yards and 2 TD's. Nothing was too complicated, they just gave him the ball and let his natural abilities take over.

MarQueis' strength is running the ball, so I don't see him as the future QB for the Gophers. We have two other very good QB's in Moses Alipate and Tom Parish that are stronger at throwing the ball. I feel that a move to WR along with running the wildcat would allow the Gophers to best use MarQueis' abilities.

This is the offensive lineup I am projecting for 2011:

QB - Moses Alipate
RB - Calvin Phillips (2011 Recruit, listed at 6'2" 202)
WR - MarQueis Gray
WR - James Green
WR - Da'Jon McKnight/Brandon Green/Troy Stoudermire
TE - Tiree Eure
OT - Jimmy Gjere
OT - Seantrel Henderson? (Josh Campion/Brooks Michel if we don't land Seantrel)
OG - Johnathan Ragoo
OG - Tommy Olson (2011 Recruit, ESPNU 150 watch list)
C - Josh Allen
 

Gophers_are_Golden said:
We have two other very good QB's in Moses Alipate and Tom Parish that are stronger at throwing the ball.
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What are you basing that on? From what I saw in the spring game and in the Ohio St game, Gray looked fine throwing the ball.
 

Gray is and will be a QB...he was recruited to do itand it would be a mistake to not play him at QB.
 

mkAz said:
What are you basing that on? From what I saw in the spring game and in the Ohio St game, Gray looked fine throwing the ball.
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In the Ohio State game, MarQueis was playing against the Buckeye's second team defense, and you can't really compare a spring game against your own team to a regular season game against other Big Ten opponents. I haven't seen him throw much other than in games, but I still feel his abilities are best used as a WR in the open field rather than a QB sitting in the pocket and throwing the ball. I also think MarQueis would make a good QB, but why not move him to WR so you can get two more playmaker like Alipate and Parish on the field? It seems like kind of a waste talent if you just keep MarQueis at QB and leave Alipate and Parish on the bench.
 

Have you seen Alipate or Parish play in a Gopher spring game or against Ohio State second teamers? How can you say they are as good or better than Gray at QB without even seeing them on a college football field?
 


It appears from his Rivals profile that Parish is a dual-threat QB. With that, I think our QB depth sets up for a two QB system for the next few years with Gray-Weber next year, Gray and Alipate in 2011-12, and Alipate and Parish in 2013. I am hoping that if we use this system, Gray is on the field a lot even if he is not in at QB. If nothing else, he draws the attention of the defense and opens up the field for others. I personally hope to see Gray at QB, with the flexibility to use the other guys at times and use Gray either split out or as a RB.
 

koppco1 said:
Have you seen Alipate or Parish play in a Gopher spring game or against Ohio State second teamers? How can you say they are as good or better than Gray at QB without even seeing them on a college football field?
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Neither has had an opportuinity to play yet. Maybe they are better QB's, maybe they aren't. I'm just glad we have the problem of having three quality players that can play QB. :D
 

The general idea is to recruit one top QB each year. Then, as a senior, each one becomes the starting QB.
 

harrys ghost said:
The general idea is to recruit one top QB each year. Then, as a senior, each one becomes the starting QB.
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This isn't really the idea. The reason you recruit one QB each year is for depth, same reason you recruit multiple players for any position. That said, most coaches don't desire to have a brand new senior QB each season. They would much rather get 2 or 3 seasons out of a solid starter because then theoretically the QB would be able to avoid the 'learning curve' every starter has in their first year.

As for the poster who says you can't judge Gray based on the Ohio State game I would ask if you've seen the Ohio State Defense? That is a juggernaut of a unit filled with freakish athletes across the board. Ohio State has a top 3 D this year (and almost every year). The backups on that D aren't battle tested as say, Northwestern's or Indiana's starters, but they are a lot more talented so it definitely IS a test.

Gray needs to be in taking whole series running lots of the the zone read with a few other passing and running concepts mixed in. Gray and Weber should both see extended time in the bowl game.
 



AhliBobwa said:
Gray needs to be in taking whole series running lots of the the zone read with a few other passing and running concepts mixed in. Gray and Weber should both see extended time in the bowl game.
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I concur. Gray needed to get in at least 2 or 3 series of his own. Rhythm is huge for QBs and you can only get that when playing a bunch of downs in a row.
 

Gophers_are_Golden said:
Watching the St. Petersburg Bowl last night, I saw Rutgers use their true freshman Mohamed Sanu in the way the Gophers should be using MarQueis Gray. Sanu ended up with 4 rec. for 97 yards and 1 TD, and 13 rushes out of the wildcat for 41 yards and 2 TD's. Nothing was too complicated, they just gave him the ball and let his natural abilities take over.

MarQueis' strength is running the ball, so I don't see him as the future QB for the Gophers. We have two other very good QB's in Moses Alipate and Tom Parish that are stronger at throwing the ball. I feel that a move to WR along with running the wildcat would allow the Gophers to best use MarQueis' abilities.

This is the offensive lineup I am projecting for 2011:

QB - Moses Alipate
RB - Calvin Phillips (2011 Recruit, listed at 6'2" 202)
WR - MarQueis Gray
WR - James Green
WR - Da'Jon McKnight/Brandon Green/Troy Stoudermire
TE - Tiree Eure
OT - Jimmy Gjere
OT - Seantrel Henderson? (Josh Campion/Brooks Michel if we don't land Seantrel)
OG - Johnathan Ragoo
OG - Tommy Olson (2011 Recruit, ESPNU 150 watch list)
C - Josh Allen
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I just don't have that high of expectations for Parish but hope to be surprised. He only earned honorable mention all metro for Milwaukee this year and shared honorable mention with many other QB's. He definitely did not dominate the milwaukee metro area this year.
 

We're running a pro style offense! Not that Rutgers nonsense. You think our idiot OC could manage to do any of that?

What we should have been doing is still running the spread with Gray!
 




If you think Alipate or Parrish are better QB's than Gray you must have been smoking some of Dandridge's reefer.
 

PigAxeJug said:
Gray is and will be a QB...he was recruited to do itand it would be a mistake to not play him at QB.
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I sure hope that Gray works out. What I can't understand is seeing some frosh Wyoming QB looking better than most Gopher QB's I've seen in the last 15 years. OK, I just saw one game and apparently Wyoming was near the bottom of their league in passing, but the guy looked like a gamer. He could often escape the pass rush and make big plays. And he led them to a comeback victory in their bowl game. Can't a Big 10 school recruit/develop a QB who is at least as good as the freaking Wyoming Cowboy QB??
 


Correct me if I'm wrong, but didn't some "experts" from either ESPN of the BTN say Gray was a better passer than Terrelle Pryor after watching fall camp practices either last year or this year? I think he'll be a QB and I expect he'll be a good one.
 

I think it is pretty well accepted that alipate is to big and will never play a down at qb for the gophers
 

The people on here that think Gray can't throw the ball have never seen him practice or play.

And if u think Alipate is going to be a great Quarterback look at his high school stats. Then tell me what u r basing your opinion on.
 

Brew_recruit said:
I think it is pretty well accepted that alipate is to big and will never play a down at qb for the gophers
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He's an inch and 5 lbs larger than Gray. I don't think he is considered exceptionally slow, so if that is not an issue, I guess I don't understand your "too large for QB". I think you are mistaking that for "big enough to play TE" which is far different than "too big for QB".
 

Gray: Off a paltry smattering of snaps at QB, managed to pull off at least a couple of nice runs and as a WR a dandy TD reception. He also fumbled a time or two and tossed at least one interception (I don't remember exactly how many and am not taking the time to look it up). The point is that without consistent playing time he will remain a mystery to everyone, including the coaches. Given his obvious athleticism, continued lack of playing time is the one thing that could prematurely knock me off Brewster's bandwagon.
 

+1 Maxwell....

When Weber simply couldn't throw the football, it made no sense for Gray not to get more looks. When Weber was bad last season, it would have been pretty much impossible for Gray to have been worse.
 

Bob_Loblaw said:
He's an inch and 5 lbs larger than Gray. I don't think he is considered exceptionally slow, so if that is not an issue, I guess I don't understand your "too large for QB". I think you are mistaking that for "big enough to play TE" which is far different than "too big for QB".
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You are just looking at numbers, to know what i am talking about you have to see them up close in person. (Like I have)
 

Demi said:
We're running a pro style offense! Not that Rutgers nonsense. You think our idiot OC could manage to do any of that?

What we should have been doing is still running the spread with Gray!
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Totally agree. Gray can throw the ball. Since Gray was such a big-time recruit you'd think that our OC would develope a plan that would work for him. Like 10-15 plays that he could understand. Programs do it often for their qb's, especially dual-threat. V-tech did it with Vick. Very similar situation here. Gray is a great talent but seems to be surrounded by coaches that think they have to be the smartest people in the room. If Gray doesn't understand the Pro Set make it easier for him. I hope this doesn't continue. Simplify the offense for Gray and we have a very potent QB.
 

Brew_recruit said:
You are just looking at numbers, to know what i am talking about you have to see them up close in person. (Like I have)
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Don't agree with much Brew recruit but you are spot on here...Alipate is huge! I mean the man looks like a D-lineman and I'm not exaggerating. He throws a great looking ball though....Gray simply looks like a stud whether it be throwing-(although he doesn't throw a very good spiral,) running routes, zone runs, etc.....The man is the best looking athlete that we have and we absolutely need him to be a focal point of our offense in some capacity next year. I really think he's going to be special after he studies the offense for another year.
 

golfinggopher said:
Don't agree with much Brew recruit but you are spot on here...Alipate is huge! I mean the man looks like a D-lineman and I'm not exaggerating. He throws a great looking ball though....Gray simply looks like a stud whether it be throwing-(although he doesn't throw a very good spiral,) running routes, zone runs, etc.....The man is the best looking athlete that we have and we absolutely need him to be a focal point of our offense in some capacity next year. I really think he's going to be special after he studies the offense for another year.
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As long as Alipate can move, make reads, and throw it really doesn't matter how big he is, beyond health and conditioning concerns. Culpepper was great before his injury, Big Ben is probably 260-270. All Alipate has to be is effective as a passer and a leader, he doesn't have to be a chiseled 225 running a 4.4. He has an absolute cannon too, watch his clips at the Underarmor AA game, his passes were somewhat off, but they come with serious heat.

Gray is a stud, no doubt, once he gets some more confidence and playing experience he'll be a big time player, no matter what position he plays.
 

Brew_recruit said:
You are just looking at numbers, to know what i am talking about you have to see them up close in person. (Like I have)
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I've seen them both in person. My main point is that "what does it mean to be too big to play QB?"

That's like saying someone is too fast to play LB. If Moses's size does not affect his game (which I don't see how it would, he's not a fat kid), then how in the world does the extra bulk make him a worse candidate for QB?
 

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