The most underrated quarterback in each college football conference (Big Ten: Drake Lindsey, MN)

[BleedGopher]

Per Bundy:

Big Ten: Drake Lindsey, Minnesota

I know I heap praise on the Gophers a lot but they just look like a team that's waiting to explode in the Big Ten. The homegrown Lindsey had 2,382 passing yards, 18 touchdowns and a mere six interceptions on his 389 attempts last season. He impressively did not throw a pick in his final five games and scored seven touchdowns in the final three, including the game winner in overtime at the Rate Bowl. Lindsey could be the next Mendoza with the right luck.

The most underrated quarterback in each college football conference

Don't be shocked if these passers are making waves in college football next year.

fansided.com

Go Gophers!!

 

[Gophers7NatTitlesBadgers0]

This guy gets it. Not a dink!

Edit: He needs to research where Drake came from however.

 

[Unregistered User]

So...does this mean that we consider players who didn't portal in as "homegrown" now?

 

[Ski-U-Ham]

Anywhere near being the next Mendoza and I think we're in pretty good shape next year. Really has to work on his mobility to come anywhere near those comparisons.

 

[gopherbadgerman]

I like Drake, hopefully he continues to improve this season. 2900 yards and 23 TD's and most importantly winning 7-8 games would be great.

 

[A_Slab_of_Bacon]

I like Drake, he’s a very good prospect.

Still a prospect kinda guy IMO. Praise for him IMO is getting way ahead of the results so far.

Granted I’m excited to see him this fall

 

[Unregistered User]

Anywhere near being the next Mendoza and I think we're in pretty good shape next year. Really has to work on his mobility to come anywhere near those comparisons.

Agreed, and this is NOT a comparison, but I was thinking of successful, immobile college QBs and thought of Peyton Manning, so I looked up his college rushing stats.

	Games	Yards	TDs
1994	11	-26	1
1995	11	6	5
1996	11	-131	3
1997	12	-30	3

 

[btowngopher]

Anywhere near being the next Mendoza and I think we're in pretty good shape next year. Really has to work on his mobility to come anywhere near those comparisons.

Not sure he can really gain mobility at this point.

 

[GophEnEspaña]

Not sure he can really gain mobility at this point.

Yeah. It's not a video game where guys just increase X, Y, Z ratings. He has decent feet for his size, but with his injuries and way he moves he's limited. Also didn't he tear his patellar? You're never the same after that. Mendoza is a better athlete

 

[Unregistered User]

He has decent feet for his size…

Seeing that he wears size 12

Decent, not elite

 

[Big Dawg]

Yeah. It's not a video game where guys just increase X, Y, Z ratings. He has decent feet for his size, but with his injuries and way he moves he's limited. Also didn't he tear his patellar? You're never the same after that. Mendoza is a better athlete

No, but, he can work on his speed and footwork overall. Slight improvement possible. He’ll never be considered a very mobile qb but damn he was slow last season. He has to be able to out run a lineman to get out of bounds. If not he’ll need to read it quicker and get rid of the ball

 

[Ski-U-Ham]

Not sure he can really gain mobility at this point.

I think if it's something he and the staff commits to, he can. To what degree might be up in the air.

 

[CurveballJesus]

This guy gets it. Not a dink!

Edit: He needs to research where Drake came from however.

Unfortunately it seems like homegrown just means he hasn't transferred 3 times

 

[MNVCGUY]

Unfortunately it seems like homegrown just means he hasn't transferred 3 times

Homegrown has nothing to do with where the player is from it just means they are at the school they originally committed to (which I know is becoming a rarity anymore).

 

[Gophers7NatTitlesBadgers0]

Unfortunately it seems like homegrown just means he hasn't transferred 3 times

I see that now. The label is quite confusing. You would think there would be something better to describe a player like Drake.

 

[Gopherchase]

Not sure he can really gain mobility at this point.

Oh, sure he can. He’ll never be anything other than slow, but his feet can get much better.

 

[MNVCGUY]

I think if it's something he and the staff commits to, he can. To what degree might be up in the air.

Yeah, I would think they will work on his mobility, maybe try and cut a little weight, work on quickness. Running will likely never be a big part of his game but he can probably get better at moving in the pocket and taking off when the situation allows for it.

Just have to be able to run enough so that the defense has to respect the possibility that you might.

 

[60's Guy]

Mobility...he can become more agile in the pocket...slide, move up, move laterally in the pocket more instinctively, gracefully.
My question is: he played with a very bulky knee brace...was he completely healthy last year?
If he can get more confident with his legs he'll become more nimble.
Peyton Manning as mentioned had some success without being able to run...Brady sat in the pocket but moved to open areas within it.

 

[MNVCGUY]

Mobility...he can become more agile in the pocket...slide, move up, move laterally in the pocket more instinctively, gracefully.
My question is: he played with a very bulky knee brace...was he completely healthy last year?
If he can get more confident with his legs he'll become more nimble.
Peyton Manning as mentioned had some success without being able to run...Brady sat in the pocket but moved to open areas within it.

No clue on the brace but on the rest so much of what you mentioned comes with experience. As the game slows down for him he will be able to see things better and that will hopefully help his mobility some.

Guessing Drake will put a lot of effort in during the off season to do what he can to improve his mobility which will in turn allow him to extend plays and give receivers more time to get open.

 

[Unregistered User]

My question is: he played with a very bulky knee brace...was he completely healthy last year?

Here is Brosmer, Morgan, AK and The Drake.

Fleck has all the QBs wear a brace on their lead leg, that is the one more susceptible to injury from a low hit.

If you attend spring practice, you'll see that on every QB

 

[Unregistered User]

Here are the QBs at a 2024 spring practice:

 

[Clairemont Gopher]

Anywhere near being the next Mendoza and I think we're in pretty good shape next year. Really has to work on his mobility to come anywhere near those comparisons.

Hard to work on mobility. Kind of like learning to be fast. He just has heavy legs but might be able to speed up his coverage recognition and get the ball out a little quicker. Receivers that can separate would help.

 

[RememberMurray]

Hard to work on mobility. Kind of like learning to be fast. He just has heavy legs but might be able to speed up his coverage recognition and get the ball out a little quicker. Receivers that can separate would help.

This might be a dumb idea, but here goes:

He's a big, tall, strong QB. What if, instead of training for quickness (which seems like a pretty big ask) he trained for balance and strength. Maybe he could shrug off some sack attempts, a la Big Ben Roethlisberger.

Remember, he's only 20 years old. He might still have some physical maturation left to do.

 

[Ski-U-Ham]

Hard to work on mobility. Kind of like learning to be fast. He just has heavy legs but might be able to speed up his coverage recognition and get the ball out a little quicker. Receivers that can separate would help.

I still disagree, I think mobility can be increased with the right training. I'm not saying he needs to be the next Lamar Jackson, but he also doesn't need to be the next Kirk Cousins either.

 

[60's Guy]

Here is Brosmer, Morgan, AK and The Drake.

Fleck has all the QBs wear a brace on their lead leg, that is the one more susceptible to injury from a low hit.

If you attend spring practice, you'll see that on every QB

View attachment 42366

Thanks! I used to go practices when there was more of them and better communication when they were. But, still...feeling dumb I hadn't recognized this. Thanks for the info!

 

[Clairemont Gopher]

I still disagree, I think mobility can be increased with the right training. I'm not saying he needs to be the next Lamar Jackson, but he also doesn't need to be the next Kirk Cousins either.

Cousins has 900+ NFL rushing yards and 20 rushing touchdowns. He hardly belongs on the wrong end of the mobility scale.

 

[Unregistered User]

Cousins has 900+ NFL rushing yards and 20 rushing touchdowns. He hardly belongs on the wrong end of the mobility scale.

Negative 127 yards and 1 rushing TD in college

 

[Ski-U-Ham]

Cousins has 900+ NFL rushing yards and 20 rushing touchdowns. He hardly belongs on the wrong end of the mobility scale.

From 2015 - 2024 (as a starter with WAS, MN, & ATL), Cousins had 898 yards rushing in 150 games. That's an average of 6.0 yards per game and 1.9 touchdowns per year. Do you think data suggests something other than the claim that Cousins is an immobile quarterback?

(Disclaimer: I did a lot of the math in my head, so I might be off slightly.)

I don't know how Lindsey compares on a yards per game basis because in college, sacks count as negative rushing yards. He did have 4 rushing TDs last year though.

Again, I think Lindsey can improve his mobility. If you want to dig you heels in on saying Cousins is a mobile QB, then I'll amend my statement to be that Lindsey doesn't have to be the next Lamar Jackson, but he doesn't need to be the next Tom Brady either (from a mobility perspective; I'd LOVE it if he could replicate Brady's NFL success at the college level).

 

[Gopherchase]

This might be a dumb idea, but here goes:

He's a big, tall, strong QB. What if, instead of training for quickness (which seems like a pretty big ask) he trained for balance and strength. Maybe he could shrug off some sack attempts, a la Big Ben Roethlisberger.

Remember, he's only 20 years old. He might still have some physical maturation left to do.

Not dumb and probably quite on point. However, the kid can certainly get a little bit more nimble than what he showed for example on the awkward touchdown run from this past year.