WR Terrelle Pryor ('10 Rose, '11 Sugar MVP)

[Redhawk]

I fully expect Pryor to explode this weekend.

Toledo has given up 90 points in 2 games. I would certainly hope for an improvement.

 

[martinss01]

Boom Herron is a back up HB at best I think its time we give one of the younger guys a shot or go with Saine. Boom cannot make the first guy miss. Full effort is great but when your not getting the job done, it doesn't really impress me.

... seriously..?

TP is were Troy was in his development.

half right. tp the true sophmore who missed all of spring ball his first year is where troy smith the 4th year junior was.

He is thinking to much trying to determine when he should stay or leave the pocket. Troy did a lot of this earlier on as he first always left the pocket, then seemed to go the other way and never leave the pocket. But we saw that by the Scum game the lightbulb went on in Troy's mind and as they say the rest is history. I expect the same thing to happen to TP sometime later this year and I can't wait for him to re-write history.......:)

troy was also horrible about not going through his progressions and often got himself in trouble by trying to do too much. i think people have rewritten troy's history a little bit now that he has left. ts didn't walk in and save the offense single handed. he really struggled in a big way for more than half the season in 05. so much so that ginn sr. told him if he didn't straighten up he should transfer. i would argue that as of today tp is ahead of where ts was as of 05 texas. whether or not tp continues to progress at a faster rate than troy did is yet to be seen. but in my mind the foundation is there and i see no reason to believe he has peaked.

 

[utgrad73]

Toledo has given up 90 points in 2 games. I would certainly hope for an improvement.

Toledo will be meeting a much tuffer defense. Points will be much harder to get IMO. TP is very competitive and won't sit back after last week, this game will be fun to watch though. See ya'll from the endzone on Sat.

 

[utgrad73]

what the coaches need to do is make the reads easier for Terrelle....I just don't understand the offense they are trying to run, and never will. Even Florida takes decesion-making out of Tebow's hands in a lot of regards. The misdirection throws to TE's, the deep ball's based off play action, rb's exploiting LB mismatches.....all calls that Tebow recognizes pre-snap where they're going to exploit based on gameplanning and playcalls. Not to say Tebow never checks down or goes through progressions.....but Florida creates pre-snap mismatches, and takes a lot of decesion-making out of the game. I just don't understand why tOSU can't do this for Terrelle on a more frequent basis. Texas did the same thing with Vince Young....zone-read offense, with simple options based on what the defense reacted too.

They can try and continue to develop Terrelle into a pocket QB that goes through several reads and relies on his arm, but it will be to the detriment of the team....IMO.

Could TP be struggling with his defensive reads? Is his desire to be a pro-style passer overpowering his running ability? He's a work in progress - a very gifted work. Running simple schemes may be where he is in his development in year two. The best is yet to come.

 

[billmac91]

Could TP be struggling with his defensive reads? Is his desire to be a pro-style passer overpowering his running ability? He's a work in progress - a very gifted work. Running simple schemes may be where he is in his development in year two. The best is yet to come.

What's the cost though? We EASILY beat USC if the coaching staff plays to Terrelle's strengths rather than making him a pocket QB. I've mentioned it before, but he chose Ohio State to develop into an NFL QB.....that is the dilemma, IMO. How do you tell Terrelle we want to win championships based on your freakish athletiscm rather than trying to develop you into a better NFL prospect?

Florida is winning championships with a college system designed to utilize Tebow's strengths. Tebow isn't running a pro-style offense, and Urban isn't sacrificing wins to make Tebow a better NFL prospect. It is what it is at this point....

Square peg and round hole, IMO.

 

[OregonBuckeye]

What's the cost though? We EASILY beat USC if the coaching staff plays to Terrelle's strengths rather than making him a pocket QB. I've mentioned it before, but he chose Ohio State to develop into an NFL QB.....that is the dilemma, IMO. How do you tell Terrelle we want to win championships based on your freakish athletiscm rather than trying to develop you into a better NFL prospect?

Florida is winning championships with a college system designed to utilize Tebow's strengths. Tebow isn't running a pro-style offense, and Urban isn't sacrificing wins to make Tebow a better NFL prospect. It is what it is at this point....

Square peg and round hole, IMO.

True. Sophomore.

A good reminder from JT:

"He wanted to be a big reason that we won that game. That's the way he is, that's the way he'll always be, and I'd mentioned to him on Sunday, I said, 'Not that it has any relevance, but keep in mind that at this stage Troy Smith was a kickoff returner and at this stage, Vince Young was getting spot duty going in when things were pretty good with a couple little things to do. At this stage you were lined up against a very good defense with a very young offense and it was tough sledding out there, but we have to grow from it.'"

Tebow went 9-4 as a sophomore, btw.

 

[Redhawk]

Toledo will be meeting a much tuffer defense. Points will be much harder to get IMO. TP is very competitive and won't sit back after last week, this game will be fun to watch though. See ya'll from the endzone on Sat.

You may have misunderstood me. I meant that Toledo's defense has given up 90 points in the last 2 games. Our offense needs to be able to perform against such a defense. That is what I am hoping for.

 

[billmac91]

True. Sophomore.

A good reminder from JT:



Tebow went 9-4 as a sophomore, btw.

Fair enough. But we score more than 3 points on 5 possesions around the 50 yard line, if Terrelle is trying to be more like Vince Young than Peyton Manning. And I don't fault Terrelle for that, it's just a square peg in a round hole right now.

Does Texas beat USC in the Rose Bowl if Vince Young and Texas trotted out the tOSU playbook? I say no way in hell.....

I don't like the comparisons career-wise to Troy much either....aside from both being tOSU QB's, I don't see many similarities in their games. Terrelle is an athletic freak, while Troy had much more of a natural grasp of being a QB. The right playbook around Terrelle should result in an amazing offense....I don't think Troy Smith's 2006 playbook is the right one....

 

[matt_thatsme]

I too think TP will become a great QB at tOSU. However, this pressure to become an NFL ready QB is hindering his development more than helping. If he just went out there and played his natural game ie. making plays with his feet to set up the pass then his progression as a passer will develop. I just don't think you can take a guy completely out of his element and expect him to excel against top notch competition like USC.

TP is a great athlete and he puts forth the kind of effort that coaches wish every player would put forth (or so I have heard and believe as the truth). He just needs to be put in a system and setting that allows him to develop naturally. As many have noted, Troy Smith didn't turn into a pure passer over night either.

That being said, I have all the faith in the world that TP will leave tOSU as one of the best players to ever wear the Scarlet and Gray.

 

[strohs]

TP had a tough game. He got nervous. He tried to do to much. Thats easy to do when you are an ultra competitive young QB.
He will learn from it. He will grow from it, and he will be fine.
Its time to stop the panic and take the frustration out on Toledo...

 

[OregonBuckeye]

Fair enough. But we score more than 3 points on 5 possesions around the 50 yard line, if Terrelle is trying to be more like Vince Young than Peyton Manning. And I don't fault Terrelle for that, it's just a square peg in a round hole right now.

Agreed.

Does Texas beat USC in the Rose Bowl if Vince Young and Texas trotted out the tOSU playbook? I say no way in hell.....

Not a fair comparison. Vince was in his 4th year. He was even more limited than Pryor earlier in his career. Maybe we can get a Texas fan to chime in. If you'll recall, that same bowl season Troy lit up Ntre Ame for 400+ total yards as a 4th year junior. Tressel's playbook will expand once Terrelle shows he can handle it.

FWIW, I don't think there was much of a playbook anyway. I don't think Mack really had to do much that year. Just handed Vince the football and said go.

 

[billmac91]

Agreed.



Not a fair comparison. Vince was in his 4th year. He was even more limited than Pryor earlier in his career. Maybe we can get a Texas fan to chime in. If you'll recall, that same bowl season Troy lit up Ntre Ame for 400+ total yards as a 4th year junior. Tressel's playbook will expand once Terrelle shows he can handle it.

FWIW, I don't think there was much of a playbook anyway. I don't think Mack really had to do much that year. Just handed Vince the football and said go.

You just made my argument for me. Texas ran a very simple zone-read scheme. They called a run play or a pass play, read the defensive end, either handed the ball to Jamaal Charles, or faked it and let Vince run, or they rolled him out and he made David Thomas look like the best college TE of all time.

And I'm over-simplifying, but what you said stands. They ran a simple offense, and let Vince's athletic ability carry the squad. If they asked Vince to go through progressions and hang in the pocket, and scramble with his head up, Texas doesn't win the championship. Again, I think it goes back to selling Terrelle on becoming an NFL QB, and trying to deliver on that promise. All things being equal, I think our offense would look drastically different, if the NFL wasn't Terrelle's next step...it'd be about winning now, with an offense that utilizes his best asset.

 

[OregonBuckeye]

Again, I think it goes back to selling Terrelle on becoming an NFL QB, and trying to deliver on that promise. All things being equal, I think our offense would look drastically different, if the NFL wasn't Terrelle's next step...it'd be about winning now, with an offense that utilizes his best asset.

I see your points. Just a few more things:

1. This is mutual. The coaches don't force him to stay in the pocket. He wants to be a pass-first QB. He was that way as a freshman.

2. It could pay off big time in the long run. He has a chance to develop into a good passer. Not just by dual-threat QB standards either. That pass he hit Posey on over the middle where he dropped it in between the LB and safety couldn't have been done any better by Sam Bradford. The TD pass he hit Small with in the spring game can only be made by a select group of QB's in college, IMO. He has the arm strength and accuracy when his feet are right to be truly good. If he reaches his potential as a passer, he will be almost unstoppable. I don't think you can say that about Tebow, McCoy, or Bradford and I don't think he'd reach his potential if he ran a system like what Florida runs.

3. We still could've/should've beaten USC. We have enough talent that we don't need to hinder his development as a QB. I think this is where we differ. You see the USC game as a sign that we need to change things up because we lost. I see it as a sign that we can stay on this path because we are that close and he's still just a pup.

 

[billmac91]

I think this is where we differ. You see the USC game as a sign that we need to change things up because we lost. I see it as a sign that we can stay on this path because we are that close and he's still just a pup.

I see it as a lost opportunity, honestly. I feel like the staff has put Terrelle above the program in some ways, and that it has cost the team an opportunity at a national championship. But I don't have all the answers....I love Terrelle's potential, and I love having him as our QB. I hate people who say he should be moved to wideout or another position.

I just see his athletic ability, and hate the lost opportunity for big wins and electric plays. I used to love watching Vince slide up in the pocket and break a 60 yard TD run. I'm not enjoying watching Terrelle force 3rd and 5 throws when he has a first down in front of him with his feet. I hate the shotgun snaps where the playcall is for him to go through progressions.....why not give him simple reads, and let him roll after that??

It's a difficult situation...what's best for the program vs. what's best for Terrelle's career?

 

[WaitingforKickoff]

Are we forgetting that Vince Young threw for 270 and 2 TDs in the Shoe?