Let me start by clearly stating that yesterday's loss in no way can be pinned on him. There was an utter failure of all the blocking in front of him that led to our offensive disintegration. Our blockers just flat out got beat by a more talented (and much more importantly) hungrier opposition. That's life. Sometimes you get beat by someone who has something to prove, or who has outworked you. That said...
If there is one thing that surprised me most about yesterday, it's how JT kind of fell apart when things went bad. He obviously got flustered, started making bad decisions, and lost the ability to throw the ball the way he normally can. I thought the kid was it after last year, and that he was the leader that our offense in a way that neither Nesbitt, Tevin, or Vad could be. In short, he was everything what a Heisman contender should be.
I'm disappointed in his play yesterday, but maybe we all lost sight that he was only making, what, his 17th start as QB and leader of team. He's got some experience, but he doesn't have what a 5th year senior leader has. Not to mention, our offense is insanely hard to run at a high level. The kid is special, but he's being asked A LOT of. I think yesterday was a wake up call for both him and us.... he's got a lot of work to do. He's got a lot of raw capability, but there is always another level we can all reach with hard work and patience. He's just not there yet, but he can be, and I'm willing to bet he will. I think it's a good think that he got punched in the mouth yesterday. I hope JT gets mad at himself, and mad at his teammates on offense. I hope he chews them out for letting themselves get outworked and outhustled. This is what JT needed to do during the game yesterday, and didn't. He needs to lead, especially during the toughest of times.
It's a hurtful loss, but if it motivates JT and all the guys to work to be better, it can turn out to be what was needed for us to reach the level where we want to be. In our upcoming games, I'm going to be watching closely what's he's doing between plays and between possessions, cause it's time for him to take it to the next level. It starts at Duke.
If there is one thing that surprised me most about yesterday, it's how JT kind of fell apart when things went bad. He obviously got flustered, started making bad decisions, and lost the ability to throw the ball the way he normally can. I thought the kid was it after last year, and that he was the leader that our offense in a way that neither Nesbitt, Tevin, or Vad could be. In short, he was everything what a Heisman contender should be.
I'm disappointed in his play yesterday, but maybe we all lost sight that he was only making, what, his 17th start as QB and leader of team. He's got some experience, but he doesn't have what a 5th year senior leader has. Not to mention, our offense is insanely hard to run at a high level. The kid is special, but he's being asked A LOT of. I think yesterday was a wake up call for both him and us.... he's got a lot of work to do. He's got a lot of raw capability, but there is always another level we can all reach with hard work and patience. He's just not there yet, but he can be, and I'm willing to bet he will. I think it's a good think that he got punched in the mouth yesterday. I hope JT gets mad at himself, and mad at his teammates on offense. I hope he chews them out for letting themselves get outworked and outhustled. This is what JT needed to do during the game yesterday, and didn't. He needs to lead, especially during the toughest of times.
It's a hurtful loss, but if it motivates JT and all the guys to work to be better, it can turn out to be what was needed for us to reach the level where we want to be. In our upcoming games, I'm going to be watching closely what's he's doing between plays and between possessions, cause it's time for him to take it to the next level. It starts at Duke.
