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QB competition

joemon

Active member
I wouldn't be surprised to see Gage Gubrud starting this Fall. He seems to have that "it" factor for getting things done. I just hope the OL comes through because I have a feeling we will see at least 2 or all 3 of the incoming freshman RB's suiting up this Fall.
 
I've been a Gage fan since he first came here. I agree he could very well be the starter. He just seems to fit Baldwins style of QB
 
I have an open mind as well, but I'm hoping for RH. I know he has been working out with Taylor Bartin, Jake Heaps and others in the off season.
 
I've watched a lot of High School football and Reilly was one of the best I have seen but I saw someone better in the 4A championship game and that player is competing at EWU this Spring. Joey Zamora was really impressive in the 4A championship vs Camas. He may be in the thick of things if given a chance.
 
Whoever it ends up being is going to have their work cut out for them. Our first three games are unlike anything I've ever seen on our schedule back-to-back-to-back. With a young O-line out there, we are going to need a QB that is mobile that can buy time with his feet for our receivers to get downfield and make plays. Trying to drop back and sit in the pocket ain't gonna cut it our first three games. I like Gubrud and Hennessey's ability to extend drives with their feet. I really feel it's going to end up being Hennessey though. I believe there's a reason Baldwin had him as our #2 last year. I think Baldwin saw/see's how good he has the chance to be. It's going to be a fun battle to watch regardless of who wins the QB job.

go eags!
 
Who knows, if Barriere is as good as advertised and is another Vernon we may see him on the field early? You know the old saying about the dilemma of which qb to play when you have two (three?) of equal ability.
 
allweatherfan2 said:
Who knows, if Barriere is as good as advertised and is another Vernon we may see him on the field early? You know the old saying about the dilemma of which qb to play when you have two (three?) of equal ability.

Expect not to see Barriere get any playing time until 2017.
 
Just about every Freshman qb needs a red shirt season to develop physically and learn the offense. I hope the coaches are not considering having Barriere compete as a true Freshman unless they think he's head and shoulders better than anyone on the roster. That's very unlikely at this point in time even if he ends up developing into a great at some point in the future. No, red shirt EB3 this year and then let him compete against RH and GG in 2017.

As for this season, I really think Hennessey is the best all around QB and provides us with the best opportunity to win games. With that being said, West was really good the first half of 2015 and it looks like Gabrud could make a claim for the #2 or even #1 spot as well.
 
Hambone said:
Just about every Freshman qb needs a red shirt season to develop physically and learn the offense. I hope the coaches are not considering having Barriere compete as a true Freshman unless they think he's head and shoulders better than anyone on the roster. That's very unlikely at this point in time even if he ends up developing into a great at some point in the future. No, red shirt EB3 this year and then let him compete against RH and GG in 2017.

As for this season, I really think Hennessey is the best all around QB and provides us with the best opportunity to win games. With that being said, West was really good the first half of 2015 and it looks like Gabrud could make a claim for the #2 or even #1 spot as well.
I agree with all of this. EB3 could very well be the next great QB at EWU. Maybe be as good, or even better than VA. Based on some of the footage I've seen, I think he might be faster, and eventually have a stronger arm than VA. He will still need a redshirt year for all of the reasons mentioned above. In the mean time, let Hennessey and Gubrud go compete to see if one of them has what it takes to be the next great Eagle QB. Give them the whole season to do it. There is just too much promise with Hennessey and Gubrud to not do so. Shoot, even if Hennessey wins the job we could still start out 1 and 2 or 0 - 3 with the teams we're up against. Even if that happens (and hopefully it doesn't) I don't think you yank Hennessey. Give him a solid chance. Like I said in a different post....whichever QB wins the starting job this season has their work cut out for them in our opening three games. 1) WSU 2)N.Dak St. 3)N.Iowa. If we somehow come out of that mess with 2 wins I think we've found our guy.

go eags!
 
Ok so why are we giving up on West so quickly? I know he had a rough couple of games at the end of the year but he put up some incredible numbers at the beginning of the year.
 
EWU98 said:
Ok so why are we giving up on West so quickly? I know he had a rough couple of games at the end of the year but he put up some incredible numbers at the beginning of the year.

I really don't feel all that comfortable tearing down any college athlete, especially from EWU. But, IMO, West just isn't as good as Hennessey or Guburd. Mechanically, he showed signs and sometimes long stretches of solid play. Unfortunately, I don't think he has what it takes mentally to be the starting QB. When he struggled down the stretch, it wasn't because of his mechanics, it was all upstairs. He became scared to throw the ball more than 5-7 yards down the field. He panicked and made terrible decisions throwing into double and triple coverage, afraid to go through his progressions and find the sometimes wide open receiver.

I do like JW. I think he's a solid guy and I'm glad he's on this team. I just don't think he is the right fit for the starting job. :twocents: :twocents:
 
EWU98 said:
Ok so why are we giving up on West so quickly? I know he had a rough couple of games at the end of the year but he put up some incredible numbers at the beginning of the year.

nobody should dismiss West. I was a vocal critic of him last season but he did have some good games and I think it's important to remember that it was his first season as the starter. He has the most game experience of any Qb on the roster. As fans we shouldn't dismiss any of these guys because I think any one of them are capable of leading the offense.
 
EWU98 said:
Ok so why are we giving up on West so quickly? I know he had a rough couple of games at the end of the year but he put up some incredible numbers at the beginning of the year.

I don't think anyone's giving up on him. Nobody should be, anyway. Jordan had a rough stretch last year, but I think he's in the mix just as much as the other two. We all need to keep an open mind, regardless of who we think the starter should be. I trust the coaches.
 
I'll get behind whoever the eventual starter is 100 percent, but I hope that there's a clear number 1 going into game 1.
 
ewueagfan said:
I'll get behind whoever the eventual starter is 100 percent, but I hope that there's a clear number 1 going into game 1.

I agree with that. I completely trust the coaches as well, but it was frustrating to watch the constant rotation of QB's. I hope there is a clear #1 guy going into game 1 and he is given full control unless he loses his spot. Having a situation like we had at Montana last year with guys rotating in and out is terrible for young guys development. At least in my opinion.
 
I went out to the second scrimmage today in Cheney, specifically to focus on the quarterback competition...and here are my takeaways:

Gage Gubrud -
Gage looked in control today. We moved the ball on almost every series he was in on. He definitely showed me why people/coaches are so high on his athletic ability. He was very mobile in the pocket and looked like a great athlete when he took off and ran with the ball. He did get sacked a few times but I would give credit to the defense (and maybe a young O-line) on those sacks. He did have one really nice deep ball that went for approximately 40 yards or so. What really stood out to me today about Gage was his ability to throw on the move WITH ACCURACY. It looked fluent and I think it makes him a great fit in Baldwin's system. He seemed to have pretty good arm strength when he needed it, and was accurate on his throws over the middle. He did have one interception that looked like a poor decision and seemed to frustrate the coaches due to the scenario the team was working on during that series. Another thing that stood out was that Gage looked very poised and in control. He never seemed to get rattled and just looked confident the whole time. He had that natural swagger like he was the guy. If he does win the QB competition, I have no doubt that he will frustrate opponents and give defenses FITS with his legs and ability to throw on the move. Overall
assessment - Gubrud looked the part today and as of now I am more than comfortable with Gage running the show.

Reilly Hennessey
Reilly showed that he too can use his feet. He had one really nice 15 to 20 yard run where he made a few defenders miss. I saw the coaches really praising him after that play. Baldwin seemed fired up about it. He did make one bad decision on a short throw (maybe a screen) that resulted in an interception. He was never really able to get into a great rhythm today but it wasn't because he wasn't making overall good throws/decisions. His throws seemed to all be on the money. I don't know what his final stats were but the box score will be deceiving when they show his stats because he had a few nicely thrown balls dropped. He looked very accurate and the ball always came out on time. His big highlight was a perfectly placed ball that was thrown to the back right corner of the end zone that was dropped into a 15-inch window that it had to be place in for a touchdown. I thought it was the best throw of the day by any quarterback. Looking forward to watching it on the news tonight as news cameras were filming from the back of the end zone. Just a beautifully thrown ball with amazing touch. Overall assessment - Hennessey looked like he belongs in the discussion for starting quarterback. A few receiver drops (some of our younger receivers) kept the chains from moving a couple times for Reilly today. I wish we could have seen more of him.

Jordan West
West's first three series or so did not go so well. He did not look comfortable and most of this throws were not accurate. Balls were thrown low and behind guys. He didn't seem to be on the same page with his receivers and timing seemed to be off. He was not able to escape pressure and his throws on the run were not accurate. Jordan did eventually get it going later on and started to look like the West we know can play. When he decided to step up in the pocket and throw on time and with confidence I thought he looked great. Overall assessment - West was not able to escape pressure in the backfield on plays where I believe Gubrud/Hennessey would have. He showed flashes of solid QB play. With consistent play, I think Jordan could be the starter.

Overall assessment of the QB's that got the most reps today:
Based on what I saw today (AND ONLY TODAY) I believe the QB's performed in the following order:
1) Gabrud - Looked very mobile, athletic, accurate in the pocket and on the move, confident/poised.
2) Hennessey - Looked like he will compete for starter. Has all the tools.
3) West - Solid at times, but overall I thought he was inconsistent.

What I saw today was definitely more than enough talent at QB to win with. It looks like there will still be some growing pains at the position because of the overall QB youth. That's just part of the game for all young QB's. They are going to do some things that make you scratch your head, and some other things that spell STARTER. I believe that the coaches will ultimately end up going with one of the QB's that can extend plays with their legs. With a young O-line, I think escape-ability will be imperative. As of right now, I think Hennessey is chasing Gubrud....but just by a little. I'm not saying this because I believe that Gabrud is a better QB than Hennessey. He might be, but I still want a bigger sample size. This assessment is only based off of today. Either one is good enough to lead the team IMO.

go eags!
 

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