2013 QB Anthony Jennings Commits to LSU

with the exception of Crouch, all of those "running QBs" were outstanding passers... just as good as the pro-style group (with the exception of Crouch, of course, who was a Tom Osborne-Nebraska option QB all the way)...

"RUNNING QB" GROUP

1993 Ward (drafted 1st Round by NBA)
--passing: 69.5% completion pct, 3,032 yards (275.6 ypg), 27 TD, 4 INT, 157.8 rating (#4 in NCAA)
--rushing: 339 yards (30.8 ypg), 4 TD

2001 Crouch (3rd Round Pick as a WR)
--passing: 55.6% completion pct, 1,510 yards (125.83 ypg), 7 TD, 10 INT, 124.3 rating (#61 in NCAA)
--rushing: 1,115 yards (92.9 ypg), 18 TD

2006 Smith (5th Round Pick)
--passing: 65.3% completion pct, 2,542 yards (195.5 ypg), 30 TD, 6 INT, 161.9 rating (#7 in NCAA)
--rushing: 204 yards (15.7 ypg), 1 TD

2007 Tebow (1st Round Pick)
--passing: 66.9% completion pct, 3,286 yards (252.8 ypg), 32 TD, 6 INT, 172.5 rating (#2 in NCAA)
--rushing: 895 yards (68.9 ypg), 23 TD

2010 Newton (1st Round Pick)
--passing: 66.1% completion pct, 2,854 yards (203.9 ypg), 30 TD, 7 INT, 182.1 rating (#2 in NCAA)
--rushing: 1,473 yards (105.2 ypg), 20 TD

2011 Griffin (1st Round Pick)
--passing: 72.4% completion pct, 4,293 yards (330.2 ypg), 37 TD, 6 INT, 189.5 rating (#2 in NCAA)
--rushing: 699 yards (53.8 ypg), 10 TD


"PRO-STYLE QB" GROUP

1996 Wuerffel (4th Round Pick)
--passing: 57.5% completion pct, 3,625 yards (302.1 ypg), 39 TD, 13 INT, 170.6 rating (#2 in NCAA)
--rushing: NEGATIVE-100 yards, 0 TD

2000 Weinke (4th Round Pick)
--passing: 61.7% completion pct, 4,167 yards (347.3 ypg), 33 TD, 11 INT, 163.1 rating (#2 in NCAA)
--rushing: NEGATIVE-97 yards yards, 1 TD

2002 Palmer (1st Round Pick)
--passing: 63.2% completion pct, 3,942 yards (303.2 ypg), 33 TD, 10 INT, 149.1 rating (#5 in NCAA)
--rushing: NEGATIVE-122 yards, 4 TD

2003 White (undrafted)
--passing: 61.6% completion pct, 3,846 yards (274.7 ypg), 40 TD, 10 INT, 158.1 rating (#7 in NCAA)
--rushing: NEGATIVE-150 yards, 1 TD

2004 Leinart (1st Round Pick)
--passing: 65.3% completion pct, 3,322 yards (255.5 ypg), 33 TD, 6 INT, 156.5 rating (#7 in NCAA)
--rushing: NEGATIVE-44 yards, 3 TD

2008 Bradford (1st Round Pick)
--passing: 67.9% completion pct, 4,720 yards (337.1 ypg), 50 TD, 8 INT, 180.8 rating (#1 in NCAA)
--rushing: 47 yards (3.4 ypg), 5 TD

Pass Efficiency
189.5 -- 2011 Griffin
182.1 -- 2010 Newton
180.8 -- 2008 Bradford
172.5 -- 2007 Tebow
170.6 -- 1996 Wuerffel
163.1 -- 2000 Weinke
161.9 -- 2006 Smith
157.8 -- 1993 Ward
156.5 -- 2004 Leinart
158.1 -- 2003 White
149.1 -- 2002 Palmer
124.3 -- 2001 Crouch

Ward was one of the best NCAA QBs I've ever seen, both an outstanding passer and an outstanding runner, like his Heisman profile says: he "used his phenomenal escape skills to avoid the oncoming defensive linemen. Indeed, he averaged six yards every time he ran with the ball. But it was as a passer that Ward ruined a defense, with an almost unbelievable- near 70 percent- completion average, and the ability to throw the long pass as well as the short."

Smith had 1,168 yards rushing for his career, including 204 in 2006, 611 in 2005, and 401 in 2004

of those six Heisman QBs that could run, the only one who wasn't a great pro-style passer was Crouch, which is why they all got drafted by the pros to be pro QBs except for Crouch (he got drafted as an ATH) and Ward... as for Ward, he would have been drafted, but he already told the NFL that he was going to play in the NBA (who took him in the 1st Round), unless the NFL took him in the 1st Round as well...

Sports Illustrated:

Says San Diego Charger director of player personnel Billy Devaney, "Most kids lie and tell you they're only interested in the NFL. I admire Charlie's honesty. He admitted he had NBA aspirations. That may have cost him a spot in the draft."

There had also been some questions about Ward's height and arm strength, but the central issue, it seems, was his intentions. "The NFL wanted Charlie to make a commitment to football," said Ward's agent, Eugene Parker, after the draft, "but Charlie always said that if a team didn't take him until after the first round, it wouldn't be able to sign him."

Considering Ward's warning that he had to be picked in the first round or not at all, his mother, Willard, wasn't surprised that he went undrafted. "We were told during December's Heisman dinner that Charlie was probably a third-to fifth-round pick," she says. "The big surprise in our house on draft day was the 30th wedding anniversary party our kids threw us."

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1005242/index.htm

Ward did play 12 years in the NBA as a PG

 

I stand corrected on the Troy Smith stats...but that's still not a lot of yards, especially in his Heisman year. And part of his 2004 stats he actually played RB, not QB.

I guess I consider a "running" QB someone who has designed running plays called for him. Neither Ward, nor Smith had a great deal of designed runs, a la Michael Vick at Va. Tech, or even Tebow. They had the talent to escape the rush and break runs, but they're still more aligned with drop-back guys who happen to be athletic.

 

Jennings will be profiled tonight on ESPNU & WatchESPN.com at 7pm central/8pm eastern

also being profiled is the other 11 QBs that have been selected to the Elite 11 finals...and 12 additional QBs will be selected tonight...

"The Elite 11 Selection Show (Thursday, 8 p.m. ET on ESPNU) will profile the 12 players who have already been announced, while also unveiling the additional dozen competitors who will be part of the 24-player field in the Elite 11 finals, which takes place July 18 to 22. The finals will be shown in two parts on ESPN with "Elite 11 QB Camp: The Finals" airing Tuesday, Aug. 7, and Tuesday, Aug. 14."

this is how the 12 QBs that have already been selected were selected...

March 24 Dallas regional
MVP -- DeVante Kincade (uncommitted)
at-large -- Tyrone Swoopes (Texas), Rivals 5-star
at-large -- Cooper Bateman (Alabama)
at-large -- J.T. Barrett (Ohio State)

March 25 Dallas Nike Football Training Camp
none

April 1 Los Angeles Nike Football Training Camp
none

April 15 Miami Nike Football Training Camp
none

April 20 Atlanta regional
MVP -- Anthony Jennings (LSU)
(Georgia commit Brice Ramsey competed but wasn't selected until May 6 in Charlotte)

April 21 Alanta Nike Football Training Camp
none

April 22 Orlando Nike Football Training Camp
none

April 28 New York regional
MVP -- Kevin Olsen (Miami)

May 4 Columbus regional
MVP -- Shane Morris (Michigan)
at-large -- Malik Zaire (Notre Dame)
at-large -- Luke Del Rio (Oklahoma State)

May 5 Columbus Nike Football Training Camp
none

May 6 Charlotte Nike Football Training Camp
at-large -- Brice Ramsey (Georgia)

May 12 Baltimore Nike Football Training Camp
none

May 18 Oakland regional
MVP -- Max Browne (Southern Cal), Rivals 5-star

May 20 Oakland Nike Football Training Camp
none

June 1 Memphis Nike Football Training Camp
none

June 3 Champaign Nike Football Training Camp
none

June 10 Oregon Nike Football Training Camp
none

June 16 Las Vegas regional
MVP -- Zack Greenlee (uncommitted)

 

Jennings' coach:

Scott Burton isn’t mincing his words. The high school football coach from Marietta, Ga., calls his quarterback Anthony Jennings the ideal recruit.

“He’s completely committed to the process of what it takes to be a champion and what it takes to be an elite quarterback,'' said Burton, of his 6-foot-2, 205-pounder. “He loves film. He attacks the weight room. He organizes extra throwing sessions with the receivers.”

Jennings attended LSU’s Bayou Picnic in late May. Burton said Jennings arrived the day before the event.
“Most people don’t know that. Essentially, he spent 24 hours there,” Burton said. “He had an opportunity to really get engaged with the staff.”

Burton said it’s unfair to label Jennings him as drop-back passer or a dual-threat player.
“To label him as a drop-back passer implies he lacks athletic ability, and to label him a dual-threat kid implies he’s an athlete first that plays quarterback,” Burton said. “He can make any throw on the field.”

While Jennings didn’t exactly like the recruiting process, Burton said he wasn’t going to rush it. Said Burton: “He’s not a kid that does things impulsively, but he saw this recruiting process in many ways as a hindrance in some ways in what he’s supposed to accomplish personally and for our team. It was necessary to go through, but he’s happy to have the experience over with.”

Burton wasn’t surprised Jennings chose the Tigers and added “recruiting is over for him. He’s going to LSU.”

 

Jennings has been one of the top performers at the Elite 11 camp going on this weekend. Here is a link with a few sentences on him.
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/20...ecruits-shane-morris/index.html?sct=cf_bf3_a3

I love that UGA never recruited him bc they preferred Brice Ramsey, and now Jennings has outperformed him at camps so far. Ramsey didn't even get a small write up in this article.

 

Good post...also found it amusing that while Jennings was ranked 2nd out of the group, Browne the USC commit was in 7th and way down in 1tth was Bateman the Alabama commit. I find it comforting that Kragthorpe is doing the QB evaluation instead of the departed Gary Crowton. I would feel more comfortable also if Kragthorpe was OC instead of Studrawa, but of course his early onset Parkinsons keeps that from happening.

 

Les Miles is going to have this team locked and loaded for the next few years. Nice to see Kragthorpe bringing in some quality talent at QB position.

 

If I have my LSU history right, these are the QBs that Crowton had a say on recruiting/LSU signed by signing year:

2007 Jarrett Lee (IMO, turned out to be a mid major caliber starting QB at best, maybe 1-AA, certainly not SEC caliber for a highly ranked SEC team)
2008 Jordan Jefferson (see above)
2009 Chris Garrett ('nuff said)
2010 Zach Lee (IMO might have ended up being the best LSU QB since Tommy Hodson, but we'll never know)

Yes, I know I didn't include Russell Shepard but quite frankly, I don't think too many people thought he would end up at QB. LSU promised to give him a shot, they did, so no harm no foul there.
However, you look at the list above and in 4 years of QB evaluation by Crowton and signing when Crowton was there, you find 0 for 3 in NFL draft (Garrett won't be drafted from MSU or wherever he is now) and of course Zach Lee is playing baseball. For a major, major program in a major, major conference, Crowton as QB coach and QB talent evaluator certainly didn't earn his salary.

 

Here is another Jennings Elite 11 article.

http://247sports.com/Article/Thursday-quarterback-risers-for-the-2012-Elite-11-81572

He is making a name for himself !

 

Crowton as QB coach ought to be part of Penn State's death penalty.