Cam Cameron describes how to handle young QBs: 'I'm the ghost chaser' Posted by: Chris Vannini on Monday August 17, 2015 LSU offensive coordinator / quarterbacks coach Cam Cameron provided some interesting insight Sunday on how to handle young quarterbacks. By most accounts, sophomore Brandon Harris has taken the lead in the LSU quarterback race. When it comes to in-game adjustments, you can’t overload a young player and shoot his confidence. “No. 1 you have to be careful. You have to be careful about planting,” Cameron said. “You're trying to teach a lesson, but you plant too many seeds in a guy's head, and now he starts chasing ghosts. I tell the QBs I'm the ghost chaser. I'm the guy who plays the scenario game. You cover one thing with a young player, and then they fixate on it. Now, they become blind to other things. You have to be smart. “With veteran quarterbacks, I got this from Peyton Manning, I said, ‘Give me your take on information in between series.' For him, what worked for him is less is best. Why? Because he is so prepared, and sometimes quarterbacks that are really prepared, all you have to do is say one thing and ‘I got you, Coach.' It triggers the brain and the thought process, so less is best. But that’s Peyton. Most quarterbacks aren’t that prepared, especially young college guys. When you’re making in-game adjustments, it has to be short and quick. “A guy comes to the sideline and you think you have this timeline to get the problem solved. The defense gets a turnover, you haven't solved the problem or communicated with the QB, and it can get you again,” Cameron said. “Those moments are critical. It's how you go about them that I think is the most important thing.” In that time, you have to realize when players aren’t absorbing any more information. When Cameron joined the LSU staff in 2013, it was his first college job since 2001. There’s a look in a QB's eyes, and Cameron said Les Miles has been very helpful in that aspect. “Les has really helped me several times. He goes, ‘Cam, he's got a good look in his eye.,'” Cameron said. “Les will tell me so I know right now the guy has a clear picture, so I get him on a headset. I say, ‘Give me a little heads up on what happened.' He says, ‘Hey, that's my fault. It was this, this or this.' Or, Les will say, ‘You might want to check with him on that one, he has a bad look on his face.' “… There's no manual to the deal. These are living, breathing human beings. Every situation to a lot of those guys is new, so you have to draw on their experience. Based on their level of experience and their maturity level, they're all different.”
LSU's Cam Cameron: Teaching QB handful of plays 'short term solution, long term problem' Posted: Aug 19, 2015 3:38 PM CST Updated: Aug 19, 2015 4:00 PM CST By Jacques Doucet LSU offensive coordinator Cam Cameron (Source: WAFB) BATON ROUGE, LA (WAFB) - By numerous accounts, LSU quarterback Brandon Harris struggled to learn the offensive playbook as a freshman and consequently didn’t play much. Harris’ one start at Auburn was littered with problems involving signal calling and lining the Tigers up properly. LSU was throttled in that contest 41-7 and the Shreveport native was barely heard from again for the remainder of the season. Some critics believed the coaching staff should have simplified things for Harris to utilize his talents better. “Anytime you can be simplistic for us and create complex problems for the defense, that’s what every offense would want to do,” LSU offensive coordinator Cam Cameron said. “Brandon Harris is more than capable to run an offense with multiple options. And has done that, on occasions. Obviously there’s one everyone points to. But we’ve pretty much moved beyond that. I think he’s moved beyond that. And I think we’re always looking to simplify what we’re doing and make things complex for the defense. I think that’s not going to go away.” It was also suggested that if Cameron and the LSU coaching staff could’ve taught Harris just a handful of plays, the results would’ve been better than what Anthony Jennings delivered having a much better knowledge on what to call. The Tigers played Jennings almost exclusively after the rout at Auburn, opting for the low risk/low reward approach. “If you go to any quarterback who sees himself in a big way,” Cameron added. “And you tell him, wouldn’t it be great if they had just five plays for you? He’s going to look at you like you’re from another planet. They don’t want that. They know that’s a short term solution and a long term problem.” Harris is perceived to have the lead over Jennings for the starting spot at this point. LSU will hold another scrimmage Saturday that could play a major role towards who gets the nod.
If Harris doesn't win this job outright I really think that tells you all you need to know about him. How many quarterbacks that didn't win the starting job under Miles have panned out? Most of them have transferred and didn't win the job on those teams either. We can talk all day about development and I'd probably agree with you, but most of the time he has had the right guy starting.
Over / under that CCC becomes the scapegoat if the season turns on us. He has to earn his cash this year
I wonder if he woulda started Rohan over that ex-baseball player. I dont guess it matters when you run 70% of the time.
If you don't count Jimbo Fisher who had already left to become the "Head Coach in Waiting" at Free Shoes U
Doesn't it seem weird that coaches either get fired or make lateral moves. Do you think that other programs believe that they under achieve or just win with talent.
