Jake, Genyk and Hooten out - no Anderson (at least yet)

[hdhntr1]

He has more experience than someone would think at first. Below link is for his career numbers. That said, he still might have a "got it" moment like Kafka did. Both played about the same amount at this point in their careers.

Brendan Sullivan College Stats, School, Draft, Gamelog, Splits | College Football at Sports-Reference.com

Check out Brendan Sullivan's College Stats, School, Draft, Gamelog, Splits and More College Stats at Sports-Reference.com

www.sports-reference.com

Sorry but that is not all that much. Of the 13 games he was in, I think more than half were as a backup and so he really has the equivalent of about 1/2 season or a little more. 1300 yds passing? And he has gotten injured quite a bit considering how little he has actually played and those tend to set a guy back.

Again this is saying still a chance at having that got it minute. That said, still concerning he has been dinged up as much as he has been

 

[UpsetAlert]

Genyk is not retiring. Harbaugh should hire him to coach his special teams.

Aren’t our special teams pretty good?

 

[gocatsgo2003]

Aren’t our special teams pretty good?

Eh

 

[UpsetAlert]

Eh

Feels like kicking, punting, returning were competent to me

 

[CatManTrue]

Aren’t our special teams pretty good?

No - they’ve often out us at a disadvantage. Genyk is a great offensive position coach, but our special teams have been tough to watch for years. Some fans blamed Fitz’s philosophy, but coordinators matter too.

It wouldn’t surprise me if Genyk ends up as a position coach on another great staff. It would shock me if a program like Michigan’s chose him to run their special teams unit given the lackluster results.

 

[phatcat]

Sorry but that is not all that much. Of the 13 games he was in, I think more than half were as a backup and so he really has the equivalent of about 1/2 season or a little more. 1300 yds passing? And he has gotten injured quite a bit considering how little he has actually played and those tend to set a guy back.

Again this is saying still a chance at having that got it minute. That said, still concerning he has been dinged up as much as he has been

Agreed, especially about the injuries. Similar to Kafka though, including a breakout game v Minn!

 

[hdhntr1]

Feels like kicking, punting, returning were competent to me

Our punts in many cases were pretty short. Had a number of runbacks of KOs as well

 

[UpsetAlert]

Our punts in many cases were pretty short. Had a number of runbacks of KOs as well

Just look at the Illinois game special team performance—a key part of how we won the game. Coverage units seem solid. Kicking (all aspects) has been pretty good, and we’ve avoided crucial mistakes. Are we awesome? No, but does firing a coach automatically make us better? I’m not so sure.

 

[hdhntr1]

Just look at the Illinois game special team performance—a key part of how we won the game. Coverage units seem solid. Kicking (all aspects) has been pretty good, and we’ve avoided crucial mistakes. Are we awesome? No, but does firing a coach automatically make us better? I’m not so sure.

Just saying we were pretty up and down. A lot of very short punts. We did not give up the huge run back but a lot of inconsistency. FG kicking reasonable but fell down at the end. Overall OK but nothing special. And his other area was TEs. Jakes Os were built around TEs and yet for all the spots we had allocated to the position we really did not get much out of it.

 

[hdhntr1]

Eh

Says it best. Nothing special. And this is the first year we really had a FG kicker. For every plus a minus

 

[eastbaycat99]

He has more experience than someone would think at first. Below link is for his career numbers. That said, he still might have a "got it" moment like Kafka did. Both played about the same amount at this point in their careers.

Brendan Sullivan College Stats, School, Draft, Gamelog, Splits | College Football at Sports-Reference.com

Check out Brendan Sullivan's College Stats, School, Draft, Gamelog, Splits and More College Stats at Sports-Reference.com

www.sports-reference.com

Sullivan's completion %, yards per attempt, td/int ratio, and QB rating were all better than Bryant's this year, which says a lot about QB stats. I do think the jury is out on whether Sullivan can develop into a good college QB. I would like a solid transfer, but would not completely despair if he is top of the chart going into next year.

 

[phatcat]

Sullivan's completion %, yards per attempt, td/int ratio, and QB rating were all better than Bryant's this year, which says a lot about QB stats. I do think the jury is out on whether Sullivan can develop into a good college QB. I would like a solid transfer, but would not completely despair if he is top of the chart going into next year.

(Note, I like Sullivan). I don't have analysis to back this up, just eye test, but I feel like one reason he has good stats is that he takes a sack when an incomplete pass would be better. I mean, let's say he threw away 10 of his 24 sacks. Better play, worse stats

 

[eastbaycat99]

(Note, I like Sullivan). I don't have analysis to back this up, just eye test, but I feel like one reason he has good stats is that he takes a sack when an incomplete pass would be better. I mean, let's say he threw away 10 of his 24 sacks. Better play, worse stats

I agree that Sullivan seemed to not get rid of the ball when he should, either taking sacks or short gain scrambles. My observation was that he had real problems finding a hot receiver when defenses sent extra pass rushers. Interestingly, Bryant had that problem early in the season, particularly against Rutgers but also against Duke and in the first halves of the UTEP and Minnesota games. He got on the same page as his receivers in the second half of Minnesota and never looked back. Against Wisconsin, in the first half, the Badgers sent at least one LB every third down with a soft zone behind the blitzer, and Bryant found a receiver in the vacated area every single time. I don’t know if Sullivan’s problem was preparation, recognition or communication, but it seemed to me to be a very solvable one. I hope whoever the QB coach is can help him recognize the situation and get the ball out of his hands quickly and productively. His basic tools are decent, and with the subpar O Line the Cats are likely to have, a dual threat QB could make the offense much more productive.

 

[ricko654321]

I agree that Sullivan seemed to not get rid of the ball when he should, either taking sacks or short gain scrambles. My observation was that he had real problems finding a hot receiver when defenses sent extra pass rushers. Interestingly, Bryant had that problem early in the season, particularly against Rutgers but also against Duke and in the first halves of the UTEP and Minnesota games. He got on the same page as his receivers in the second half of Minnesota and never looked back. Against Wisconsin, in the first half, the Badgers sent at least one LB every third down with a soft zone behind the blitzer, and Bryant found a receiver in the vacated area every single time. I don’t know if Sullivan’s problem was preparation, recognition or communication, but it seemed to me to be a very solvable one. I hope whoever the QB coach is can help him recognize the situation and get the ball out of his hands quickly and productively. His basic tools are decent, and with the subpar O Line the Cats are likely to have, a dual threat QB could make the offense much more productive.

I have hesitations about both Sullivan and Hilinski, but I'm open to both of them. Sullivan more of a running threat doesn't seem confident in his arm. Hilinski a strong arm that can be accurate, but struggles to process and find receivers when pressure comes (which is frequently with our OL and the defenses we typically face). Both of them have positives that could develop into something good. But both give me hesitation. Hence why I would like to see more competition brought in at QB via the transfer portal in the offseason.

From there - may the best man win. I trust Braun and co to make the right decision. I want whichever guy can get us the most wins, it's that simple.

(PS I'm intrigued by the idea of Gronowski if Lujan signs on. That said, if he does come along with a new OC by chance (layers of speculation here), then he should still have to compete on the same level playing field as the other incumbent options (Hilinski and Sullivan, or even Lausch and A Gray). No preference shown, no role handed to him due to ties to the OC, nothing guaranteed, everything earned. A free and open competition)

 

[gocatsgo2003]

I agree that Sullivan seemed to not get rid of the ball when he should, either taking sacks or short gain scrambles. My observation was that he had real problems finding a hot receiver when defenses sent extra pass rushers. Interestingly, Bryant had that problem early in the season, particularly against Rutgers but also against Duke and in the first halves of the UTEP and Minnesota games. He got on the same page as his receivers in the second half of Minnesota and never looked back. Against Wisconsin, in the first half, the Badgers sent at least one LB every third down with a soft zone behind the blitzer, and Bryant found a receiver in the vacated area every single time. I don’t know if Sullivan’s problem was preparation, recognition or communication, but it seemed to me to be a very solvable one. I hope whoever the QB coach is can help him recognize the situation and get the ball out of his hands quickly and productively. His basic tools are decent, and with the subpar O Line the Cats are likely to have, a dual threat QB could make the offense much more productive.

It’s essentially the opposite of Persa, who sometimes held onto the ball too long and gave up a lot of sacks as a result but had a very strong completion percentage.

 

[gocatsgo2003]

I have hesitations about both Sullivan and Hilinski, but I'm open to both of them. Sullivan more of a running threat doesn't seem confident in his arm. Hilinski a strong arm that can be accurate, but struggles to process and find receivers when pressure comes (which is frequently with our OL and the defenses we typically face). Both of them have positives that could develop into something good. But both give me hesitation. Hence why I would like to see more competition brought in at QB via the transfer portal in the offseason.

From there - may the best man win. I trust Braun and co to make the right decision. I want whichever guy can get us the most wins, it's that simple.

(PS I'm intrigued by the idea of Gronowski if Lujan signs on. That said, if he does come along with a new OC by chance (layers of speculation here), then he should still have to compete on the same level playing field as the other incumbent options (Hilinski and Sullivan, or even Lausch and A Gray). No preference shown, no role handed to him due to ties to the OC, nothing guaranteed, everything earned. A free and open competition)

We all win if Sullivan is able to beat out a guy with 40 starts and 3 national title games (1 title, maybe 2) in that system.

 

[No Chores]

We all win if Sullivan is able to beat out a guy with 40 starts and 3 national title games (1 title, maybe 2) in that system.

Yep, and could not agree more.

 

[ricko654321]

We all win if Sullivan is able to beat out a guy with 40 starts and 3 national title games (1 title, maybe 2) in that system.

Yep! Bring on the competition and may the best player win. Would love to see any of those guys lead us to many victories. Plus as we’ve seen - you usually need more than 1 QB over the course of a B1G season.

 

[IGNORE2]

Yep! Bring on the competition and may the best player win. Would love to see any of those guys lead us to many victories. Plus as we’ve seen - you usually need more than 1 QB over the course of a B1G season.

At least until a competent OL coach is hired and a decent OL developed.

 

[gocatsgo2003]

At least until a competent OL coach is hired and a decent OL developed.

Even then. Backup QB is increasingly important. Something like half of the NFL has been starting a backup QB the past few weeks. Would imagine the numbers at the college level are similar.

I’m a-OK with Sullivan as a backup. Or whoever loses out on a camp completion between a transfer, Sullivan, and Lausch (or Hilinski if he’s back). But I would NOT be comfortable heading into 2024 exclusively with the guys currently on the roster.

 

[EvanstonCat]

If we get Gronowski in as a transfer, there is no way short of injury he isn’t starting.

 

[jensberg]

If we get Gronowski in as a transfer, there is no way short of injury he isn’t starting.

Do people actually think he is considering transferring here? Has there been any rumor to that effect?

 

[FanatiCat]

He also tried to throw a couple times. It did not go well.

Do you remember Kafka’s early passing attempts? He was also more trusted with running than passing until he broke out as an upperclassman. I’m not ready to write off Lausch as “not a QB” until I see him with another season of development under a new QB/OC Coach. Hilinski, sadly I think he’s had enough time to know if he was going to flourish, although I think he could be better than he has been under Bajakian.

 

[IGNORE2]

Do people actually think he is considering transferring here? Has there been any rumor to that effect?

I heard manning is given us consideration.

 

[NUCat320]

Do you remember Kafka’s early passing attempts? He was also more trusted with running than passing until he broke out as an upperclassman. I’m not ready to write off Lausch as “not a QB” until I see him with another season of development under a new QB/OC Coach. Hilinski, sadly I think he’s had enough time to know if he was going to flourish, although I think he could be better than he has been under Bajakian.

As the person who brought Lausch into this conversation way back when, we all knew he was a project when he signed. It’s a hugely uphill battle for a guy who saw his future in baseball until winter of his senior year to become a B1G quarterback.

I just wish he had come along enough in his two years in the program to be the backup guy in the bowl game, as opposed to Hilinski. As you say with Hilinski, we pretty much know what we’ve got, though he was held back by the NU offense in general while he was on the field.

Kafka had gotten an offer from NU based on camp performance, ~two decades ago. He was definitely a project, but an early offer as opposed to a…oh shoot, we still need a QB offer.

Like you, I hope Lausch is an all B1G player by the end. But also, that QB room could sure benefit from another arm or two.