Here's Mauck's stats in the big games of 2003: First his 2 good games: Auburn- 17-28 224 yards 3 TD's and 1 INT Bama- 24-36 for 251 yards 2 TD's and 1 INT Now for the bad games, yep 5 of em. UGA- (1st game) 14-29 180 yards 1 TD 1 INT UF- 19-33 231 yards 0 TD's 2 INT's Ole Miss- 16-29 189 yards 2 TD's 3 INT's UGA 14-22 151 yards 1 TD's 1 INT Oklahoma- 13-22 124 yards 0 TD's 2 INT's And we keep hearing that JR just insn't Mauck. I guess they're right, he's better.
So, you're saying that if penalties, fumbles and drop passes cost us the conference championship then Mauck is better than JR? OOOOOOKAYYYY!
It is quite obvious that JR has a skill set far surpassing Mauck. With that said, Mauck was a gamer who made good, mature decisions that did not put us in bad positions on the field. JR is a young QB, about 12 years, give or take, younger than Mauck. The kid has all the talent in the world, and, in time, will mature into one incredible QB. For now, he is a good QB who is learning the game on this level. He should be one of LSU's all time great QBs.
I have zero problems with Jamarcus. No, he's not totally polished at this point but his potential is through the roof. He's got arm strength, touch and makes good decisions, usually puts the ball 'right there'. He has a little work to do on his awarenes but I feel very good about where we're headed with J-Mark.
I really believe that we've all heard that so much starting with the press in December and January of 2003 and then repeated so many times that it has taken on a life of it's own in spite of the facts. First off, Matt is way more talented than people give him credit for. Second, he did make some mistakes that put us in bad positions and also those that cost us great position. Heck, he threw an int. vs Ole Miss on our own 3 yard line. He fumbled inside the 10 vs UGA and OU. He was human and made both physical and mental mistakes, but he also overcame those mistakes as did the team.
Russell has a way to go yet with his game management skills, but he is steadily improving. Russell quarterbacks the # 7 team in the country, after all. He's not only good, he's still showing growth potential as a field general. More importantly, LSU hasn't had an arm like this since Bert Jones. Both of Russell's long completions were on the run, off the wrong foot, throwing back across the field, feet not planted and shoulders not squared. He just threw it on arm strength alone. This is a gift one doesn't get very often. Russell is only a sophomore, but his team is in the top-10 and he is going to get a lot better with the experience he is getting. All of his problems are fixable, he's not having to overcome physical limitations.
what we witnessed saturday was a champion team showing why they went undefeated last year and weren't ready to relenquish that title. they laid an egg against Tech which raised many questions considering the cupcakes which followed on that schedule...and deservedly so. but we can't deny tubby had this team ready to play. a team which reminds me of the refuse to lose attitude that USC has learned during their streak. but somehow we still found a way to beat a 13 win streak team and reigning SEC Champs. people will soon realize that this is how top SEC matchups usually end up. a lowscoring brawl with each team punching each other in the mouth. its how football was intended to be played anyhow.
