your observation is correct.......the play selection and the defensive approach in these situations played to his strengths for sure...drop him back in a no-huddle, at the end of a game/half, with a non-pressure, prevent-type defense, and he will eat the D alive... also, in these cases, as you point out, he is in the implusive mode vs the finite thinking mode, and his natural talent appears to be best showcased...the trouble is, speedy and agressive defensives like Bama, Tenn, Ariz St & Florida will not play this style of defense...(Florida did in '04 against Randall much to my amazement - what a stupid decision by their DC/HC), and the type of D they will bring will force him to make quick reads under pressure (6' 3 " 270 #DE and quick LB's running at you changes everything!!)....... IMHO, JR has shown zero skill in this most important area, thus I cannot provide a positive assessment or projection of his QB effectiveness...I do concur, that this is not that unusual for a young QB, and He will hopefully learn this to go along with his incredible talent...Marcus Randall had the same type of problems handling reads/pressure, and He never did make sufficient progress in this area, resulting in a below average overall level of QB effectiveness...I, like the rest of you, hope JR does learn in this area, because if he does, look out baby!!!
I think Randall actually could make pretty good reads, probably displayed excellent ability to do so in practice. It's just that once the game started if he received a lot of pressue, especially early, he brought the ball down, put his head down and tried to run. So I think the second part of your statment is the most accurate. The guy was like 2 different QB's all the time. I don't think JR has that same mindset, I think he will be able to settle into the pocket and go through progressions w/o being nervous like Randall was and he will develope into a much more consistent QB.
i agree. the fact that russel showed such poise late in the games shows me that he has his nerves under control. especially considering what he did in the OSU game. that was a high-pressure situation: defending national champs...first game of that defense...in desperate need of a spark...1st game ever in tiger stadium...blue chipper that had already achieved legendary status before ever playing (expectations much?). the cap1 bowl, IMO, was almost equally, if not more, high-pressure. so i def think the kid can handle the jitters. good points all around guys. thanks for the feedback!
It has been said that Russell's high school offense was mostly just letting JR drop back and improvise. If true, that might explain why he had so much trouble managing a pro-style offense last year. He's just never had to master a playbook before. "Everybody go long" won't work all of the time in the SEC. Russell did look much better on hurry-up plays where he used his instincts. But that alone just doesn't cut it in Division I football. He has to be able to run a sophisticated Jimbo Fisher offense. It was clear in 2004 that the offense was much simpler than 2003 in order to accomodate quarterbacks with less experience at reading defenses and understanding complex offensive options. Whoever starts in 2005 must possess both natural football instincts and a comprehensive understanding of how to manage an offense.
Red I agree that LSU's offense is more complicated than what JR ran in high school, but I would be willing to bet that the biggest difference isn't the offense but 2 things on the defense. One of course would be the defensive schemes a college QB faces and the athletes in those schemes. A passing great passing offense in high school has a decided advantage in that many high schools just don't face a great passing offense very often and they don't get much experinece defending it so WR's are much more wide open and easier to hit with passes. Two would be the athletes on defense are great in college and can mkae plays. When a WR is openb in college he has about a 2 yard separation at most whereas in high school it may be 3 yards or more. Anyone can hit a guy that is open by that much. In college you have to be much more accurate. Also, in high school I bet a lot of DL's and LB's just bounced off of JR when trying to sack him whereas in college they are at least as big as him and sometimes much bigger.
another thing i also noticed from russel this year was indecisiveness. many, many times, the reciever (usually david jones) would be wide open early on in the play, yet JR remained in the pocket, holding on to the ball. if he could have learned to release earlier on in the play, he would have done much better. it was almost like he was too aprehensive to let 'er rip.
I think he was sincerely trying to make his defensive reads as he was coached and was just not quick enough at it yet. In the bowl game when they wanted him to make quick passes and preserve the clock, he hit those quick open receivers. He'll be a smarter and more experienced quarterback in 2005.
you could tell that he was over thinking things....one thing you know if you have ever played football is not to over think things because at that point you are more prone to make a mistake. He has to react, not think imo.
I see a lot of Rohan in JR. If he can learn to put a little bit of touch on his intermediate ball, the kid is really going to be something.
That's probably a lot easier said than done. I can only imagine what goes through a QB's head as he steps up to the line. He has to make pre-snap reads, then decide if he should check off to another play based on what he sees. Then once the ball is snapped, he has to read the defense downfield as he drops back in the pocket. All the while, 300 lb lineman are flying around him wanting to knock his head off. And it all happens in a matter of a few seconds. It's easy to see why more QBs fail than succeed. I suspect a QB has limited options in a hurry up offense, which may explain why some perform better.
