Shatel: Martinez must take the next step

[bshirt]

Last season, T.M. was one of the top RS freshmen athletes I've ever seen on a football field. Needs polishing, and an offense actually suited to his particular talents - all no doubt, but dang that kid can go. His quickness at the trigger position puts a ton of pressure on a defense, and if he can manage to improve his ball skills over time, and stay upright, look the f@ck out, big ten. SPEED KILLS.

You bet. The kid has real-deal E. Crouch type of insane gap acceleration when healthy. If Beck does a decent job with him, Carnes, Bubba, etc we're gonna loaded for bear.

Damn it.....c'mon Sept!!

 

[da skers]

I just hope Martinez can be developed this off-season and over the next 2 years. In the past, we have had problems developing QBs throughout their tenure here. Cody Green has only made small steps towards improvement since he stepped foot on campus. IMO, you could say that Zach Lee might have matured, but never really developed. I would even branch out to say that Joey Ganz developed only slightly through his career if at all. Ganz, however, had great football smarts and made very few boneheaded mistakes.

We can only hope that the lack of QB development in the past can be blamed on Shawn Watson. Good position coaches should be able to take in raw talent, like Martinez, and mold them into proficient athletes in a year or two. Some players (Rex Burkhead) can come in straight out of high school and not require very much development (granted, the transition from high school to college is more difficult for a QB than a RB).

Hopefully our revamped offensive staff can truly develop young players to an elite level, and in a timely fashion. Only time will tell.

The problem is that it takes most NFL QB's 7 years to master the offense that BC and Gruden developed as their version of the WCO. Wats simplified that down but really. . . .how much can you simplify a doctor's degree and still have a good doctor when the time comes. Had Wats scrapped almost all of the BC offense and went to the one similar to what CU used he would have been in better shape, but he never simplified it that much.
He did a pretty decent job of developing QB fundamentals but I'm not sure he ever really got anyone to understand the offense and part of that became the issue. He fell back then on I'll run the offense, give you the play and you'll have to trust me that its the right play. This was a huge issue between him and TM. There wasn't any trust there. TM didn't have that kind of relationship with Wats and in honesty was probably a little immature when it came to "moving on" after Bo pulled rank and started TM over Lee and Green as Wats had TM listed 3rd on his list of QB's. I think for a really long time TM felt like Wats might stab him in the back. Wats tried to put on a good show with his "best QB ever" type of comments. But the fact was the trust wasn't there. Not to mention TM just got bad instruction at the end of the year when he was told to take a sack instead of try to make a play. It reminded me of that kid in BC's first year who'd catch kicks for us but couldn't run so he was a sitting duck. They'd live with the lesser of two evils but never give themselves a fighting chance.

Becks offense on the other hand will be much much easier to understand for the players so they can play faster and key off of a few defender reads. They're going to run a system and not just a set of plays. They're going to understand what to do when defenders do certain things and learn how to exploit those things many times even without an audible being called. It might be year two before we really see the benefit of the latter. Just like Bo's defense took a huge jump from year 1 to year 2. But look for the year 1 of the Beck offense to be more sound fundamentally, better understood by the players and more fun for the kids because they'll be able to use their strengths to their advantages because they're not so loaded up with "plays" to run.

 

[da skers]

I also look for Cody to make a huge jump in this offense as its moving closer to his game in High School where he makes a read and goes. I'm not sure if he'll be able to crack the line up or not as I'm sure this offense will allow TM and BC to do the very same and improve their game. I think it will give is not only a very good #2 but probably a good #3 by mid season if not before.

 

[walksalone]

He needs to work on his passing game.

Maybe more importantly, he needs to work on his decision making under pressure.

 

[VA Husker Fan]

I just hope Martinez can be developed this off-season and over the next 2 years. In the past, we have had problems developing QBs throughout their tenure here. Cody Green has only made small steps towards improvement since he stepped foot on campus. IMO, you could say that Zach Lee might have matured, but never really developed. I would even branch out to say that Joey Ganz developed only slightly through his career if at all. Ganz, however, had great football smarts and made very few boneheaded mistakes.

We can only hope that the lack of QB development in the past can be blamed on Shawn Watson. Good position coaches should be able to take in raw talent, like Martinez, and mold them into proficient athletes in a year or two. Some players (Rex Burkhead) can come in straight out of high school and not require very much development (granted, the transition from high school to college is more difficult for a QB than a RB).

Wow, you've got to be kidding me. Ganz was nothing coming in here. I know a couple of writers from Illinois who saw a bit of him in HS, and they figured we'd just make a DB out of him. Granted there was something special about Ganz that enabled him to become the QB that he was, but to say he barely developed at all here is just wrong. Watson is gone, folks. There's no need to keep throwing him under the bus.

 

[Hskr86]

I just hope Martinez can be developed this off-season and over the next 2 years. In the past, we have had problems developing QBs throughout their tenure here. Cody Green has only made small steps towards improvement since he stepped foot on campus. IMO, you could say that Zach Lee might have matured, but never really developed. I would even branch out to say that Joey Ganz developed only slightly through his career if at all. Ganz, however, had great football smarts and made very few boneheaded mistakes.

We can only hope that the lack of QB development in the past can be blamed on Shawn Watson. Good position coaches should be able to take in raw talent, like Martinez, and mold them into proficient athletes in a year or two. Some players (Rex Burkhead) can come in straight out of high school and not require very much development (granted, the transition from high school to college is more difficult for a QB than a RB).

Hopefully our revamped offensive staff can truly develop young players to an elite level, and in a timely fashion. Only time will tell.

The problem is that it takes most NFL QB's 7 years to master the offense that BC and Gruden developed as their version of the WCO. Wats simplified that down but really. . . .how much can you simplify a doctor's degree and still have a good doctor when the time comes. Had Wats scrapped almost all of the BC offense and went to the one similar to what CU used he would have been in better shape, but he never simplified it that much.
He did a pretty decent job of developing QB fundamentals but I'm not sure he ever really got anyone to understand the offense and part of that became the issue. He fell back then on I'll run the offense, give you the play and you'll have to trust me that its the right play. This was a huge issue between him and TM. There wasn't any trust there. TM didn't have that kind of relationship with Wats and in honesty was probably a little immature when it came to "moving on" after Bo pulled rank and started TM over Lee and Green as Wats had TM listed 3rd on his list of QB's. I think for a really long time TM felt like Wats might stab him in the back. Wats tried to put on a good show with his "best QB ever" type of comments. But the fact was the trust wasn't there. Not to mention TM just got bad instruction at the end of the year when he was told to take a sack instead of try to make a play. It reminded me of that kid in BC's first year who'd catch kicks for us but couldn't run so he was a sitting duck. They'd live with the lesser of two evils but never give themselves a fighting chance.

Becks offense on the other hand will be much much easier to understand for the players so they can play faster and key off of a few defender reads. They're going to run a system and not just a set of plays. They're going to understand what to do when defenders do certain things and learn how to exploit those things many times even without an audible being called. It might be year two before we really see the benefit of the latter. Just like Bo's defense took a huge jump from year 1 to year 2. But look for the year 1 of the Beck offense to be more sound fundamentally, better understood by the players and more fun for the kids because they'll be able to use their strengths to their advantages because they're not so loaded up with "plays" to run.

Couldn't agree more with your last paragraph. I personally think that T-mart found himself frozen by pure 'information overload.' As the season went on, and he lost his wheels, he was coached to rely more and more on the aspects that just never became second-nature for him... hence, even worse 'freezing.'

I think (I'm hopeful) the more simple/straightforward approach of minimal reads, minimal options, and always moving the ball North, will give T-mart and many others the chance to play at full speed again.

I think it can be a remarkably quick turn around.

imho

 

[Saunders]

I just hope Martinez can be developed this off-season and over the next 2 years. In the past, we have had problems developing QBs throughout their tenure here. Cody Green has only made small steps towards improvement since he stepped foot on campus. IMO, you could say that Zach Lee might have matured, but never really developed. I would even branch out to say that Joey Ganz developed only slightly through his career if at all. Ganz, however, had great football smarts and made very few boneheaded mistakes.

We can only hope that the lack of QB development in the past can be blamed on Shawn Watson. Good position coaches should be able to take in raw talent, like Martinez, and mold them into proficient athletes in a year or two. Some players (Rex Burkhead) can come in straight out of high school and not require very much development (granted, the transition from high school to college is more difficult for a QB than a RB).

Wow, you've got to be kidding me. Ganz was nothing coming in here. I know a couple of writers from Illinois who saw a bit of him in HS, and they figured we'd just make a DB out of him. Granted there was something special about Ganz that enabled him to become the QB that he was, but to say he barely developed at all here is just wrong. Watson is gone, folks. There's no need to keep throwing him under the bus.

Watson didn't develop Ganz. Joe was a Redshirt Junior going into his 4th year when Watson joined the staff. In fact, Ganz knew the BC WCO better than Watson did.

 

[bshirt]

I just hope Martinez can be developed this off-season and over the next 2 years. In the past, we have had problems developing QBs throughout their tenure here. Cody Green has only made small steps towards improvement since he stepped foot on campus. IMO, you could say that Zach Lee might have matured, but never really developed. I would even branch out to say that Joey Ganz developed only slightly through his career if at all. Ganz, however, had great football smarts and made very few boneheaded mistakes.

We can only hope that the lack of QB development in the past can be blamed on Shawn Watson. Good position coaches should be able to take in raw talent, like Martinez, and mold them into proficient athletes in a year or two. Some players (Rex Burkhead) can come in straight out of high school and not require very much development (granted, the transition from high school to college is more difficult for a QB than a RB).

Hopefully our revamped offensive staff can truly develop young players to an elite level, and in a timely fashion. Only time will tell.

The problem is that it takes most NFL QB's 7 years to master the offense that BC and Gruden developed as their version of the WCO. Wats simplified that down but really. . . .how much can you simplify a doctor's degree and still have a good doctor when the time comes. Had Wats scrapped almost all of the BC offense and went to the one similar to what CU used he would have been in better shape, but he never simplified it that much.
He did a pretty decent job of developing QB fundamentals but I'm not sure he ever really got anyone to understand the offense and part of that became the issue. He fell back then on I'll run the offense, give you the play and you'll have to trust me that its the right play. This was a huge issue between him and TM. There wasn't any trust there. TM didn't have that kind of relationship with Wats and in honesty was probably a little immature when it came to "moving on" after Bo pulled rank and started TM over Lee and Green as Wats had TM listed 3rd on his list of QB's. I think for a really long time TM felt like Wats might stab him in the back. Wats tried to put on a good show with his "best QB ever" type of comments. But the fact was the trust wasn't there. Not to mention TM just got bad instruction at the end of the year when he was told to take a sack instead of try to make a play. It reminded me of that kid in BC's first year who'd catch kicks for us but couldn't run so he was a sitting duck. They'd live with the lesser of two evils but never give themselves a fighting chance.

Becks offense on the other hand will be much much easier to understand for the players so they can play faster and key off of a few defender reads. They're going to run a system and not just a set of plays. They're going to understand what to do when defenders do certain things and learn how to exploit those things many times even without an audible being called. It might be year two before we really see the benefit of the latter. Just like Bo's defense took a huge jump from year 1 to year 2. But look for the year 1 of the Beck offense to be more sound fundamentally, better understood by the players and more fun for the kids because they'll be able to use their strengths to their advantages because they're not so loaded up with "plays" to run.

Very good post, da skers. Good read to be sure.

I too think Beck will be a HUGE upgrade relative to what we had at qb coaching & OC. Add in another probable big upgrade with WR coaching and we very well might take a big step this year in returning to a premier program.

GBR!!

 

[zoogs]

The problem is that it takes most NFL QB's 7 years to master the offense that BC and Gruden developed as their version of the WCO.

Well, it is pretty astounding then that we found two quarterbacks that mastered the offense in a span of five years.

I like the optimism but I feel there's a degree of exaggerating mixed in there.

 

[skersfan]

Seems like a lot of inside information about the team and what went on. I tend to question inside information or the thought that it is.

We have talent at the QB position, according to some we had it last year to. It would seem to me if Watson was all about Green starting, he would have been more prepared when he did get the opportunity.

I must say I will wait and see what this offense turns into. I find it hard to believe that it will instantly turn into Nebraska being an offfensive threat. I also find it hard to believe that the best offensive mind available was already here, and evidently not doing much with it.

We have heard year after year that we have turned the corner, the new kids are fantastic and we will see change. To me it is the same old story, with most likely the same ending. Just like the afternoon tv shows. You see one you have seen them all.

Waiting until the Wisconsin game to say what I think about our offensive changes. No way of really telling until then.

 

[da skers]

The problem is that it takes most NFL QB's 7 years to master the offense that BC and Gruden developed as their version of the WCO.

Well, it is pretty astounding then that we found two quarterbacks that mastered the offense in a span of five years.

I like the optimism but I feel there's a degree of exaggerating mixed in there.

Sure there are always exceptions, but if you believe that we had two qb's that mastered that offense you're mistaken and have a lot less contact with the program and its inner workings than I gave you credit for. Taylor was successful because of BC more than anything. Ganz understood the concepts very well and understood the plays but he was far from a master of the offense. He was however the closest thing we had to a competent QB running it.

My source on the subject is Matt Hasselbeck. You may have heard of him. I'm more inclined to believe him than some guy on a message board who probably never played anywhere close to that level.

 

[zoogs]

have a lot less contact with the program and its inner workings than I gave you credit for

Definitely, I am just a fan. I'm in touch from time to time with a few folks who are more connected - some of them from this board - but that's as far as it goes. I am not connected to the program at all, and so I do appreciate the information that folks like you have to share.

Maybe 'mastered the offense' is the kool-aid drinking fan in me speaking. They were definitely the best two we have had lately.

The direction of the current offense is interesting though. You alluded to the option plays being shown off in videos as a bit of an exaggeration. If Beck's roots do go back to his days at KU moreso than the token article that talked up his 'option background' - it will be interesting for me to see if Taylor is rightly equipped to run that show.

 

[Hunter94]

Seems like a lot of inside information about the team and what went on. I tend to question inside information or the thought that it is.

We have talent at the QB position, according to some we had it last year to. It would seem to me if Watson was all about Green starting, he would have been more prepared when he did get the opportunity.

I must say I will wait and see what this offense turns into. I find it hard to believe that it will instantly turn into Nebraska being an offfensive threat. I also find it hard to believe that the best offensive mind available was already here, and evidently not doing much with it.

We have heard year after year that we have turned the corner, the new kids are fantastic and we will see change. To me it is the same old story, with most likely the same ending. Just like the afternoon tv shows. You see one you have seen them all.

Waiting until the Wisconsin game to say what I think about our offensive changes. No way of really telling until then.

it was painfully obvious all our eggs were in the Martinez basket last season....Beck better not be that stupid...TM is not a big kid and running in the new league will be even more hazardous to his health and the new offense will need to be developed, no light-switch sucess from what i can see.....moving on.

 

[suh_fan93]

Seems like a lot of inside information about the team and what went on. I tend to question inside information or the thought that it is.

We have talent at the QB position, according to some we had it last year to. It would seem to me if Watson was all about Green starting, he would have been more prepared when he did get the opportunity.

I must say I will wait and see what this offense turns into. I find it hard to believe that it will instantly turn into Nebraska being an offfensive threat. I also find it hard to believe that the best offensive mind available was already here, and evidently not doing much with it.

We have heard year after year that we have turned the corner, the new kids are fantastic and we will see change. To me it is the same old story, with most likely the same ending. Just like the afternoon tv shows. You see one you have seen them all.

Waiting until the Wisconsin game to say what I think about our offensive changes. No way of really telling until then.

On one hand Shawn Watson leaving was the best thing that could have happened to our offense. There's just no denying this. On the other hand as much as I have liked what I have heard Beck say when talking offensive philosophy I am like you. I still have a pretty strong 'believe it when I see it' feeling and rightfully so. I think our offense will improve but can Beck truly play to our strengths as people have said he can? Also I still feel T-Mart is the coaches, namely head coaches QB of choice. Can he stay healthy? Can he show he can show up and be a leader and a playmaker instead of fold like a house of cards when it's crunch time?

I am looking forward to that Wisconsin game as well.

 

[bshirt]

Seems like a lot of inside information about the team and what went on. I tend to question inside information or the thought that it is.

We have talent at the QB position, according to some we had it last year to. It would seem to me if Watson was all about Green starting, he would have been more prepared when he did get the opportunity.

I must say I will wait and see what this offense turns into. I find it hard to believe that it will instantly turn into Nebraska being an offfensive threat. I also find it hard to believe that the best offensive mind available was already here, and evidently not doing much with it.

We have heard year after year that we have turned the corner, the new kids are fantastic and we will see change. To me it is the same old story, with most likely the same ending. Just like the afternoon tv shows. You see one you have seen them all.

Waiting until the Wisconsin game to say what I think about our offensive changes. No way of really telling until then.

On one hand Shawn Watson leaving was the best thing that could have happened to our offense. There's just no denying this. On the other hand as much as I have liked what I have heard Beck say when talking offensive philosophy I am like you. I still have a pretty strong 'believe it when I see it' feeling and rightfully so. I think our offense will improve but can Beck truly play to our strengths as people have said he can? Also I still feel T-Mart is the coaches, namely head coaches QB of choice. Can he stay healthy? Can he show he can show up and be a leader and a playmaker instead of fold like a house of cards when it's crunch time?

I am looking forward to that Wisconsin game as well.

Gawd, I'm so sick of hearing that crap.

The kid tears things up until he has two bad wheels so he then "folded like a house of cards". Gee, I wonder what Dan Marino would have looked like with a dislocated throwing shoulder?

suh_fan, why don't you take your cheap shots at the coaches for playing a hobbled freshmen rather than diss the kid for looking like crap when he's playing hurt? It's not like it was his decision.