suh_fan93

It's impossible to say if T-Mart is the future at this point but I think he is a step in the right direction. Obviously the coaches want more than just a drop back passer. They want someone who can both pass and break down a defense with his legs. Martinez, Carnes, Turner, Green are all very similiar in this respect. I wish I could fast forward through all of the mistakes and just the whole learning curve in general to see who ends up being 'the guy'. Part of me wants this whole quarterbacks 'race' over with already.

I want to see more Brandon Kinnie this year. Mike McNeil too.

In the end I think it's still Zac Lee's position to lose but isn't it fun to see a legitimate QB race taking place?

In a way yes but hoping that guys with not a lot of experience will step up and be reliable makes me want to say no!

If this was Osborne or Solich's offense, then yeah Martinez would fit nicely.

 

Regardless though, I'm rooting for him as well as Green, Lee, Spano, Washington and Kellogg. I want all of them to succeed. May the best man win.

 

 

im kinda not sold of TM..... like sipple said the kid shined agaist a vanilla defense......

I'm kind of not sold on Cody Green. My gut tells me he was overhyped. Like Nexus said may the best man win and I hope that the best man is someone we can truly depend on. For a Freshman though Martinez's potential is definitely intriguing. I'm still waiting for Carnes.

I was at the game as well and I came away pretty impressed w/ Martinez actually. He is a much better passer than I thought he was going to be. Not to say that he's extremely accurate but w/ his running ability he's still a pretty good passer. To me, even though it was a spring game, it was his first spring game and he seems to have a little more composure than Green. I guess you could say he has "it" a little more than Green. I do think that Green is ahead of him in the passing game as far as going through progressions, which I think Green really improved on from last year. I really think that our O-Line is going to be much, much better than last year. Qvale is freakin huge and seems to have really good feet for his size. Throw in Hardrick and I think we have something really nice forming. Paul really, really impressed me as well. He had two catches in particular that he had to make a full turn adjustment on about a 40 yard pass and game down with the ball. As far as younger players, Zimmerer had a few good runs. He runs really hard and had one trap play I believe go for about ten yards and even put some punishment on one attempted tackler. Rome also stood out later in the game and at one point I think he had three tackles in a row. Hyland absolutely impressed me. He's obviously not a game breaker but can certainly pose some match up problems w/ his size and he seems to have really good hands. Whaley also has stepped up his game. When he hits someone, they usually don't go anywhere except backwards.

Just talked to a friend who was there and he basically said the same thing. For a freshman to come in and play as well as he did was pretty impressed. He said Green had the two good deep balls but also had some that he wondered who he was throwing to. It's not like either had a chance to truly gain any rhythm with the disjoined rosters and all. I think if Martinez can continue to develop he is going to make this QB race interesting.

I appreciate getting props from Craig James. But not as much as I appreciate Craig James getting rid of Mike Leach.

 

 

But my appreciation doesn’t affect my opinion of him. I still think Craig James is an asshat.

I am excited about Brandon Kinnie this year.

Crick, Moore, Allen on the d-line against Martinez and Burkhead.

Yes. That is awesome.

INT.

Suh is the man!

Holy tunnel walk. Gave me goosebumps.

Probably doesn't mean much to most people but I see that J. T. Kerr is not playing. I really liked what I saw of him on tape as a TE.

REBECCA S. GRATZ/THE WORLD-HERALD

Published Thursday April 15, 2010

UFL: G.M. Mueller says roster with local ties 'important'

By Lee Barfknecht

WORLD-HERALD STAFF WRITER

Former Nebraska quarterback Joe Ganz said Thursday he would be "all ears'' if the United Football League's Omaha franchise wants to talk about a roster spot.

"My agent said something awhile back about Omaha maybe getting a franchise,'' Ganz said Thursday by phone from Lincoln. "I'd be willing to listen to them, for sure.''

Rick Mueller, the Omaha general manager, mentioned Ganz specifically when asked about acquiring players with Husker connections. Mueller and Ganz's agent are acquainted.

But it's not like Ganz, who last played at NU in 2008, is desperate for work.

He is a full-time employee of the Nebraska athletic department as a football coaching intern working with the quarterbacks and offensive coordinator Shawn Watson.fr

"As of now, I'm coaching,'' Ganz said. "But I would be willing to sit down and talk.''

Ganz had a tryout last season with the Florida Tuskers, the UFL franchise in Orlando. He said the Tuskers already had a quarterback in former NFL player Brooks Bollinger, who was voted the UFL's most valuable player.

Mueller said it's only good business for the Omaha team to try to have local connections.

"Getting some Nebraska guys, we want that to be important,'' he said. "But having the best players trumps everything.''

The Omaha franchise on Thursday announced it had plucked 20 players from the UFL's four other rosters, although it didn't release the full list to The World-Herald.

Former Kansas State running back Frank Murphy is on the list. Ex-Wisconsin tackle Wendell Bryant was the two-time Big Ten defensive lineman of the year. Running back Shaud Williams began his career at Texas Tech, then transferred to Alabama and had a 1,300-yard season.

Also on the list is 34-year-old Ryan Neufeld, a tight end and long snapper who played collegiately at UCLA and seven seasons in the NFL.

Of the 20 players selected, Mueller said, eight were full-time UFL starters last season.

The average age of UFL players is 27, similar to the NFL.

"There aren't a lot of rookies,'' Mueller said. "A lot of these guys have been in the NFL.''

UFL Commissioner Michael Huyghue characterized the league as a bridge from the college to the pro game, or as another chance for a former NFL player who was injured or got caught in a numbers crunch.

"We're giving a large pool of talented players an opportunity to extend their careers,'' he said.

Head coach Jeff Jagodzinski said the hunger of UFL players is strong because many are getting a second chance — or a last chance — to reach the NFL.

"When you get pushed against a wall, it reveals what you'll do to feed your family,'' Jagodzinski said. "A lot of these guys were on pro rosters and got cut for whatever reason.

"Maybe they hurt a knee and it didn't come back right away. So there are guys out there.''

With that in mind, Omaha will hold an open local tryout in early May.

"There may be a guy in Omaha that nobody knows about, and he could come out and just shine,'' Jagodzinski said. "You never know until you give them a try.''

The hunger to land a UFL roster spot also is driven by a relatively attractive pay scale.

Last season, Huyghue said, the minimum was $5,000 a week, with some quarterbacks making as much as $12,000. That pay is higher than for players on NFL practice squads.

The goal is to increase the minimum to $6,000, Huyghue said. Besides a salary, the team pays for its players' housing, food and transportation.

The UFL allows teams to bring 70 players to training camp in August. By the first weekend of play — Sept. 17 and 18 — rosters must be cut to 52.

Still far from being sold on Sean Fisher.

someone may have brought this up earlier, but it will be funny when the coaches do decide on a starting qb (my money is on lee, not that i care, but i don't think this 'horserace' is really that undecided) and the supporters of the guys who are not the qb freak out. we can only trust the coaches at this point in time, and when they decide the 'right' guy, we should not complain or second guess, because we really do not have anything to judge anyone.

I have been saying this since last year, Lee is gonna start. No matter what Green, Martinez, etc do saturday.

The coaching staff will go with the expierence factor. Unless Lees arm causes him problems. I see no way that Lee does not start the first game.

(actually I like to see Martinez, but it just is not going to happen)

I'm still trying to decide if the Bowl game was Zac Lee showing that he finally felt comfortable in our offense. So many times last year he waited far to long to make his decision or to just get rid of the ball. I really don't know what to think. He looked great in the Holiday bowl and he will be coming back healthy and going into his second season as a starter. One would think he would be improved. I'm cautiously optimistic. I just wonder what kind of Zac Lee were going to get in 2010. A healthy and improved quarterback going into his second year as a starter or a quarterback who's exposed for just what he is. Guess we'll soon find out.

Your bolded point and watching ZLee "lock" onto 1 receiver and never look away are my only criticisms of him. If he can work through his progressions better, he will be a MUCH better QB this year.

Oh yeah. He was guilty of that too. (locking onto 1 receiver). There were just too many times when Lee would have his receiver wide open and he would NOT throw the ball to them until it was too late. For his sake and ours I'm really hoping we don't see the same thing this year.

I already wrote in Outlaws. From what I understood of the Sacramento team naming, everyone thought it would be something completely different and the UFL surprised them all with Mountain Lions.

That would be cool to see him come back as a DB coach, does he have any coaching experience or has he been playing ball all this time?

 

He's been playing ball ever since he graduated from Nebraska in '95. He retired in Feb. of this year and will be joining the coaching staff of the team he retired from.

 

Here's his Husker profile.

That is darn impressive. I had no idea he had such an illustrious and long career in the CFL. I loved Barron Miles. He was small but mighty. Great story.

someone may have brought this up earlier, but it will be funny when the coaches do decide on a starting qb (my money is on lee, not that i care, but i don't think this 'horserace' is really that undecided) and the supporters of the guys who are not the qb freak out. we can only trust the coaches at this point in time, and when they decide the 'right' guy, we should not complain or second guess, because we really do not have anything to judge anyone.

I have been saying this since last year, Lee is gonna start. No matter what Green, Martinez, etc do saturday.

The coaching staff will go with the expierence factor. Unless Lees arm causes him problems. I see no way that Lee does not start the first game.

(actually I like to see Martinez, but it just is not going to happen)

I'm still trying to decide if the Bowl game was Zac Lee showing that he finally felt comfortable in our offense. So many times last year he waited far to long to make his decision or to just get rid of the ball. I really don't know what to think. He looked great in the Holiday bowl and he will be coming back healthy and going into his second season as a starter. One would think he would be improved. I'm cautiously optimistic. I just wonder what kind of Zac Lee were going to get in 2010. A healthy and improved quarterback going into his second year as a starter or a quarterback who's exposed for just what he is. Guess we'll soon find out.

I'm most excited about Carnes. I really want to see what Martinez can do. Green- Even if he gets better I don't know. He's really done nothing to make me get overly excited about him. I want to see how Zac Lee plays when the game is on the line and he's healthy.

The whole QB race is a toss up. You've got guys who have potential but they're all so inexperienced except for Zac Lee who really has only played one season himself. Such a crazy time at QB right now.

Well let me ask you this, what would you rather talk about? Also could you please cite a source, proof, anything regarding how horrible of a passer Martinez is?????

 

Did you see Green pass the ball last year?????

 

I like articles like this. It does get me excited about someone's potential. If you do not choose to do so then there's nothing wrong with that either. That's your perogative.

 

It is the spring. Football is right around the corner. The quarterback race is a toss up right now. A complete and total toss up. There are Green fans, there are anti Green fans. There are Lee and Martinez fans. There's even

Spano and Washington fans out there. If someone tells me not to get excited about any member of our football team I guess I don't understand that logic. I love talking about Nebraska football. The what if's, sharing opinions with

people. It is significant that the coaches have said Martinez is staying put at quarterback since coming in that was not the case. Of course it's possible that down the road things could change. That goes for any player on our roster.

 

Lastly the quarterback I am the most excited about is Carnes. It's not even Martinez....

 

Holy jeebus, Batman. Calm 'er down about 3 notches before you give yourself a coronary.

 

Source: myself. Martinez has always been a project as a passer, as I have noted since his HS days. His motion was horrid, which he has corrected quite a bit. All reports I have heard coming from practice is that Martinez still throws quite a bad ball, and doesn't have a grip on the offense either. Been more than one occasion where he forget the play between the huddle an getting to the line.

 

Yes, I saw Green pass last year. I also saw more video than I should have of him in HS and noted back then that Cody would have an incredibly difficult time adapting to college as a passer. Got beat to heck for saying that as well. Cody still has a ways to go himself, but he has spent more time in this offense than Taylor and has not been playing other positions as well in the past year.

 

I'm sure you do like articles like that. But there are hundreds of them every spring. Never do you see an article talking about how bad a player performs, but only building players up. You won't see articles about how none of our safeties are stepping up. Or the same about our LBs. You will not hear an article talking about how no one outside of Niles Paul is stepping up at WR. Stuff like that won't get mentioned in the press this time of year, and it never is.

 

Articles are all bright and sunshiney (is that a word?) that leaves us all with huge expectations for a player. And that article especially won't mention how Bo was insanely close to putting Taylor at WR for good just a few weeks ago. Which is why I have said what I have said.

 

And lastly, that is great for you. However, you cannot take what these coaches say and believe it as the complete truth. It's like the situation with Carnes, where Bo would not put any blame on Carnes, but instead put full blame on recruiting websites for what happened. Or the Cody Glenn situation. Bo will NEVER say a bad word about one of his kids, regardless of situation or circumstance. Which is why you have to take pretty much everything he says with a grain of salt.

 

Personally, IMO, this spring is showing the coaching staff more and more that Zac Lee is the only QB we have that is really ready to do work. I know, Zac Lee, blasphemy! But no one can even compete with him as a passer right now, and it isn't even close.

Good post Willie. I do agree with you regarding how some articles can create hype. Truly it boils down to when a guy is finally playing and what he can on the field. I respect your opinion and enjoyed your post. I just can't wait to see how the qb race plays out and honestly I think it's going to be Zac Lee in the end with his experience. I want to see what he can do healthy too and if there's a difference.

Anyone wish they were televising the spring game? I can't wait to see the highlights.

Just about a week until the Spring Game begins. If i remember correctly they already had a depth chart out stating who would see the field for the Red/White teams. I expect Bo and the coaches have been keeping a lid on this until after the final practice before the Spring game on Thursday.

 

But i want to start a discussion about what players and positions you are excited about seeing and what your expectations are for them on April 17th.

 

QB - Cody Green, I expect to see him make huge strides playing for the Red and really show how much he has matured into a leader on the field. Washington will provide more competition just like he did last year and really air it out with his strong arm. I expect to see Martinez and Spano take a few snaps in the 2nd half for both sides.

 

HB - Wasn't Helu out last year because of minor injuries for the Spring game? I would expect the same this year, and see more of Burkhead and Robinson taking the field, throwing in Jones, Okafur and Ward, just like last year. Mendoza has been moved back to IB, so i would expect to see him running the ball rather than playing in the slot much like last year.

 

FB - Bo mentioned that Zimmerer and Hill would be thrown into the FB mix for competition, i would like to see both of them show off their skills during the game.

 

WR - Catching the ball wasn't much of a problem during last years Spring game, so it caught people off guard to see them drop it so much during the season. Still, seeing less dropped passes and faster, cleaner route running would be a plus during the game. Also getting a first hand look at how fast Mike McNeill is would be great.

 

TE - Now that Mike McNeill is a WR and Ryan Hill is at FB, Reed, Cotton, and Young have much to prove about taking that starting spot. Also with Reed adding more weight, i wonder if his speed has slowed somewhat. Wouldn't be shocked to see what Chase Harper brings to the TE table.

 

OL - Spring game won't really give us an insight as to who might start on the OL for the regular season, but it will give us an opportunity to see some young guys play and how much the offensive line has improved in the trenches from last year. I would expect to see "Yoshi" Hardrick, Brent Qvale, Mike Caputo, Nick Ash, and maybe Brandon Chapek on the field at some point during the game.

 

DL - I don't think there will much of a surprise from defensive line, we just will see some new faces and what they are capable of. Such as Jason Ankrah, Kenny Anderson and Josh Williams. Maybe see the McDermott's brothers out there, who knows? They won't line up Crick and Baker on the same, that would be unfair, much like Suh and Crick from last year. I expect Crick will line up with Moore on the Red, and Baker/Randle on the White, I wouldn't be surprised to see Justin Jackson out there in 2nd half.

 

LB - Here is where my eyes are going to be for the game, seeing just how much Fisher, May, Compton have improved during the offseason and see just how Martin is coping with being on the field for more than minute for special teams. Expect to see Whaley, Stoddard, Kreikemeier and Holt out there with them.

 

CB - Not too worried about seeing this group take the field, we all know everyone is coming back, though i would not be surprised to see a few new names out there such as Middleton, Blue, Green, and Washington.

 

S - P.J. Smith, Thenarse, Hagg, Gomes, Cassidy and Courtney Osborne. That is who I am expecting to see playing at the safety spot at some point during the game.

Quarterback, linebacker and safety are all going to be really interesting positions to watch with so many guys in the mix and battling for positions. D line as well.

So much competition this year. I can't wait to see what players come out if it and end up as our starters.

You might want to go back and re-read the article. Direct quote from the coaches themselves:

 

 

'Nebraska coach Bo Pelini was adamant in his pre-spring news conference about the 6-foot-1, 195-pound Martinez playing — and staying — at quarterback'.

 

Not wide receiver. Not safety.

 

Sure, they're options. Watson said those doors aren't closed, and that the quiet, humble Martinez is open-minded about playing another position.

 

"But are we going to do it? No, because we want to see this through," Watson said. "He's got talent."

 

And .. ?

 

Did you expect Bo to come out and openly criticize or talk about a potential move for any player? Martinez was going to get his shot this spring to prove he is a QB, and Bo is giving it to him. And while Taylor can run with anyone, the kid is still a horrid passer.

 

Further, these stories that come out ever spring need to be toned down 10 notches to get their real value. Every spring it it is full of cheer, outstanding progressions of players, and everything of the sort. Writers and coaches fill us fans up with expectations to get us excited for the season. Happens every year.

Well let me ask you this, what would you rather talk about? Also could you please cite a source, proof, anything regarding how horrible of a passer Martinez is?????

Did you see Green pass the ball last year?????

I like articles like this. It does get me excited about someone's potential. If you do not choose to do so then there's nothing wrong with that either. That's your perogative.

It is the spring. Football is right around the corner. The quarterback race is a toss up right now. A complete and total toss up. There are Green fans, there are anti Green fans. There are Lee and Martinez fans. There's even

Spano and Washington fans out there. If someone tells me not to get excited about any member of our football team I guess I don't understand that logic. I love talking about Nebraska football. The what if's, sharing opinions with

people. It is significant that the coaches have said Martinez is staying put at quarterback since coming in that was not the case. Of course it's possible that down the road things could change. That goes for any player on our roster.

Lastly the quarterback I am the most excited about is Carnes. It's not even Martinez....

Fair enough. I realize now you were mostly debating the point on how likely Taylor was to remain at QB.

 

I was mostly directing the venting at people saying Green now needs to start thinking about transferring. That's nuts, IMO.

 

Nonetheless, our QB situation isn't that full of depth, so I'd imagine that's a big factor in why Taylor is still working at QB, in addition to needing to make use of his skillset, which would be fit more for the wildcat than as a starting QB.

 

Although I think that makes it MORE exciting - he's going to get on the field sooner and showcase all that athleticism. By the way, Taylor is a redshirt frosh already, so it's not just a few months.

I would definitely agree that it's crazy that people think Green should think about transferring. I just have to say that this is one of the craziest quarterback races I can remember. So many guys being talked about and so many questions left to be answered. Thanks for reminding me about Taylor also...!

Crazy! People are hopping off the Green bandwagon already? For a guy who's faster and more athletic but even worse of a passer than he is?

 

This is the SAME hype that Green and Lee got last year. I thought we learned our lesson there - but it seems like we're always just searching for the next guy to believe in, when they've shown us nothing. I have always been critical of people saying Green was better than Lee, and I think that hands down Lee is the man. But I was never writing off Green, which it looks like people are doing now. As everyone said - kid was a true freshman. Now he's a true sophomore. He's got the physical tools, he's mature, he's well spoken, and he's made strides in the technical and mental aspects of the game.

 

But sometimes fans in Nebraska won't be happy unless we get another option quarterback with the athleticism of Eric Crouch - even though we don't run that offense anymore!

 

'Nebraska coach Bo Pelini was adamant in his pre-spring news conference about the 6-foot-1, 195-pound Martinez playing — and staying — at quarterback'.

 

Not wide receiver. Not safety.

 

Sure, they're options. Watson said those doors aren't closed, and that the quiet, humble Martinez is open-minded about playing another position.

 

"But are we going to do it? No, because we want to see this through," Watson said. "He's got talent."

 

Really, I think Willie offers more useful insight than the hype filled surface stuff you get from spring training articles. He's well in the know, and he's shown this over the years.

 

Those doors aren't closed. Does that sound like a quarterback of the future to you, or does that sound like a project that's still in the experimental stages? And where's the quote from Pelini that shows him being adamant? Sounds like a little wishful thinking on the part of the journalist to me. Also, reports that Martinez is a humble kid is pretty contradictory to things that floated around last year ... I don't know anything about that, so I'll reserve an opinion - just one thing I read and went, "hmm, I'll take that with a grain of salt."

Of course it's in the experimental stages! edit: He's a redshirt freshman. (zoogies reminded me of this...thank you..!)

Look, I have no idea how good Martinez is besides the film I've seen on him and from what I've read. I guess for me if Pelini is saying 'hey, this kid is staying put at quarterback' and that he's now not considering moving him to another position to me that says that he and the other coaches feel he's legit as a quarterback. Especially if you consider how many guys we have at the position now not to mention the two new truly hyped recruits we have coming in. (Carnes, Turner)

Also I keep on reading references of how bad Martinez's arm is in comparison to Cody Green? Really? Could someone please back this up with some actual proof???

I'll just sum it up by saying I just think it's cool that the coaches came out and said what they did about Martinez regarding him staying put at QB. I don't care who our quarterback is as long as someone steps up and plays better than our qb's did last year. To me at least it makes the quarterback race a little more exciting. In case you missed it Nebraska's quarterback's were nothing to get to excited over last year...

May the best man win and if anything I'm just glad there's a lot of competition at QB.

Playing against Enderle the week before Jake Locker is also a good stepping stone for testing our defense. At least after the Idaho game we'll know where we need to be when preparing for Washington.

Very well put. I had no idea Idaho had good quarterback. Those are some impressive numbers.