SIGNED QB Bubba Starling

[Spartness]

Hi folks. He indeed looks like he could be a rare find. Since his passing numbers are not that great and "on paper" it "appears" that Turner and Carnes are "better" throwers, could it be bad pass protection, poor receivers, lack of practice time for the passing game, etc.? How is his control on the mound? That can be some indication of his potential as a passer.

 

Who has seen him play? Statistics alone don't tell you everything about his passing ability.

[huskerscott]

Via Twitter

 

Sean_Callahan Bubba Starling said in San Antonio yesterday he feels like he can come in and compete and give Taylor Martinez a "run for his money."

 

Bubba, please, please don't tease me!! I want you to come to Nebraska so bad, but please don't tease me with things like this if you aren't. When I read this Callahan Tweet I chubbed a little.

 

Ya, so what if I do have a man crush on him!!

 

i'm with you

 

my mamma always warned there'd be boys like bubba in this world....... god it hurts so bad

 

Bubba please come to Nebraska.... we wanna love you.

[Back In Black]

I'll pay for Bubba to come here...

you will pay his parents right and not tell him right?

[nhuskers5]

Hi folks. He indeed looks like he could be a rare find. Since his passing numbers are not that great and "on paper" it "appears" that Turner and Carnes are "better" throwers, could it be bad pass protection, poor receivers, lack of practice time for the passing game, etc.? How is his control on the mound? That can be some indication of his potential as a passer.

 

Who has seen him play? Statistics alone don't tell you everything about his passing ability.

 

 

You gotta understand, If his head coach could win the game by running the ball every single play, he would. He's as old school as it gets. Bubba's definitely gonna rely on his legs in college. The game i watched he only threw six passes, and completed five of them. He throws a lot prettier ball than Martinez, but will be behind just because he never had to throw in HS. He has more potential in the passing game than Martinez, due to the fact that hes starting from scratch. The coaches will be able to tutor him from day 1. With his size and his arm strength, its not hard to believe he could become a pass first QB with a little work

[kchusker_chris]

Hi folks. He indeed looks like he could be a rare find. Since his passing numbers are not that great and "on paper" it "appears" that Turner and Carnes are "better" throwers, could it be bad pass protection, poor receivers, lack of practice time for the passing game, etc.? How is his control on the mound? That can be some indication of his potential as a passer.

 

Who has seen him play? Statistics alone don't tell you everything about his passing ability.

I've seen him play numerous times, and while running the ball is certainly his strength he has no problem passing. I rarely saw him drop back and pass though - "pockets" don't really exist in small town football, it was usually on the run, or a quick slant type of play. With our OL that might be nice - T-Mart couldn't roll out and pass at all this year. If T got out of the pocket he was either A.) getting sacked, B.) running or C.) flailing the ball in the air to someone hopefully wearing the same color of jersey as him.

 

Don't let Bubba's stats fool you - Gardner was a run first, run second, run third...pass about 10th type of team. I mean he had something like 395 yards rushing in his final game...when you put up rushing stats like that, why bother passing? If you can average 12-14 yards a carry, who cares about throwing the ball. He is just so dominant on the ground that it's pointless to toss the ball around.

 

Arm strength though...probably the best I've every seen. (which might not be saying much). Potential as a passer...through the roof IMO.

[Spartness]

Thanks for the great posts!!! I agree that T-Mart has yet to prove he can throw on the run ... in fact he's terrible at it. Since he's a redshirt freshman, hopefully he gets better with experience. It's encouraging to know that Bubba can throw on the run. I remember Joe Ganz being really good at it.

 

Bubba indeed looks like a unique prospect. Do you guys think he has room to put on another 25 pounds without loosing any speed and quickness? What's his personality like ... does he have good leadership skills and interacts well with his teammates? This is the area of concern I most have about T-Mart.

[PaulCrewe]

Good write up about Bubba in the Journal Star

 

Bubba

 

Crazy stat mentioned in article. Four high school b-ball games SEVEN dunks already. The kid is just a freak athlete

[BIGREDFAN_in_OMAHA]

Good write up about Bubba in the Journal Star

 

Bubba

 

Crazy stat mentioned in article. Four high school b-ball games SEVEN dunks already. The kid is just a freak athlete

"We'll just have to see how my spring (baseball) season goes," he says. "A lot of people have seen me play and know what I can do. But if I struggled this season in baseball a little, that could take me back a few rounds in the draft."

 

I guess we'll have to hope for a slump...

[GSG]

Guy at work told me he heard that Bubba "can't throw a lick." There isn't much evidence of his throwing abilities that I have seen yet. Can anyone point me to a video that includes more of his passing game?

[BIGREDFAN_in_OMAHA]

Guy at work told me he heard that Bubba "can't throw a lick." There isn't much evidence of his throwing abilities that I have seen yet. Can anyone point me to a video that includes more of his passing game?

He should be showcasing his throwing in the All American game on Saturday.

[HuskerFowler]

Guy at work told me he heard that Bubba "can't throw a lick." There isn't much evidence of his throwing abilities that I have seen yet. Can anyone point me to a video that includes more of his passing game?

 

he throws a baseball 93 mph so hes got the arm for it...the part you CANT teach

[kchusker_chris]

I watched him roll left and throw a 50 yard strike on the run down the left sideline. Passing on the run while you roll left is tough for even most college QBs. Later in that same game he rolled right and threw a ball that had to have sailed 60-70 yards with barely any effort.

 

As a sophmore he average 9.9 yards a rush, as a junior 11.1, as a senior 14. For comparison AG averages around 7. Why pass the ball?

 

Everyone just assumes because he had 700 more rushing yards than our top RB recruit that he can't pass. Not true at all. He only attempted like 93 passes in 13 games.

Gardner ran the ball 547 times to 108 passing attempts. According to their site, he was 40 of 93 for 812 yards - 8 TD's w/ 6 INT. Probably 20 of those incompletions were when he was trying to get outside and it was blocked off so he'd throw the ball away (something T-Mart does really well ). He's probably a 60% passer right now, averaging about 20 yards a completion.

 

The main thing is, while not a pollished passer - he has the arm strength and the pure athletism that he needs to improve in this area. He's a pure athlete in every sense of the word. He can play basketball, baseball, football, etc. He bats .500 and throws a 95 mph strike. Runs a 4.36 40 w/ a huge vertical. All that, and then you see the guy is 6'5" 200lbs. Physically, he's almost perfect for a freshman QB (could add about 25lbs). Mentally he's a great student w/ a decent ACT. He's smart on the field, and doesn't buckle under pressure. If you created a perfect QB he's what you'd end up with.

 

The only thing that should worry you about him is the coaching he may or may not receive. But that's out of his control.

[zoogs]

Yea, I think Bubba is very raw passing but is immensely physically talented. The size/speed combo is rare and the arm is powerful, even if he is behind the ball on passing. It is kind of how people talked about Pryor though, but obviously Bubba is not quite as hyped. It is not as if most schools are looking at him as receiver or safety or running back or something, and he just wants a shot at QB. I think Bubba would need a redshirt year, if he came. Uninformed opinion only. His HS offense is really centered around him running.

 

But Bubba's the kind of guy that is he works hard to turn it on in that area, man, watch out.

 

I think there were some Locker comparisons made earlier in this thread. So we are talking about first round NFL QB type of potential, but obviously he will have to have a longgg way to go to get there. Physically it is just what he has to offer.

[HuskerFowler]

i have a hard time thinking he would go for a redshirt, a guy that turns down millions to play football...wants to play. Even thou thats what he may need in the passing game...i dont see him staying for 5 years if he wants to give college a shot. And if he does go to NU and continues to develope as a baseball player, he will most lkely be the # 1 pick when he is eligible for the draft...not sure on the rules? 3 years i think. So he'll probably be gone then anyway, especially if hes just having and OK football career. Better use him somehow.

[kchusker_chris]

Yea, I think Bubba is very raw passing but is immensely physically talented. The size/speed combo is rare and the arm is powerful, even if he is behind the ball on passing. It is kind of how people talked about Pryor though, but obviously Bubba is not quite as hyped. It is not as if most schools are looking at him as receiver or safety or running back or something, and he just wants a shot at QB. I think Bubba would need a redshirt year, if he came. Uninformed opinion only. His HS offense is really centered around him running.

 

But Bubba's the kind of guy that is he works hard to turn it on in that area, man, watch out.

 

I think there were some Locker comparisons made earlier in this thread. So we are talking about first round NFL QB type of potential, but obviously he will have to have a longgg way to go to get there. Physically it is just what he has to offer.

The comparison's to Locker make me cringe after seeing his two performances against us this year - but after seeing Josh Freeman go to the NFL I think Bubba could probably be drafted next year after Dobson puts 30 pounds on him. He HAS to be as good as Freeman already

 

IMO recruiting is turning into a "draft" type of event - where fans look at all these kids and see future stars when in reality none of them have proved a thing. I'm guilty of that often. I see Bubba and I see a TON of potential - which is about all you can ask for in recruiting. I see the same in Kevin Williams. IMO, that's what Rivals does...rank potential. 5 stars have a greater chance of succeeding than 3 stars, etc. Plenty 5 stars flop, and plenty 3 stars succeed. But, Bubba has all the physical and mental tools it takes to be a future star. What he does with those depends on his attitude/character and the coaching/oportunities he receives. I love his attitude, and know plenty of people that can affirm his character. He'll have the oportunity at Nebraska to succeed, and he seems to think Watson can coach him into something great.

 

In addition, he may not be a "Nebraska" guy - but he is a small town kid and has all the work-ethic type of qualities that we love to see in our home-grown guys. He's not some guy from the inner city that ran off for 2500 yards and walks around town thinking he craps gold. He's what we want in our student athletes.