Locker vs. Crouch

[Foppa]

Locker, Locker everywhere; what are we to think?

June, 29, 2010

 

By Ted Miller

Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times calls it "Jake-a-palooza." ESPN.com's Bruce Feldman calls it "Jake Locker's big year."

 

Hey, look! Jake Locker is smiling at you. He's probably just thinking, "Hey, I'm Jake Locker. How cool is that?"

 

This is supposed to be a quiet time in college football, but, heck, with conference expansion and USC's NCAA sanctions giving us breathless headlines, why not start the Heisman hype for Washington's talented quarterback?

 

[+] EnlargeJake Locker

Charles Baus/Icon SMIJake Locker could be a Heisman candidate, but he'll need to grab the nation's attention first.

Back before the 2001 season, Oregon put up a billboard in Manhattan of quarterback Joey Harrington and called him "Joey Heisman." Seeing that the Huskies and Ducks don't get along well at all -- thankfully, it appears the rivalry is about to become relevant again -- Washington officials tried to do one better by bringing Locker east in person.

 

He toured Manhattan. He hung out at ESPN and went through the infamous "car wash" -- interviews for all ESPN platforms, TV, radio, Internet, etc. -- which included an interview on "First Take" and a live chat, the transcript of which is here.

 

The intent of the tour is obvious: Introduce the East Coast media -- i.e., the country -- to a player whose incredible skills have been hidden under Seattle's gray rain clouds, which hovered over an until recently moribund program.

 

In 2008, Locker was knocked out in Game 4 against Stanford with a season-ending thumb injury and the Huskies went 0-12. A year later, with Steve Sarkisian taking over for Tyrone Willingham, the Huskies went 5-7, beating USC, Arizona and California in the process, and suddenly looking like a Pac-10 contender heading into 2010.

 

Dramatic improvement, yes, but Heisman-worthy? Maybe not as a settled body of work.

 

The burgeoning hype for Locker, which rubs some folks the wrong way (Oregon fans?), isn't based on what he's done so far. His numbers playing for mediocre-to-bad teams his first three years aren't the basis for projections that he will be a high first-round NFL draft pick -- perhaps No. 1 overall -- next fall. Nor are they the basis for his Heisman campaign.

 

With Locker, it's all about potential. And there's good reason to believe that potential will take a significant step toward realization this fall. The Huskies have solid talent returning, particularly on offense, and they have a brutal schedule that features many marquee games in which Locker could make a national audience go, "Wow."

 

What might Locker 4.0 look like in top form? Almost no one in the country saw Locker's performance on Dec. 5 against California for good reason: The Big 12 and SEC title games were played that day. But Locker led the Huskies to a 42-10 upset of Cal by accounting for five total touchdowns, three passing, two rushing. He completed 19 of 23 for 248 yards with no interceptions and rushed for 90 yards on 14 carries.

 

It was as dominating an individual performance as you'll see. It looked like Locker, who brings an appealing childlike glee to the game, could have done anything he wanted at any time.

 

All the glad-handing in the world won't make sparkling but off-the-radar performances attract the attention of Heisman voters, however. That requires winning, and the real Heisman hype rocket has an obvious potential launching point: Against Nebraska on Sept. 18 in Husky Stadium.

 

The Cornhuskers figure to be a top-10 team. If the Huskies can start 2-0 -- hardly automatic considering the opener is at BYU -- that game will attract significant national interest. Maybe even "College GameDay."

 

It will be billed as the Cornhuskers elite defense vs. Locker (whether that's accurate or not). And if Locker prevails with a sterling performance? At that point, the Heisman hype will begin in earnest.

 

And, of course, Mel Kiper and Todd McShay will start writing sonnets about Locker's future playing on Sundays.

 

 

So let me see if I got this straight...It's ok for Jake Locker to have the University of Washington fly him to vacation around New York City and ESPN headquarters to promote him for Heisman, but Eric Crouch comes under NCAA radar for taking a flight with a friend and eating a sandwich? (which he eventually had to pay for the gas of the plane and said sandwich). Am I missing something here?

[deedsker15]

Locker, Locker everywhere; what are we to think?

June, 29, 2010

 

By Ted Miller

Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times calls it "Jake-a-palooza." ESPN.com's Bruce Feldman calls it "Jake Locker's big year."

 

Hey, look! Jake Locker is smiling at you. He's probably just thinking, "Hey, I'm Jake Locker. How cool is that?"

 

This is supposed to be a quiet time in college football, but, heck, with conference expansion and USC's NCAA sanctions giving us breathless headlines, why not start the Heisman hype for Washington's talented quarterback?

 

[+] EnlargeJake Locker

Charles Baus/Icon SMIJake Locker could be a Heisman candidate, but he'll need to grab the nation's attention first.

Back before the 2001 season, Oregon put up a billboard in Manhattan of quarterback Joey Harrington and called him "Joey Heisman." Seeing that the Huskies and Ducks don't get along well at all -- thankfully, it appears the rivalry is about to become relevant again -- Washington officials tried to do one better by bringing Locker east in person.

 

He toured Manhattan. He hung out at ESPN and went through the infamous "car wash" -- interviews for all ESPN platforms, TV, radio, Internet, etc. -- which included an interview on "First Take" and a live chat, the transcript of which is here.

 

The intent of the tour is obvious: Introduce the East Coast media -- i.e., the country -- to a player whose incredible skills have been hidden under Seattle's gray rain clouds, which hovered over an until recently moribund program.

 

In 2008, Locker was knocked out in Game 4 against Stanford with a season-ending thumb injury and the Huskies went 0-12. A year later, with Steve Sarkisian taking over for Tyrone Willingham, the Huskies went 5-7, beating USC, Arizona and California in the process, and suddenly looking like a Pac-10 contender heading into 2010.

 

Dramatic improvement, yes, but Heisman-worthy? Maybe not as a settled body of work.

 

The burgeoning hype for Locker, which rubs some folks the wrong way (Oregon fans?), isn't based on what he's done so far. His numbers playing for mediocre-to-bad teams his first three years aren't the basis for projections that he will be a high first-round NFL draft pick -- perhaps No. 1 overall -- next fall. Nor are they the basis for his Heisman campaign.

 

With Locker, it's all about potential. And there's good reason to believe that potential will take a significant step toward realization this fall. The Huskies have solid talent returning, particularly on offense, and they have a brutal schedule that features many marquee games in which Locker could make a national audience go, "Wow."

 

What might Locker 4.0 look like in top form? Almost no one in the country saw Locker's performance on Dec. 5 against California for good reason: The Big 12 and SEC title games were played that day. But Locker led the Huskies to a 42-10 upset of Cal by accounting for five total touchdowns, three passing, two rushing. He completed 19 of 23 for 248 yards with no interceptions and rushed for 90 yards on 14 carries.

 

It was as dominating an individual performance as you'll see. It looked like Locker, who brings an appealing childlike glee to the game, could have done anything he wanted at any time.

 

All the glad-handing in the world won't make sparkling but off-the-radar performances attract the attention of Heisman voters, however. That requires winning, and the real Heisman hype rocket has an obvious potential launching point: Against Nebraska on Sept. 18 in Husky Stadium.

 

The Cornhuskers figure to be a top-10 team. If the Huskies can start 2-0 -- hardly automatic considering the opener is at BYU -- that game will attract significant national interest. Maybe even "College GameDay."

 

It will be billed as the Cornhuskers elite defense vs. Locker (whether that's accurate or not). And if Locker prevails with a sterling performance? At that point, the Heisman hype will begin in earnest.

 

And, of course, Mel Kiper and Todd McShay will start writing sonnets about Locker's future playing on Sundays.

 

 

So let me see if I got this straight...It's ok for Jake Locker to have the University of Washington fly him to vacation around New York City and ESPN headquarters to promote him for Heisman, but Eric Crouch comes under NCAA radar for taking a flight with a friend and eating a sandwich? (which he eventually had to pay for the gas of the plane and said sandwich). Am I missing something here?

yeah...the university payed for it...see USC for answers

[clone]

Locker vs. Crouch... the difference.

 

Locker probably plays in the pros.

 

Crouch had better support players.

[WashingtonRed]

From what I remember of Crouch, I think Locker has a better arm.

 

 

[Street Novelist]

Locker can throw the ball. That's the difference.

[killer cacti]

What's the difference?

 

Crouch won games?

[bhunt7]

Locker vs. Crouch... the difference.

 

Locker probably plays in the pros.

 

Crouch had better support players.

The difference between Crouch and Locker? Hmmm... one of the two owns more Heisman's than both Washington and Iowa St combined. Other than that, the difference is Locker is better in the passing game while Crouch is light years ahead of him on the ground. Funny how people seem to have forgotten how good of a player Crouch was.

 

The Eric Crouch tape:

[GSG]

The difference is:

 

I am taller than Crouch. Never met Locker, so the jury is out on that one.

[WashingtonRed]

Locker vs. Crouch... the difference.

 

Locker probably plays in the pros.

 

Crouch had better support players.

The difference between Crouch and Locker? Hmmm... one of the two owns more Heisman's than both Washington and Iowa St combined. Other than that, the difference is Locker is better in the passing game while Crouch is light years ahead of him on the ground. Funny how people seem to have forgotten how good of a player Crouch was.

 

The Eric Crouch tape:

 

I don't think you realize how good Locker is. He is equal to, if not better, than what Crouch was at running, he is just in a different offense. He also doesn't have a supporting cast around him. If he played at Nebraska during the Crouch years, there would have been another 3 year dynasty. Unfortunately, Washington's cupboards were (are?) bare.

[clone]

Locker vs. Crouch... the difference.

 

Locker probably plays in the pros.

 

Crouch had better support players.

The difference between Crouch and Locker? Hmmm... one of the two owns more Heisman's than both Washington and Iowa St combined. Other than that, the difference is Locker is better in the passing game while Crouch is light years ahead of him on the ground. Funny how people seem to have forgotten how good of a player Crouch was.

 

The Eric Crouch tape:

 

 

crouch definitely had the better college career and had the benefit of playing on a MUCH better team. locker isn't done yet, but at Washington, won't win a lot of games.

 

nu will roll the huskies. won't even be close.

[GMoose]

Locker vs. Crouch... the difference.

 

Locker probably plays in the pros.

 

Crouch had better support players.

The difference between Crouch and Locker? Hmmm... one of the two owns more Heisman's than both Washington and Iowa St combined. Other than that, the difference is Locker is better in the passing game while Crouch is light years ahead of him on the ground. Funny how people seem to have forgotten how good of a player Crouch was.

 

The Eric Crouch tape:

 

 

crouch definitely had the better college career and had the benefit of playing on a MUCH better team. locker isn't done yet, but at Washington, won't win a lot of games.

 

nu will roll the huskies. won't even be close.

One of the many crimes in CFB...talent getting overshadowed by number of wins.

[clone]

Locker vs. Crouch... the difference.

 

Locker probably plays in the pros.

 

Crouch had better support players.

The difference between Crouch and Locker? Hmmm... one of the two owns more Heisman's than both Washington and Iowa St combined. Other than that, the difference is Locker is better in the passing game while Crouch is light years ahead of him on the ground. Funny how people seem to have forgotten how good of a player Crouch was.

 

The Eric Crouch tape:

 

 

crouch definitely had the better college career and had the benefit of playing on a MUCH better team. locker isn't done yet, but at Washington, won't win a lot of games.

 

nu will roll the huskies. won't even be close.

One of the many crimes in CFB...talent getting overshadowed by number of wins.

 

 

yup. sometimes the best players aren't on the best teams.

 

crouch was a premier college qb. he was fortunate to also be on a very good team.

 

I'm not sold on locker at all. but his "talents" won't help when nu rolls into town.

[husker B-rent]

Locker vs. Crouch... the difference.

 

Locker probably plays in the pros.

 

Crouch had better support players.

The difference between Crouch and Locker? Hmmm... one of the two owns more Heisman's than both Washington and Iowa St combined. Other than that, the difference is Locker is better in the passing game while Crouch is light years ahead of him on the ground. Funny how people seem to have forgotten how good of a player Crouch was.

 

The Eric Crouch tape:

 

I don't think you realize how good Locker is. He is equal to, if not better, than what Crouch was at running, he is just in a different offense. He also doesn't have a supporting cast around him. If he played at Nebraska during the Crouch years, there would have been another 3 year dynasty. Unfortunately, Washington's cupboards were (are?) bare.

 

i cant agree with that. having watched both players it really is not even close, crouch was BY FAR a better runner than is locker. its really not even close....

[suh_fan93]

I have been critical of Crouch in the past and actually feel bad about doing so. He was a great runner. I was just never happy that he seemed sort of one dimensional. The botton line though is that even though his passing could best be described as fair he could run the option as good as anyone. He had great wheels and when he took off it was exciting to watch.

 

I have made my peace!

[skerman]

Yeah crouch played for a far better team! But ...... Crouch would take a game over and not be stopped!!! How would it feel as a defender to know whats coming and just get crushed? Lockers got potential. But Locker aint got it. Crouch does!!!!!!!