Patrick Witt

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Here is something I got an in an email, a rumor/source of info

"what happened is that this husker team emphasizes family and brotherhood and not individuality. Witt struggled with that concept and when called on some of his behavior by fellow teammates and staff, he reacted immaturely, and was informally "disciplined" by a fellow teammate for doing so. dad requested a meeting to straighten things out. The coaches said they wanted Patrick to stay but that they supported the players and staff who called him out on the specific behavior at issue because it was not consistent with our principles of family, brotherhood and leadership. He then apparently felt unwanted and decided to leave."

 
I hope I am not jumping the gun here.

But by all accounts we have heard so far, we should be not sad that he is leaving, but sad that he made the decisions he did.

It's still unfortunate. But what's done is done. Hopefully he straightens himself out. He could have manned up and made amends instead of feeling unwanted and quitting. But...

 
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It is always disheartening when a so-called "key" player leaves the team. It rarely sheds a positive light on the athlete or the university. Pelini handled it very well, according to the qoutes, and hopefully, the Witt's will not "Mud-sling" at the University..... I wish him the best.

I for one, have projected Lee to start anyway....in the poll discussed earlier... the only thing that changes for me, is the fact that I said if Green was #3, then he redshirts, but if he is #2, then you burn the shirt and he has to play..... Now, Green only has to beat out Spano for the #2 spot....

The Omaha paper said that Witt's dad declined to comment, "to protect his son"....... IMO, something other than "not fitting into offense" happened here. It will eventually come out why....... but at this point, "why" is not important, he is gone.

 
zoogies said:
I hope I am not jumping the gun here.

But by all accounts we have heard so far, we should be not sad that he is leaving, but sad that he made the decisions he did.

It's still unfortunate. But what's done is done. Hopefully he straightens himself out. He could have manned up and made amends instead of feeling unwanted and quitting. But...
Click to expand...
 
HANC said:
It is always disheartening when a so-called "key" player leaves the team. It rarely sheds a positive light on the athlete or the university. Pelini handled it very well, according to the qoutes, and hopefully, the Witt's will not "Mud-sling" at the University..... I wish him the best.

I for one, have projected Lee to start anyway....in the poll discussed earlier... the only thing that changes for me, is the fact that I said if Green was #3, then he redshirts, but if he is #2, then you burn the shirt and he has to play..... Now, Green only has to beat out Spano for the #2 spot....

The Omaha paper said that Witt's dad declined to comment, "to protect his son"....... IMO, something other than "not fitting into offense" happened here. It will eventually come out why....... but at this point, "why" is not important, he is gone.
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Pats got a bag of lemons and I say go make lemonaide. He's a 4.0 student and would do well to talk to Stanford or an Ivy league school. Maybe even Notre Dame. In a way this clarifies the spring in a positive way for the remaining log jam.

Hoping the best for Pat and his family and have no doubt he will find the recipe to complete this stage of his life. For me it was clear that in Watsons offense and under Dr T.'O.'s guidance, NU will get back to mobility at QB as a certainty...its a defining characteristic that must be respected, and it felt pretty unnatural while we were seemingly on that other path.

The remaining competitors can look positively at a 3 deep and feel like the work they put in will yield something, i suspect J Ganz would be a good example of how a kid should view hisself in the current mix. Ganz mobility was not that useful to the interim offense, but Ganz persevered. Everyone recognizes that Joe never gave up on hisself and neither should any of these guys, Pat included.

Wake up and smell the coffee boys, theres bags of lemons on the porch...go get ya one.

 
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NU Football: QB Witt is leaving Huskers
LINCOLN — Spring football practice at Nebraska just got a lot more interesting.

Patrick Witt, considered a co-favorite to win the vacant starting quarterback job, is leaving the Huskers.

The rising sophomore will transfer from NU at the end of the spring semester. Witt, the top backup in 2008 to Joe Ganz, was expected to compete in March and April with junior-to-be Zac Lee.

The quarterback's father, Gene Witt, declined to reveal details, saying he needed to "protect" his son. Patrick Witt did not return a message left on his cell phone.

"There's a lot that went on," the elder Witt said. "I wish I could say more, but I really can't go there."

NU coach Bo Pelini released the following statement Sunday night:

"Patrick has decided that it is in his best interest to continue his college career at another school. Patrick is a great kid from a great family, and I appreciate the contributions he has made to our football program. I wish him nothing but the best in the future and know he will be a success wherever he goes."

Witt, 6-foot-4 and 225 pounds, played in five games last season. He completed 6 of 8 passes for 48 yards and rushed for a touchdown. Witt replaced an injured Ganz in the Gator Bowl for one play and appeared to commit a key turnover, but replay overturned his fumble in the fourth quarter of Nebraska's 26-21 win over Clemson.

He came to Nebraska from Wylie (Texas) High School in spring 2007 and redshirted that fall behind Ganz and Sam Keller. Witt, who has a perfect 4.0 grade-point average, will remain on scholarship this spring as he completes his coursework before finding a new school.

"He's got a very bright future," Gene Witt said, "whether it's in athletics or academics."

His departure changes in a major way the outlook for spring practice, during which time Witt and Lee were set to stage a QB battle sure to draw the bulk of attention.

Offensive coordinator Shawn Watson said in December he considered them even in the race to replace Ganz, and that a starter likely would not be named before August.

Coaches and teammates routinely praised Witt for his intelligence and business-like approach to film study and practice.

"Either you get it or you don't, and Pat gets it," Watson said of Witt before the Gator Bowl. "You understand how it all goes together. In other words, the game goes really slow for you. I think a lot of that happens for him because Pat has great study habits."

Witt, at the time, declined an interview request to discuss his seemingly bright future.

"We've got a goal to accomplish and a game to win," he said in December. "We'll have our time for that in the spring. I don't really want to say anymore."

So now, it looks like Lee's job to lose.

The 6-foot-2, 210-pound Californian played in two games last season. He is the son of former NFL quarterback Bob Lee and transferred to Nebraska from San Francisco City College two years ago before winning offensive scout team player-of-the-year honors in 2007.

Kody Spano and Cody Green may also figure into the race. Spano, 6-2 and 210 pounds, redshirted last season out of Stephensville, Texas, after arriving on campus in January 2008.

The 6-4, 220-pound Green is arguably the most talented of the group, though he won't turn 18 until June. Green graduated early from Dayton (Texas) High School in January after accumulating 4,875 yards and 62 touchdowns last fall in a 13-2 season.

Spano's father and former high school assistant coach, Kyle Spano, said his son was not involved in any turmoil among the QB ranks at Nebraska.

"Kody loves coach Pelini and coach Watson," Kyle Spano said. "It's been a great, great experience for him thus far. I know the entire team is working really hard this offseason. Kody does nothing but call and brag on his teammates."

Witt has been quick to move before.

He began his prep career at Atlanta's Chattahoochee High School and transferred in 2004 alongside his brother Jeff Witt, who played quarterback at Harvard, to Parkview High in Lilburn, Ga.

There, Patrick Witt started as a junior in 2006 but was limited in an offense that featured a strong running game.

Witt's family moved to Dallas, where he landed at Highland Park in an attempt to succeed star QB Matthew Stafford. It didn't work, so Witt moved to Wylie, throwing for 1,846 yards as a senior.

He committed to Nebraska in July 2006 before his senior year and now joins Harrison Beck, Josh Freeman and Blaine Gabbert as touted quarterbacks who pledged early to former NU coach Bill Callahan but never made it to Lincoln or started a game once on the team.

Link: OWH
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well, I have to say. I can't say I was really in favor of him taking charge of the team. Something about him just didn't seem right to me. What I want to know though is WHY. What is this "stuff" his dad was talking about:

"There's a lot that went on," the elder Witt said. "I wish I could say more, but I really can't go there."

What does that mean!? Why would the leading choice for QB leave a major division I university before any competition had really started? It's driving me nuts not knowing what the root cause was...

 
huskerdude171 said:
Here is something I got an in an email, a rumor/source of info

"what happened is that this husker team emphasizes family and brotherhood and not individuality. Witt struggled with that concept and when called on some of his behavior by fellow teammates and staff, he reacted immaturely, and was informally "disciplined" by a fellow teammate for doing so. dad requested a meeting to straighten things out. The coaches said they wanted Patrick to stay but that they supported the players and staff who called him out on the specific behavior at issue because it was not consistent with our principles of family, brotherhood and leadership. He then apparently felt unwanted and decided to leave."
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I'm glad someone else brought this up so i didnt have to be the first. I have heard stories like this as far back as last year up until now. Supposedly alot of guys on the team didnt like Witt and the way he handled himself. It really doesnt surprise me. Plus it frees up another scholly.

 
I dont want to bag on the kid since he is just that a kid. He might know the play book but everytime he stepped on the field last year he just didnt seem like he was ready, he got really jittery and such had a couple of fumbles. The time we saw Lee he moved the ball pretty well and was very mobile. I wish the kid the best where ever he goes. As far as the issues for leaving he has a lot of off field issues from the beging so I wouldnt put it past that he was really kicked off the team or was going to get suspended for something but Bo is just letting him transfer instead but that is my just guessing.

 
I thought he would be the starter this season. Thought that it was going to be tough to match last seasons record, with Witt as the q/b, but figured he could do alright. Just didn't seem to be the right guy, something about how he looked, in just the few times he played. Anyone else have that feeling about him?

Best of luck to him, where ever he ends up.

GBR!!!

 
are_you_serious? said:
well, I have to say. I can't say I was really in favor of him taking charge of the team. Something about him just didn't seem right to me. What I want to know though is WHY. What is this "stuff" his dad was talking about:

"There's a lot that went on," the elder Witt said. "I wish I could say more, but I really can't go there."

What does that mean!? Why would the leading choice for QB leave a major division I university before any competition had really started? It's driving me nuts not knowing what the root cause was...
Click to expand...

Guess i am the opposite of you. Matters not a twitt what happened, because we all make our own and share in the mistakes of others. Its clear that chemistry played a role, clear to me at least, that as the chemistry became clarified, a certain sense of panic set in and panic is an enabling influence to the psyche. We have 3 guys on the depth chart and one on his way somewhere else, I'll live with it against the uncertainty of knowing the details, in fact they matter even less, because our team is trying to restore a tradition of mobility at QB, this will be accomplished within the skill sets of the remaining players (including any walk ons ).

soap operas are popular, and message board soap operas are just part of the genre of message boards, so while your urge to get to the bottom of this is driving you, my advice is dont take the bait....look at the situation as it is now, 3 deep and moving in the direction we need to go. PW is smart enough to not fall into the same trap as the one we had with Sam K, when his team chemistry issues became a way to stalk his programs character from the inside out.

May the force restore the order, taking whatever steps are necessary to nudge things to the proper conclusion, its the quantum way......and its for the best.

 
I personaly did not expect Witt to start, but I'm a little disapointed to see him go. If for no other reason than the added competition his skill set would have provided in the spring.

As for Witt sabotaging Green with false signals, I have a hard time buying this. Their in the middle of winter conditioning. All the QB drills would be informal at this point. Could it be true, sure. But the skeptic in me really doubts this story. <_<

One thing I'm not suprised about is the inevitable "now Green has an even better chance to start" posts. So let me be the first to say, NO Green is no closer to starting now than he was last week. He is not going to magicaly learn the playbook over night. And his throwing mechanics aren't going to turn into Peyton Manning's either. It's good that the fan base is excited about Green. But we all need to temper our expectations a bit. (or ALOT in some cases!) He has a lot of work ahead of him.

To me the most intriging angle in all this may be the opprotunity that Taylor Martinez has to get in the QB mix. Granted he still has a hell of a hill to climb with Green, and his fall enrollment. But if Taylor really wants to play QB, this maybe exactly what he needed to get his foot in the door.

 
I am sorry to hear that he is leaving but I have to wish all of the luck in the world to the kid (just so long as you don't end up playing NU in the future) But this does raise the question....

To which North Carolina school will this NU QB transfer go to???

 
huzkerbob said:
I personaly did not expect Witt to start, but I'm a little disapointed to see him go. If for no other reason than the added competition his skill set would have provided in the spring.

As for Witt sabotaging Green with false signals, I have a hard time buying this. Their in the middle of winter conditioning. All the QB drills would be informal at this point. Could it be true, sure. But the skeptic in me really doubts this story. <_<

One thing I'm not suprised about is the inevitable "now Green has an even better chance to start" posts. So let me be the first to say, NO Green is no closer to starting now than he was last week. He is not going to magicaly learn the playbook over night. And his throwing mechanics aren't going to turn into Peyton Manning's either. It's good that the fan base is excited about Green. But we all need to temper our expectations a bit. (or ALOT in some cases!) He has a lot of work ahead of him.

To me the most intriging angle in all this may be the opprotunity that Taylor Martinez has to get in the QB mix. Granted he still has a hell of a hill to climb with Green, and his fall enrollment. But if Taylor really wants to play QB, this maybe exactly what he needed to get his foot in the door.
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I still think were 4 deep at QB and remember there's a few walk-ons that play QB also. Talor Martinez is no slouch his team was ranked #1 in SOCAL and that offense he ran averaged a play every 11 seconds while on the field. Corona also plays in one of the toughest divisions in SOCAL.

 
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