Because we were definitely roasted on Sunday night… Much has been made about two things head coach Brian Kelly “said” in yesterday’s post-Texas press conference (more on why that’s in quotes in a moment).
- We’re sticking with the quarterback rotation!
- Brian VanGorder got a vote of confidence!
AUUUUGGHHHH!!! Right?
Well, as our favorite mascot-headed ESPN commentator would say, not so fast, my friend. As so often happens, and has happened with Kelly numerous times since he came to Notre Dame, what Kelly said and what got legs in the media and fan base are two different things. Sometimes there’s just a small difference, but in this case there’s a pretty substantial difference – in fact, the first bullet point is pretty much exactly the opposite of what he said, and the second one is technically true but pretty clearly not really true if you read through the entire transcript. That’s why you see the quotation marks above.
The Quarterback Rotation
The difference in on-field performance for Deshone Kizer and Malik Zaire was pretty stark on Sunday: Kizer was 15 of 24 (62.5%) for 215 yards passing with 5 touchdowns and no interceptions and carried the ball 13 times for 77 yards and one touchdown, while Zaire was 2 of 5 (40%) for 23 yards and carried the ball 3 times for 11 yards. The disparity, which was apparent throughout the game, was emphasized by the fact that Kizer was the unquestioned choice down the stretch. Unlike the Music City Bowl, when Golson and Zaire rotated up until the final series, only Kizer was entrusted with the offense after the first series of the second quarter.
The media noticed Kizer’s performance as well, with CBSSports.com’s Matt Miller and NFLDraftScout.com’s Dane Brugler putting out mock drafts today that had Kizer as the #1 overall pick, and NFL.com’s Daniel Jeremiah doubling down on his preseason Kizer-for-Heisman prediction by saying that Kizer belongs in the discussion about the best quarterback in the country. So Kelly’s choice has to be obvious, right?
Q. Where are you with your quarterback position?
BRIAN KELLY: We still have two very good quarterbacks.
This was repeated in a lot of live update threads as “no decision on the quarterbacks” or “the rotation will continue” or something along those lines, and it was off to the races; visit any Notre Dame message board and it’ll be pretty easy to find discussions of how Kelly could be so oblivious to results and so into emotional versus rational decisions. But if you keep reading, a very different picture emerges.
Q. Do you plan on keeping it two throughout this week or at some point do you…
[cut off by BK] BRIAN KELLY: We plan on having two really good quarterbacks the rest of the year. I haven’t sat down and talked with either one of them, so before we do that we don’t have any plans to make any decisions.Q. Is that something you will do this week?
BRIAN KELLY: Yeah, we will make that decision this week.Well. That sounds substantially different, doesn’t it? What he’s saying is, “We have two really good guys, we have the data we need to know who should be #1 and who should be #2, and I’m going to talk to them about it before I talk to you about it.”
It didn’t stop there, though. Kelly made some fairly pointed comments about whomever (ahem) is assigned the QB2 role.
Q. Brian, if you get to the point where you do separate the quarterbacks when there is a 1 and 2, how do you go about as a coach keeping that No. 2 engaged? Obviously there would be some disappointment.
BRIAN KELLY: …It’s about your attitude and your attitude has to be such that whoever the No. 2 is, whether he’s the No. 2 quarterback or the No. 2 running back, you’re one play away from being in there… That’s really 99% attitude and accepting the role that you have. If you can’t accept the role then you need to move out of the way and let somebody go into that role that can accept it and prepare themselves accordingly…Q. From whoever is your No. 2 when they’re not in the game what did you want to see from them, whether that it’s Kizer or Zaire on the sidelines? Did you want them up listening to play calls, off the side, out of the way, interacting with your receivers, what did you want in that situation from that guy?
BRIAN KELLY: I think my comments, Pete, would be similar to what I said — look, they’re both really good players. I think we could all agree in this room. Now it’s not about anything else but how you accept your role and whether he has his helmet on or off, you know what I mean?…(If you’re curious, Sampson went on to clarify that he meant more from a practical than a psychological standpoint, and Kelly answered that whether it’s the headset or the signals or whatever, it’s what that quarterback needs to do to feel engaged.)
“If you can’t accept the role then you need to move out of the way and let somebody go into that role that can accept it and prepare themselves accordingly.” That’s about as direct as it gets, and given that Zaire has definitely been the more outspoken of the two throughout their careers, I think Kelly is pretty clearly speaking about Malik there. It’s a not-thinly-veiled threat that if QB2 doesn’t play by the rules, QB2 is going to become QB3 pretty quickly.
Summing up, Kelly said the rotation won’t continue, he knows who the #1 is (as do the rest of us), and the #2 better toe the line or get out of the way. Sounds pretty settled to me.
A Defense Of The Trans Am Defense (Sort Of)
In his first post-game press conference, Kelly said people need to “tap the brakes” in regards to the defense and Brian VanGorder’s job security, which in turn led to much Sturm und Drang about cronyism, more obliviousness, and/or arrogance. Yesterday, he was asked numerous questions about the defense, as you might imagine, and expanded his remarks quite a bit. One answer in particular raised a lot of ire with the fan base:
Q. Obviously there has been criticism of the defense the last 36 hours or so. Do you believe Brian VanGorder is the right man for the job moving forward long term?
BRIAN KELLY: Absolutely. Like I said, it’s great conversation for everybody to have, but it’s so short-sighted of what really happened in the Texas game. What really happened in the Texas game was you had the offense that had a chance to win the game — you’re going to have to play some games where you outscore people. If we’re 10 or 11 games into the season and we have to outscore everybody, I’ll take the questions, you know? And I would say fair enough. We’re in game one of a brand new offense that we saw for the first time, and we got guys that went on the NFL off this team.So I just think we’re jumping the gun. If we’re ten games into this and we’re giving up 50 points a game, I’ll have to answer your questions, right now. As I said yesterday, I think you all should relax a little bit. I think our defense is going to be fine. And quite frankly, as a head coach, I never think of it as one side of the ball. Our defense settled in in the second half enough for our offense to extend itself and score some more points and we didn’t execute well enough in that phase
What a lot of people heard was “You’re all delusional, this isn’t a real problem, so we don’t need to change anything, and I won’t change my mind until game 10.” I don’t read it that way at all. Brian Kelly is the head coach – he can’t hit the panic button after game 1 without sending his program into utter chaos. What positive stuff he said, he has to say. I don’t think he’s saying “this isn’t a problem until game 10” – I think he’s saying “if this doesn’t get fixed by the end of the year, I’m going to be looking for a new coordinator.” Fans want to hear coaches say what we’re all thinking, but that’s just not realistic. This is a pretty even-handed response that still threatens accountability if the ship isn’t righted.
Q. I would imagine as a coach it’s difficult when a guy like Drue Tranquill struggles a little bit. What are your hopes for this week for getting him on track?
BRIAN KELLY: Yeah, we gotta get him back out there and, you know, again, it’s a learning process. Some of the mistakes out there were ones that he’s aware of that, again, we just have to be better. We’ve got to communicate and teach better. We’ve got to make sure that he’s clearly understanding what we’re asking of him and making sure that we get that on game day. So we come back out and make sure that Drue understands what is expected and he needs to come through for us.Q. You mentioned yesterday about tapping the brakes on the defense… What did you see that makes you think things will be getting better?
BRIAN KELLY: I know our personnel and our defensive line was pretty solid and Nyles Morgan our middle linebacker was solid… I’m looking at the personnel that we have and we will evolve to putting those guys into a position that best fits their abilities and that’s what we have to do as coaches.We have to say, okay, what can these guys do and what can’t they do? Let’s maximize what their strengths are. Instead of saying, hey, we love this, we want to do this, we want to do that, we can’t do those things in certain situations. So knowing our personnel, moving forward and accentuating things defensively that they do well.
No head coach is ever, under any non-criminal circumstances, going to directly throw his coordinator under the bus. Not a smart head coach, anyway, and not one who wants talented people in an extremely stressful industry to see his organization as one they want to be a part of. But he’s not going to throw his players under the bus either when there’s a clear coaching failure, so what you get is a bunch of coachspeak that you have to pick through to find the underlying message.
These answers from Kelly are perfect examples: “tap the brakes” when asked directly about VanGorder, but when asked about players he says “we” need to do a better job of communicating and “we” need to get realistic about what guys can and can’t do and tailor the defense accordingly. And “we,” in this case, since he’s talking about the defense, pretty clearly includes the defensive coaches. The first answer recalls a comment Kelly made to the South Bend Tribune about VanGorder’s job security in a preseason interview, to the effect that if he thought the defense wasn’t being communicated well to the players that would be a problem. The second answer is pretty clearly directed at VanGorder’s apparent defensive approach of putting scheme first, which led to playing Andrew Trumbetti as an odd front defensive end (or maybe some bad mushrooms led to that – equally plausible) and starting Avery Sebastian, who should be a reserve strong safety, at free safety while Devin Studstill, who played very well after Sebastian went down, mostly sat on the bench.
Want more?
Q. Was there any part of the defense that you thought — that you came away feeling confident that you feel will be a strength of the defense?
BRIAN KELLY: Yeah, again, I think we have the personnel there. Look, if we just play cover three, we were in cover three on long balls. Balls that got thrown over our head we were in cover three, except for the one that we were in latch coverage the one time we got beat in the seam because our safety was obviously way too wide.Primarily if we just do the ordinary things ordinarily well we’re in good shape. We have to do those better. We have to coach better. If we’re not playing cover three well we’re not coaching well enough, so we’ve got to do those things better. I know if we’re coaching better and getting that from our players we will be a better defense moving forward.
“Yeah, again, I think we have the personnel there… If we’re not playing cover three well we’re not coaching well enough.” Much like the QB2 “get out of the way” comment above, this is about as direct as Kelly can be without flat-out saying, “We have the guys we need and Brian isn’t getting it done.”
Eh, what the heck, let’s pile on…
Q. When you have a secondary at the safety position that’s young, who do you look to to be a mentor or leader for potentially two freshmen back there?
BRIAN KELLY: I don’t know that there is a particular mentor. We’re not in the business right now of searching for that. What we’re searching for is consistency of performance and putting our guys in a position to maximize their talents and what they can do for us. That’s our job as coaches to put them in a good position to succeed.This was the last exchange of the press conference, and it put a nice little bow on the earlier answers about personnel and coaching accountability. “We’re not in the business right now of searching for a mentor” sounds, again, like a direct comment on the all-devouring need for a super-cerebral field general to run this defense. Taken together, it’s about as clear a statement as you’ll ever get from a coach that the defensive coaching stinks and has to change its approach or else.
I thought Lou Holtz was our favorite mascot-headed ESPN commentator.
Ha! I think you’re confusing “has a head like a mascot” with “has an affinity for mascot heads.” Understandable, of course.
Great little article Brendan. When I listened to it yesterday that’s the way I took those things too (though you put some extra details that I didn’t tie together). I definitely thought he was talking right to malik about how to be a backup QB and at least thought that if the D is still not that great by the end BVG is gone. On both accounts is as comforting as those things go, i.e. that Kelly is not oblivious to the true problems. (You can’t fix a problem you don’t see the cause of.) It is helpful to see that Kelly was tying the problems to BVG (or to the coaches) rather than to the players (or at least more to the coaches than to the players).
Speaking of talking to Malik–I just posted this in the Texas wrap-up thread, but I don’t think anyone will see it there: did anyone see the sideline shots of Malik as we were mounting our comeback? He had this awful sad-sack look on his face like someone had kicked his dog. I mean this is when we were pulling even with Texas after everyone had written us off as dead when we were down 31-17. Then we’re tied or just about tied and Malik is sitting there pouting. Like not an ounce of excitement on his face for the team’s success. I do sympathize with him for what he’s been through, but man you have to at least try to look like a good teammate, even if you secretly hope Kizer dies of gonorrhea and rots in hell.
Gonorrhea can be fatal?! Ick! The things I learn on the internet…
If I put myself in his shoes that’s the look of all his hard work to rehab a painful injury for a full year to battle for a chance to finally get something he’s worked so hard for 4 years to get (the starting QB job at Notre Dame) going down the drain as another guy cuts in and takes over.
It sucks for Zaire, he deserved better, but that’s life for you. It ain’t fair.
I’ve probably been one of the most vocal anti-BVG people on the board, but even in my wildest dreams I don’t see BVG being fired before the end of the season, unless he pulls a Sarkisian. So hopefully he gets the message, and as the season progresses, either the defense magically becomes good (yay! Let’s all celebrate!) or he manages to somehow work his way into a “new opportunity” at the end of the season, perhaps in the NFL again, clearing the way for us to hire…heck, at this point, I’m not sure who’s out there, but I hope BK is starting a list.
Heh after you said “unless he pulls a Sarkisian” I definitely assumed that “hopefully he gets the message” was going to be followed up with something like “and drunkenly pees on the turf during the middle of a home game.” Of course, I then realized that this might actually get him a bigger fanbase, as of course all true ND fans want to piss on that tradition-destroying turf field.
“Just part of his charm,” coach Kelly said afterwards. “In fact, he’s actually quite calm and I didn’t even notice that much pee.”
I agree with your takes (easier to say now with QB being settled). Yeah, I think a bunch of people jumped on quotes on Twitter without having any idea what was actually said about the QBs.
On the defense, while I agree he is clearly saying BVG better figure it out before the end of the season, I think BK should have figured it out after last season. And I actually think one of the reasons BK is most upset is that he knows he should have figured it out and he knows he is stuck with another year before he can do anything about last offseason’s mistake. (I am an admitted BK apologist, so I could be giving him too much credit for recognizing this mistake after one game.)
Reminds me of the quote from Blow, “sometimes you’re flush and sometimes you’re bust. And when you’re up it’s never as good as it seems and when you’re down, you never think you’ll be up again, but life goes on.”
And, at the risk of the pitchfork and torches gang turning on me, I wouldn’t mind seeing some more results in before declaring it a total disaster. We won’t be seeing offenses as well schemed, prepared, tempo-wise and personnel that Texas has again.
This isn’t to say the ND defense scheme was smart (playing 3 down linemen, particularly against Swoopes is really bad), but they learned lessons. Probably mainly about safeties and personnel-wise to take some lumps with younger players and not more experienced but more limited ones in coverage. Sucks it took getting burned to learn not to put the hand on the stove, but life goes on.
I’m hoping they can at least cobble together some decent efforts (and the 2nd half was fairly respectable enough, I suppose) and the offense can out-score ’em. Then after this year the coaching situation on defense from top at BVG to position coaches like Lyght, needs to be seriously, seriously considered for changes.
@What’s the big idea with all this “rational” thought?!?!?” Where’s my other pitchfork???@
Well put, Denver, that’s about how I feel about it. I think Kelly expected better from this defense and I bet that behind closed doors he’s pissed off that he got the same old garbage. I didn’t see it because I was having a nervous breakdown (again), but I’ve seen multiple people comment online that Kelly was on VanGorder a lot more than he generally is during Sunday’s game.
“BRIAN KELLY: We still have two very good quarterbacks.”
Well, maybe not for long!
“Malik Zaire is on track to graduate after the fall semester, which would open door for a grad transfer for spring semester, per his family.” – @PeteSampson_
Not surprising that Zaire is upset at a time like this, but it’s sort of disappointing if he’s already mentally checked out. He’s still one play away from being needed this year, and not get get too hateful on Kizer but if he goes into a slump, Zaire would make a nice change of pace. (I.E. last year at times against Wake and BC it would have been nice to throw a healthy Zaire in there when the offense was getting bogged down).
QB situations are always so turbulent. Real winner could be Wimbush if Zaire transfers after this semester and then Kizer hears the siren song of a potential first round grade in the draft, which has already started in some quarters and is only going to grow if he keeps playing to the level that he should.
I think Kelly has to spend a lot more time massaging Zaire’s impressions than he would normally do with any other player. Part of that is what happened with Golson. Part of it is that I honestly think Kelly likes Zaire a lot as a person and a QB. Zaire’s very necessary if Kizer goes down, but obviously no one can help that he happens to be sharing a position with one of the best players in the country.
Anyone can read the disappointment in Zaire’s face as he sits on the sideline…with his helmet on…watching the offense succeed without him. It has to be horrible. Hopefully he can grow. Hopefully he can learn from Swoopes’ experience in a similar situation and turn this into positive experience. Kelly can do his part to try to keep Zaire focused and involved, but ultimately Zaire is the only person who can choose to use this experience and push himself to be the best he can be.
Sampson also tweeted that he’d be surprised if Zaire returns – “believe that bridge is on fire.” Really disappointing that Malik (or his camp) would leak that immediately after the announcement, not a team-focused act at all. To be clear, I’m sure he’ll be a good teammate and a good soldier the rest of the way – he is a good kid, after all, and it doesn’t do him any good with his next team to cause problems now. But still.
Are you so sure? He didn’t look like it on the sidelines after it was clear Kizer was going to finish the game.
Looking pissed off that you likely are watching your NFL dreams (and millions of dollars) fade in real time doesn’t make you a bad teammate. I think most people would be expected to respond that way. Now, if he starts causing problems in practice, that’s a different story.
Maybe if his mind was less on the NFL and more on playing a bit better, he wouldn’t be sitting on the sidelines. NFL should be the furthest thing from his mind right now, he can’t get there without being better on the field.
If you think the NFL is the furthest thing from any of these guys’ minds, you’re crazy.
Joe Schmidt is any of these guys or at least he was. Although I think he might have had NFL ambitions but realized along the way that he wasn’t cut out for it.
If you’re not good enough to see the field, all the NFL dreams in the world won’t get you there. All the self-confidence and bravado in the world doesn’t help you. My point is if Zaire wants to get to the NFL, he needs to put it out of his mind and work on the here and now–not just feel he’s entitled to get there and that getting benched for a player who produces is an insult. Worrying about how this affects his draft hopes is pretty pointless–you can’t get drafted if you don’t play, and you don’t play if you don’t produce.
I think Zaire will mentally check out, but hope he doesn’t.
All the kings horses and all the kings men won’t make Tranquil a competent safety at this level of competition, IMO.
Tranquil kind of reminds me of Mathias Farley, in that they both seemed lost in the responsibilities of playing safety, but played much more instinctively as a nickel DB. Not going to wow anyone in man coverage, but should be able to make plays. Hopefully the ACL injuries haven’t permanently hobbled him.
True.
i loved Farley though–he came up with some crucial plays every now and then. Last I heard he was doing well so far in the NFL.
Great analysis Brendan.
Looks like the quarterback situation has been clarified today. I really hope Malik accepts his role gracefully, I still think he can be an asset in certain situations. I hope we aren’t forced into a situation where we have to burn another redshirt year for Wimbush.
You’d think if anyone were to understand that he’d be one injury away from starting again, it’d be Zaire. Given what happened to him last year, he should recognize that. But if his parents are admitting to reporters that he’s already thinking about transferring, then it’s too late. I understand that for a player with NFL aspirations at the QB position, you’ve got to play to get drafted (unless you’re Matt Cassell). But when you come in, stink it up, and the other guy comes in and throws 5 TDs and runs for another, it should be pretty clear to you where you stand. I don’t know if Malik’s ego is a natural product or the result of parents, coaches, friends, “his camp” all blowing sunshine up his butt, but sometimes you’re just not the best guy. I have no ill will if he transfers after this year, but he better be ready to play on Saturdays this season. Otherwise he might as well transfer to Cincinnati to play linebacker.
With the given that Zaire hasn’t done a lot for me to assume the best intentions of him, I would say in his defense that we don’t know if his family specifically said he was going to transfer. We know Sampson contacted his family to see when he would graduate and therefore be eligible to transfer without penalty, and that his family told them. That doesn’t, in itself, prove that Malik has a foot out the door.
Sampson hasn’t said exactly what the contents of that conversation were, but it sounds like it was a lot more than “Yes, he’s graduating in December.” Some of this was on Twitter and some was on the Scout board, but piecing things together Pete is of the belief that Malik would have to have a significant change of heart to return next year.
Last time I checked no busters wore number 9.
I really hope that this is a rash reaction by MZ and that in time, he will accept his role and realize that he may very well get a chance to lead the team. I am hoping that he will get some significant playing time this Saturday – i.e., we are up by 14 or so in the first half and Kelly puts him in for a series or two. In other words, earlier than he would have normally done so, but still when it is clear that we are in control of the game. I think that would do wonders for his confidence.
On another note, I want to thank all the folks who run this site for starting it up. I was just on the old one and, though there is some OK stuff there, it pales in comparison to the quality of the articles here. The depth of analysis and quality of writing here is, in my opinion, far better here than any other ND website. So, guys – Thanks!
I would rather see Zaire come in for more series but only if ND is up by more. I want this 2QB thing put to bed.
Yeah, I think it’s already past the point of “in bed”. Even if up a couple scores in the first half, I don’t think they’re taking Kizer out- and nor should they at this point, he’s won the job and deserves it.
Especially after this perceived little outburst but Zaire and/or family, I don’t see Kelly rewarding or bending to that. And a couple series here and there aren’t going to satisfy him anyways, he (understandably) wanted to be the #1 guy. He’s not going to be that guy on this team as long as Kizer’s around.
Thanks for the kind words!
And I agree with hooks below, the QB rotation is dead. I don’t think Zaire will get in until the second half, maybe even the fourth quarter, with the game out of reach. I think he’s going to be a normal QB2 going forward.
I’m 100% confident that Zaire will accept his role on this team for this season. He’s a good kid, and besides, I’m sure he realizes that he’ll be looking at FCS schools next year if he’s problematic here this year. Nobody good is going to want a guy who’s a locker room problem.
Yep, it’s understandable now that he’s bitterly disappointed that after waiting 4 years it’s still not going to be his team, so I’m sure he’ll cool down and grudgingly fall in line and just bide his time until this season is over and he can look to go to another program that will make him the guy.
Hopefully he’ll also come to realize there are risks to a transfer. Didn’t work out too well for Golson or Keil.
Who was it that said that the ND’s QB transfers were like 1-11 for working out in the NFL? And the “1” was a player dating back to the 40’s…
(Hazy here so by all means, correct and claim this, thanks!)
Not me, and I’m not sure offhand, but they rarely work out all that well; for every Troy Aikman, there are twenty Matt Lovecchios. The ones that work are guys that typically transfer for non-football reasons, like Aikman – he left Oklahoma because he couldn’t stand Switzer, not because he couldn’t beat out the competition.
Kent Graham jumps out; after the younger (and option-perfect) Tony Rice passed him on the depth chart he transferred to Ohio State and became the starter there, then kicked around the NFL for a long time as a backup. That’s not too shabby.
Meant to include this too… Recent QB transfers:
– Everett Golson (FSU)
– Gunner Kiel (Cincy)
– Andrew Hendrix (Miami – OH)
– Dayne Crist (Kansas)
– Demetrius Jones (Cincy)
– Zach Frazer (UConn)
– Matt Lovecchio (Indiana)
– Zak Kustok (Northwestern)
Not exactly a murderer’s row. Kustok is probably the biggest success story, although Frazer did pretty well too. Kiel probably would be if he hadn’t had the painkiller incident and lost his starting job, and of course he still might be. Jones moved to linebacker for Kelly and the rest had mixed results at best in their new locales.
Yeah I agree Coyote–those guys are losers. They suck and should kill themselves.
Too much? I kid.
Zaire is making a big mistake in sharing that he wants out now. Clearly we all expected him to leave as a 5th year but there is still a whole season to go! Maybe you say it before the bowl game or whatever but now??? And what happens if Kizer goes pro after this year? It would be in Zaire’s best interest to stay – unless he thinks Wimbush would beat him out too.
I’m with KG on this (i’m sure we all are): “But when you come in, stink it up, and the other guy comes in and throws 5 TDs and runs for another, it should be pretty clear to you where you stand…. sometimes you’re just not the best guy.
And when this is glaringly obvious you would think it might give you a little humility even if at the appropriate time you might look for a better opportunity to play.
I’m sure he doesn’t think Wimbush can beat him out, but I’m also sure he doesn’t want to be in another quarterback competition with an uncertain conclusion. I think he and his family feel that, aside from fall camp and two games last year when he was QB1 and the time he missed with injury, he’s been disrespected every day since spring camp 2014 by not being named the starter. I think that’s what Sampson is referring to with the “believe that bridge is on fire” – it’s probably on fire in both directions, but for the Zaires this announcement was the last in a long string of slights. Zaire’s father commented on the ISD article about 2016 captains with “Once again, no respect.”
I’ve said this a few times in a few places now, but I completely understand his desire to transfer and I think it’s probably the smartest thing for him to do. But to air it out immediately… In contrast, Will Fuller never intended to return for his senior year. But when he was asked about, he said yes because he didn’t want it to become a distraction for his teammates. A simple “we’re not thinking about that right now” would’ve sufficed in answer to any questions about a transfer, but instead we got what we got.
Makes total sense. Do you think then Zaire would transfer “down” pretty far (not FCS of course) to miss any battle unlike what Golson did who transferred to FSU where there was a competition?
No, I think he’ll look for a substantial Power 5 program that has a quarterback problem. Some obvious targets are LSU, because they always have QB problems, Oregon, because they currently have a grad transfer QB and not much behind him, and Florida, because their pipeline is pretty dry too right now. Of those three I think Florida would make the most sense – I don’t think LSU or Oregon are great fits for his skills – but who knows what other suitors will emerge.
I wouldn’t be at all surprised if he lands at a top 20/25 program with a pretty near guaranteed chance to win the starting job. He’s smart, charismatic, and athletically gifted. Unfortunately for him, he’s just not as good as Kizer.
A transfer down the road to IU would basically be the perfect situation for him. They have a few ok QBs, but nobody with his pedigree, so there would be a “qb competition” but he would easily win it. Kevin Wilson has been an offensive guru, and he’s gotten some terrible QBs to the NFL. His system is basically a dream for Zaire too (pro-ish style, with some designed running/rollouts, but mostly an emphasis on passing and the deep ball). Plus, you play in a major conference, but against some pretty terrible competition, so you can pad your numbers. And Wilson has never been shy about letting transfers see the field immediately. If Zaire is looking for a 1 year shot to try to prove himself to the NFL, that wouldn’t be a bad place to look.
As an IU fan, I love this. I think it would work out okay for Zaire, too. Nate Sudfeld got drafted! I loved Sudfeld, but he wasn’t as dynamic as Zaire. Under Wilson, IU also has had generally competent OL, WRs, and RBs, and the offense lends itself to big numbers. Imagine Zaire closing out the season with a six TD first half against Purdue. It’s possible Zaire would want to go to a higher profile program rather than try to get the Hoosiers to 7-5 or whatever their ceiling is. But as we saw with Golson, those situations can be tricky, too. In Bloomington, the stakes are lower, and fans aren’t too critical of the QBs because the defense has been so questionable since forever.
Yeah, I’m also looking through Cream and Crimson glasses, as they are my #2 team as well. I think he could legitimately take that team to 8 wins (see the ND Texas game last year; he’d be facing that level of defense or worse for probably 7 or so games). With low expectations, I think he could really do well for himself.
Miami (OH)? Hendrix had a great year there, I imagine Zaire would tear it up for Martin. Also, hoping Martin starts to turn things around there, hasn’t shown much improvement so far.
I think it’s just a matter of time before things turn around for Martin.
He’s greatly improved recruiting at Miami (OH). I think (not 100% sure) the past couple of seasons they’ve been either #2 or #3 in the MAC in that regard. It’s just a matter of when that impacts on-field performance.
Agreed – if not for PJ Fleck he would probably be the top recruiter in the MAC right now. They’re also making incremental improvement that’s not showing up in the W/L record yet; their games are getting closer and they’re looking generally less inept. It wasn’t Ara Parseghian’s Miami program that he was taking over.
Great updates. Glad to hear. Can’t say I even remotely follow the MAC.
I go to Western Michigan, so I have to at least a little bit. With Martin at MiaOH I’ve been keeping track of them as well.
I had t seen that “no respect” comment by the parents. They may be feeding his anger.
I think it would have been a mistake to name either QB captain if Kelly truly didn’t know who would be the eventual starter.
question: what would prevent Kelly from naming Kizer as an added captain at any time?
His parents, much like Malik himself, are hyper-competitive – there was a feature on Malik in 2015 fall camp in one of the preview mags that talked about it. I think there’s sort of a hive mind there that believes unquestionably in any member’s competitive ability/superiority and builds a chip on the collective shoulder if that superiority isn’t recognized. That can be a good thing, of course, and Malik probably wouldn’t be where he is without that influence in his life. But, unchecked, it can cause problems too.
I think someone is a full-season captain or not at all. And QB1 doesn’t really need a C on his jersey to be a team leader, so I wouldn’t expect anything to change there.
To reinforce what you said, Tom Brady isn’t a captain this year.
And yet, that is weird.
If you’re superior, you demonstrate that. No amount of whining will prove it. Right now, the only ones who see this supposed superiority are the Zaire’s. Results matter. Wanna be QB1? Lead the team to touchdowns. Frankly, if this is how it is, let him transfer.
F-ing helicopter parents. You are not helping your kids. Just keep your mouth shut and let him grow up and be a man in his own right.
This is what I don’t get. I’ve never met Malik or his family, so I fully admit that all I have to go on is shots of him on the sideline and snippets being hinted at. But this sounds like there’s a huge sense of entitlement, and it certainly hasn’t been discouraged by the family. Again, this could be completely unfair, but given what we have to work with, he’s not winning any friends. Kizer, aside from his game play, seems to be the more mature, confident (as opposed to cocky), and most leader-like. I wonder how the locker room views all this.
From the profiles that I’ve read in the past, everyone in his family is hyper-competitive. Malik has said himself that he honestly believes he’s the best player on that field every time he steps on it, and I think that confidence is genetic. So I don’t think it’s so much a sense of entitlement as an unwavering self-belief coupled with frustration and feelings of disrespect when others don’t share the same belief. That can be helpful, obviously, and I’m sure it’s a big part of why Malik is where he is. But it can also, as E described it behind the scenes a couple of months ago, become a “murderously self-confident” outlook that can be a problem.
I think we’re near that tipping point but, again, because I also think Malik really is a good kid that he’ll rein it in and do what he has to do to burnish his resume and help his team this year. As far as “cocky,” I’ve also heard rumors that Malik is generally considered more likable and Kizer more, shall we say, aloof around campus, so I wouldn’t go so far as to put that label on #9. As for Kizer, well, elite QBs generally tend to have a generous dose of you-know-what-ishness to them. Kind of like fighter pilots and cardiac surgeons. I don’t think Tom Brady is a peach.
Well, Tom Brady went to Michigan, so…
Well, I feel better already! So…you’re telling me we have a chance? 13-1?
This article provided a decent look at why Kizer may have blown up in the past 9 or 10 months after being (relatively) unheralded coming out of high school: http://www.foxsports.com/college-football/story/how-deshone-kizer-ended-notre-dames-qb-battle-by-shredding-texas-090616
Good catch, thanks for sharing.
I was going to mention that article as well. It’s a good one.
Am I the only one perturbed that the “official” announcement that Kizer is starting is coming from Kizer? Anybody hear it from any other source?
He said Kelly told him that he was going to start and play the whole game; if Kelly didn’t actually tell him that, he’d be in the hottest of hot water and we’d probably know about it already.
So it’s not weird? QB controversy gets put to bed by the QB and not the coach. I mean, he left it to the underclassman (who did fabulous on the field!) to handle the message that he is now the starting QB. Strikes me as an odd move all around…
I can see Kelly wanting to do it with as little fanfare as possible. I agree with you, you would normally expect it to come from the coach first, but I think there’s a 0% chance that Kizer is going rogue here and I can see the logic for not making an official announcement about it.
Great write up Brendan. I love the perspective.
Thanks!
Just to add on – anyone remember that piece a couple of years ago somewhere by the woman psychologist or some such who analyzed body language (this was during the Malik-Golson competition)? She showed pretty convincingly how desperately unhappy MZ was, and how his fierce competitive streak had also become linked into not only a sense of genuine entitlement but genuine resentment.
I do think, in contrast to Eric and others, BK made the right move to let it play out for the first game – even if it cost us the game, which I do not think it did. He did owe Malik some more than strictly due fairness, if only wrt to the rest of the team.Now, I agree with most of the posters above – we can only hope Malik can keep it together enough to keep the QB2 spot.
In that respect, Brendan’s excellent analysis of what BK actually said is very pertinent. Coach speak is a lot like general/admiral speak, which I know a lot about, and Brendan you showed a real talent for sorting through the camouflage.
Thank you! I really appreciate that.
I don’t remember the piece you mention – I did a quick Google search but didn’t come up with anything there either. I’d be very interested to see that if you can remember any more about it. I also think Kelly did exactly what he had to do, both in being fair to Zaire and in letting the situation play out in front of the team so they would have buy-in one way or the other. Even Zaire’s best friends on the team have to understand now why Kizer is the starter. We can quibble over whether Zaire should’ve gotten the ball to start the second half – I’m OK with it and I think that drive gave the definitive answer to the quandary – but overall, the rotation had to happen. And I agree that it didn’t cost us the game; horrible defense cost us the game.
It’s from Her Loyal Sons and was done on this year’s QBs (there might have been a prior one, but this is the one I found). It includes a bunch of video for the full effect that I haven’t been able to watch yet.
Her Loyal Sons Body Language
Interesting stuff, thanks. It seems like a lot to extrapolate from a few short videos, but I do think there’s plenty behind body language research in general.
yes, but has Clearwall accepted the QB outcome??
I don’t know man – I’m starting to worry about him. Haven’t seen him around here since before the game. Come to think of it, has anyone ever seen Clearwall and Malik in the same room at the same time?
I think Clearwall enjoys the ability to drop F-bombs with impunity over at the old site. I know he floats back and forth, though.
Thanks, Gambit! There may have been a previous one, as I could have sworn there was something about Malik and Everett – but maybe not, the mind wanders, over here sitting on the Left Bank of the Seine on an absolutely lovely evening, or is it just too much… darn… champagne…