Daily briefing: On QBs, the Huskers and Mark Stoops
Ivan Maisel’s “Daily Briefing” for On3:
A reassuring QB stat
Just for fun (really, I have a life), I looked over the release announcing the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award watch list (63 names, and I’ll confess I may not watch all of them). I wanted to get a sense of how pervasive transfers have become. Keep in mind that only seniors and upperclassmen set to graduate are eligible and that quarterbacks are more prone to transfer because only one gets to play. I added up 41 one-school guys (led by Sam Howell of North Carolina and Matt Corral of Ole Miss) vs. 22 transfers (D’eriq King of Miami and Jack Coan of Notre Dame). That’s a 65/35 ratio, which I find reassuring. Honestly, I thought there would be more transfers.
Nebraska keeps getting clobbered
The news that Nebraska is being investigated by the NCAA for allowing analysts to coach players is kind of like getting a jaywalking ticket. Everyone else is doing it, and you stop me? It’s also one more light shining on how Nebraska has gotten no traction in the Big Ten. The Huskers, in 10 years of conference play, are 43-42. They haven’t developed a rival yet. Witness this season’s schedule — the only game that attracts attention is the September 18 trip to Oklahoma to commemorate the 50th anniversary of one of the greatest games in the sport’s history. Nebraska went to the Big Ten for financial security. The Huskers have paid a premium to gain it.
Mark Stoops’ ‘D’ at Kentucky deserves notice
Pointing out that a Stoops knows how to coach defense is a tad redundant. But there’s a statistic about the Kentucky Wildcats over the past three seasons that explains how Mark Stoops has the second-longest tenure among SEC coaches, behind Nick Saban. In the past three seasons, Kentucky has allowed 40 points in regulation only once. That’s tied with Georgia for best in the SEC. By comparison, Saban’s Crimson Tide is seventh in the league, having allowed 40 points five times (and gone 2-3 in those games; the last team to beat Alabama when scoring fewer than 44 points is Auburn, 26-14 in 2017).
Selected stories from Ivan Maisel:
The coach and the senator: The long friendship between Nick Saban and Joe Manchin
Celebrate the ‘super seniors,’ who should mean great things in 2021