Why Nebraska’s Tommy Armstrong Jr. is out to prove to NFL scouts that he’s ‘more than just a quarter

[Suhperman]

Thank goodness we haven't had a bad or average QB in quite some time, then.

So true. There's hardly any room left in the trophy case due to all of the division and conference championships that have been won lately.

 

[Suhperman]

In fairness, you probably aren't in the "blame Tommy for everything" crowd. There are a few that have popped in, and unfortunately an internet conversation often results in people being pulled in and assigned positions they didn't actually take.

I don't hold Tommy blameless. He would probably be the first to tell you that he could have done better. But I get frustrated when people say that we were hamstrung by a guy that really wasn't as bad as he's made out to be. If he had improved even a little bit between his sophomore and senior seasons, he would have been very good. I think it's unfortunate that he got caught in a coaching transition, because he looked to be on his way to some pretty good things early in his career. That's not necessary blaming the staff, just acknowledging the situation. I don't think it's unreasonable to suggest that Tommy, as an individual player, probably would have been better off if the previous staff had remained. Whether or not that would have been good for the whole team is something that has obviously been discussed at length and doesn't need to be rehashed here.

Tommy was the same player as a senior that he was when he stepped on campus. As much as you try blaming that on everyone other than Tommy, it's on him. Or, best case scenario is he peaked in high school, and if that's the case no one is to blame. He was a good player, but regardless of staff NU was never going to win any hardware with him at QB.

 

[FullbackTrap]

You pass over guys like Gill, Frazier, Frost, and Crouch -- only statistically -- because offenses today are completely different than offenses of the 80s and 90s. Obviously, you know that. Martinez also owns Frazier and the others statistically.

It's the same idea that kept Frazier from getting the Heisman he deserved. He didn't have a bunch of gaudy statistics because he didn't throw the ball a lot and when he ran, he oftentimes pitched the ball, giving up all of any potential rushing yardage.

Tommy Armstrong is not even on the same planet as Gill, Frazier, Frost, and Crouch. There's probably around 15 quarterbacks in NU history that were better than Tommy. Maybe more. Tommy was a good quarterback. Not a great quarterback. And saying that doesn't mean anyone is "non-Tommy;" it means they are realistic.

Well said

 

[Pops]

I'm ready for the new era of Husker football.

should be fun

 

[djlhuskerfan]

I'm ready for the new era of Husker football.

should be fun

Yes!! Things have been pretty stagnant for quite a few years now!

 

[Huskerthom]

In fairness, you probably aren't in the "blame Tommy for everything" crowd. There are a few that have popped in, and unfortunately an internet conversation often results in people being pulled in and assigned positions they didn't actually take.

I don't hold Tommy blameless. He would probably be the first to tell you that he could have done better. But I get frustrated when people say that we were hamstrung by a guy that really wasn't as bad as he's made out to be. If he had improved even a little bit between his sophomore and senior seasons, he would have been very good. I think it's unfortunate that he got caught in a coaching transition, because he looked to be on his way to some pretty good things early in his career. That's not necessary blaming the staff, just acknowledging the situation. I don't think it's unreasonable to suggest that Tommy, as an individual player, probably would have been better off if the previous staff had remained. Whether or not that would have been good for the whole team is something that has obviously been discussed at length and doesn't need to be rehashed here.

Really only one. However he is so intent on blaming TA that he seems like many.

 

[Huskerthom]

people may disagree or call me crazy, but for all the juice we got out of tommy, i feel that he threw guys into injuries far too often (if that makes sense). in hindsight, as hard as he played, he wouldn't have been my starter at qb. it's 20/20, but if i was told we would lose 7 games in 2015, and have him hobbled towards the end in 2016, i would have gone with someone else if i was coach.
but i'm not coach.

They are called hospital passes. primarily balls thrown high which opens you up to getting hit while unprotected. Yes TA threw quite a few. Overall I liked his fire but he rarely seemed to hit players in stride. Especially on short over the middle passes.

 

[Huskerthom]

I agree stats don't tell the whole story, but wins and championships are the reason most people consider Frazier to be the best NU QB of all time. That speaks to Tommie's leadership but it also speaks to those teams having better talent top to bottom, especially in the trenches on both sides of the ball. Crouch undermined his own ability to lead the team by almost quitting when Newcombe was named the starter.

NU also had better overall teams when Taylor was the QB, but it's marginal. Individual stats aside, I give Taylor the nod for leading the team to more wins and 2 division titles.

I would take Turner over everyone else. I do not think it is an accident that we took the next step once he was the QB coach.

 

[Bballbilly]

We started a couple of different guys in 2009, then replaced a returning senior starter with a redshirt freshman in 2010. When our all-conference senior quarterback went down in 2012, we plugged in another redshirt freshman who started for 4 seasons with two different staffs. The current staff made no effort to find a juco guy (like Callahan did) because they liked what they had. They even had a guy that they had actually recruited heavily, and he had to transfer. We still have a guy on the roster that we beat Virginia Tech, West Virginia, and Ohio State for on the recruiting trail, but he was moved to WR (because 20 WR on the roster just wasn't enough). He was moved back to QB part time only after there were literally no other options.

As far as RBs go, I hope you are joking. How many RBs do they need? Newby, Cross, Wilbon, and even Adam Taylor (who many were drooling over out of high school) were all on the roster when this staff arrived. 3 of those guys were 4-star backs out of high school.




I understand it just fine, which is why I don't blame a quarterback or other highly recruited players for things like consistent assignment failures over the course of a season or more.

Curious. Why don't you hold a player accountable for consistent line assignment failures over the course of a year? I loved T.A. toughness, but he couldn't even handle a quiz for the q.b.s this last season. And season before he might not have bought in. Maybe it isn't all on the coach's. GBR!!!

 

[djlhuskerfan]

Curious. Why don't you hold a player accountable for consistent line assignment failures over the course of a year? I loved T.A. toughness, but he couldn't even handle a quiz for the q.b.s this last season. And season before he might not have bought in. Maybe it isn't all on the coach's. GBR!!!

I agree the issues that Tommy had and even a lot of troubles Martinez had were the result of inconsistent line play. They felt pressure even when not pressured.

 

[Deleted member 328]

I agree the issues that Tommy had and even a lot of troubles Martinez had were the result of inconsistent line play. They felt pressure even when not pressured.

Neither of them had the required football smarts to take us to an elite level of play. Combine that with an inability to consistently pass well and you have an absolutely average outcome at the QB position.

 

[ChitownHusker]

I always felt that Tommy was an upgrade over Martinez, and I still do. But in ranking him among Nebraska QBs, I think he belongs in the second tier. Tommy, like Taylor, was kind of enigma -- his play was the deciding factor in a bunch of games. In most of those games, he was the reason we won. But then, there were also a few games where he was the biggest reason we lost -- Iowa and Illinois from last year were probably the best examples of that. If you look back at our first tier QBs, guys like Frazier, Frost, Crouch, Steve Taylor, Turner, Ferragamo, and Tagge, those guys didn't lose many games at all, and they were never the biggest reason why we lost.

 

[huskrthill]

Curious. Why don't you hold a player accountable for consistent line assignment failures over the course of a year? I loved T.A. toughness, but he couldn't even handle a quiz for the q.b.s this last season. And season before he might not have bought in. Maybe it isn't all on the coach's. GBR!!!

Our players aren't the fastest or the strongest in the country, but they are still stronger and faster than almost every team we play. We need to have better effort and technique than our opponents, too. I don't see that from this team, and I feel that is less on the players than it is the coaches.

Take two math classrooms filled with kids of reasonably similar abilities. Give them the same books, the same amount of classroom instruction, but have two different people teaching them. One class excels, the other struggles. Is that a failing of the students or the teacher?

 

[Bballbilly]

I always felt that Tommy was an upgrade over Martinez, and I still do. But in ranking him among Nebraska QBs, I think he belongs in the second tier. Tommy, like Taylor, was kind of enigma -- his play was the deciding factor in a bunch of games. In most of those games, he was the reason we won. But then, there were also a few games where he was the biggest reason we lost -- Iowa and Illinois from last year were probably the best examples of that. If you look back at our first tier QBs, guys like Frazier, Frost, Crouch, Steve Taylor, Turner, Ferragamo, and Tagge, those guys didn't lose many games at all, and they were never the biggest reason why we lost.

Great post. Agree!

 

[Bballbilly]

Our players aren't the fastest or the strongest in the country, but they are still stronger and faster than almost every team we play. We need to have better effort and technique than our opponents, too. I don't see that from this team, and I feel that is less on the players than it is the coaches.

Take two math classrooms filled with kids of reasonably similar abilities. Give them the same books, the same amount of classroom instruction, but have two different people teaching them. One class excels, the other struggles. Is that a failing of the students or the teacher?

Maybe the worst analogy ever. LOL.