Badgers Football 2019

[pacopete4]

Coan (2017): Four-star prospect by Rivals … three-star recruit by 247 Sports, ESPN and Scout. Was listed as 247’s 20th ranked pro style QB, 31st overall. Ranked 13th on Rivals for pro style.

 

Mertz (2019): Four-star recruit by 247 Sports, ESPN and Rivals. Is listed as the 247’s 3rd ranked pro style QB, 5th overall. Ranked 2nd on Rivals for pro style.

 

While Coan was a nice recruit, he’s not a Mertz recruit. I don’t like the message it sends to other top recruits. Kids want to play right away these days and not letting a kid as talented as Mertz get after it right away may affect us ever again nabbing a kid of his talent.

[wildcat83]

I understand that POV. I'd just rather Mertz get beat by Michigan in 2019, if it meant he learned something to beat them in 2021 when it is likely to matter more.

 

It could also go the other way quickly though. QB psychology is a touchy thing. He takes a beating early on and he might not ever progress the same. More than any other position in any other sport, slowly working your way in ala Rodgers with the Packers just seems to be the right approach. Even look at Lawrence with Clemson last year.

 

The reports out of camp were that Mertz was struggling until recently. To me, let him get fully comfortable.

[wildcat83]

While Coan was a nice recruit, he’s not a Mertz recruit. I don’t like the message it sends to other top recruits. Kids want to play right away these days and not letting a kid as talented as Mertz get after it right away may affect us ever again nabbing a kid of his talent.

 

Clemson didn’t have an issue doing it with Lawrence and he’s the best QB recruit to come out of high school in probably a decade.

[pacopete4]

While Coan was a nice recruit, he’s not a Mertz recruit. I don’t like the message it sends to other top recruits. Kids want to play right away these days and not letting a kid as talented as Mertz get after it right away may affect us ever again nabbing a kid of his talent.

 

Clemson didn’t have an issue doing it with Lawrence and he’s the best QB recruit to come out of high school in probably a decade.

 

Clemson’s also winning Natty’s while the Badgers just came off an 8-win season.

[wildcat83]

The other odd aspect of this discussion is the 4 game red shirt rule. If that’s not in place Mertz gets the 4th quarter last night. Now they didn’t want to burn a game with a quarter of mop up duty just in case he red shirts and even then if he’s as good as billed he might go pro after 3 anyways making it a moot point. That rule changes how kids are used early for sure.

[homer]

Coan (2017): Four-star prospect by Rivals … three-star recruit by 247 Sports, ESPN and Scout. Was listed as 247’s 20th ranked pro style QB, 31st overall. Ranked 13th on Rivals for pro style.

 

Mertz (2019): Four-star recruit by 247 Sports, ESPN and Rivals. Is listed as the 247’s 3rd ranked pro style QB, 5th overall. Ranked 2nd on Rivals for pro style.

 

While Coan was a nice recruit, he’s not a Mertz recruit. I don’t like the message it sends to other top recruits. Kids want to play right away these days and not letting a kid as talented as Mertz get after it right away may affect us ever again nabbing a kid of his talent.

 

I think starting him when he hasn't been better than the other guy doesn't send a good message either.

[LouisEly]

Coan was 19-26 for 199 with 2 TD and 0 INTs, QBR of 74.7. What exactly is there to complain about?

 

For reference, Trevor Lawrence - at home against Georgia Tech - was 13-23 for 168 with 1 TD and 2 INTs for a QBR of 70.6.

 

Every QB, no matter how good, is going to make a few bad throws a game.

[JosephC]

I get all things are never "equal", but I don't understand why Mertz is not starting. I am watching Hank Bachmeier, a true Freshman for Boise State the entire game and he has Boise very much in that game on the road at Florida State. Mertz was probably a higher recruit (I'll admit I didn't look) than Bachmeier with a better coach and supporting cast. I don't understand why talent doesn't win out and you don't allow Mertz to grow from being on the field.

 

Because all the QBs were given an equal opportunity in practice and Mertz was the third best QB.

 

Rivals top 100 from 2015: #41 = Blake Barnett

Rivals top 100 from 2019: #42 = Graham Mertz

Just because the guy was a top recruit, none of that should matter until he steps up and earn the job.

[MrTPlush]

I bet Mertz is way less bothered by not starting than any fan. Which is good because then he understands he isn’t good enough yet and needs to work harder. He seems like a smart kid that is patient and wants to keep working harder. He knows his time will come.

 

I just think fans care more than he does.

[OnTheBlack]

I didn’t mean to start a Nelson debate, other than the two early coverages he played pretty well. I was simply pointing out that one guy made two mistakes in the first few minutes of the first game and flew totally under the radar, while another made two mistakes in the same time frame and 4 people posted they were done with him. Fair or not Coan will be under a gigantic microscope this year. Coan screams game manager to me right now. If a team like Michigan stacks the box and shuts down or limits Taylor, then we’ll see if he can make enough plays with his arm. If not, people will be screaming for Mertz and the upside of that arm talent.

 

The OL looked shaky at times. They said there were 10 TFLs and that was early 4th quarter I believe. They have a wealth of options there, so you have to think that gets ironed out one way or another. With the two walk ons starting at G there are some pretty high recruits waiting in the wings. You have to think someone steps up, it’s not like the DL last year where they literally ran out of bodies.

 

Speaking of the DL, the biggest weakness last year was a strength last night. Those young guys along the front were STOUT. We’ll see how they hold up against a power run game in the Big 10, but that front 7 looked great last night.

 

Point taken on Nelson. I agree, lets wait and see how Coan responds. I don't know if he's just that bad at throwing the deep ball, or just a little amped up and trying to aim the ball a bit too much.

 

The OL looked great....most of the time. This was a team with a lot of guys who were ranked very high. But they also had WAAY too many missed assignments and you can't afford to do that and beat really good teams.

[OnTheBlack]

I get all things are never "equal", but I don't understand why Mertz is not starting. I am watching Hank Bachmeier, a true Freshman for Boise State the entire game and he has Boise very much in that game on the road at Florida State. Mertz was probably a higher recruit (I'll admit I didn't look) than Bachmeier with a better coach and supporting cast. I don't understand why talent doesn't win out and you don't allow Mertz to grow from being on the field.

 

 

You're conflating who's the most talented and who's the best.

 

Lets use baseball terms. Keston Hiura was more "talented," than just about anyone playing 2nd since he was drafted, but that doesn't mean he was better.

 

Why do you think Chryst is choosing to go with the worse player? How do you think that helps him?

 

Occams Razor-All things being equal, the simplest answer is the correct answer.

 

 

Simplest answer=Coan is better right now than Mertz. Mertz may not even be the 2nd best QB on the Badgers roster at this moment.

 

Maybe that changes in a month. One of the top recruits ever started as a backup for a team in South Carolina last year. So...lets be just a little patient and stop pretending we KNOW which QB is actually better and just simply trust the guy who's proven to be an exceptional College Football Coach.

[OnTheBlack]

While Coan was a nice recruit, he’s not a Mertz recruit. I don’t like the message it sends to other top recruits. Kids want to play right away these days and not letting a kid as talented as Mertz get after it right away may affect us ever again nabbing a kid of his talent.

 

Clemson didn’t have an issue doing it with Lawrence and he’s the best QB recruit to come out of high school in probably a decade.

 

Clemson’s also winning Natty’s while the Badgers just came off an 8-win season.

 

Really? Come on. That's got nothing to do with your initial argument. And Wisconsin was 13-1 with one 6 point loss in the B10 title game the year before. You're cherry picking arguments here.

 

"Kids want to play right away these days." When didn't they?

Alabama, the team that's dominated recruiting for most of Saban's time rarely starts Freshmen and they're getting elite recruits.

 

 

If you're a real fan of Wisconsin Football, I don't see how you can argue with a straight face that you should just inherently start the higher ranked prospect over the veteran who performed better during the Spring and in Training Camp.

[LouisEly]

Hunter Johnson yesterday: 6-17, 55 yards, 0 TD, 2 INT. Split time with a former walk-on.

 

Minnesota needed a 4th quarter comeback to defeat FCS South Dakota State at home.

 

Despite five takeaways, Nebraska struggled to beat South Alabama at home.

 

Lots can happen, but after week 1, 3 losses looks like the floor for UW.

[HiAndTight]

Some of UW's best seasons were kicked off with an iffy first couple of games. I wouldn't read much into this one good or bad.

 

 

 

Well, I don't know what there'd be bad to read into it....unless you really try(and I'm pretty sure I can find one poster who could do that).

 

But the Badgers have historically been a slow starter. I don't think anyone's reading TOO much into it, but I guess it depends on what you think is too much.

 

This team has some studs, is solid across the board(though the secondary needs to play better).

I'm not reading "bring on Alabama, Clemson, Georgia," into this, I'm reading, "this is a deeper and more complete team than we previously thought and they should be competitive.

 

 

Wasn't this the year that Plush had us maybe missing our first Bowl Game? I'm also reading that's almost definitely not gonna happen now!

[MrTPlush]

Wasn't this the year that Plush had us maybe missing our first Bowl Game? I'm also reading that's almost definitely not gonna happen now!

 

No, I most definitely did not. I slated them at 8-4 with a wiggle room of one game either way most likely.

 

Someone did say (not sure if they flat out predicted it) they could miss a bowl game...or having a losing record. I did outline how that could happen. I did not predict it though.

 

Not sure how bullish I will get after the first week. The Badgers played a terrible team. It was a team that lost 7 in a row to end the year in 2018 and were hyped up on some offensive genius from D2 taking over the offense. Became obvious real quick the hype did not match results. Blowing them out was still a good sign because they should destroy teams like that...but it isn’t like they dominated someone super relevant. How much to consider the struggles of other teams? Well...Nebraska was big in my eyes because they are a team that was getting hyped on potential...they sure didn’t show that.

 

It was a stellar first week for the Badgers overall season prospects. Not sure you could ask for better results than what they got.

[yourout]

Wasn't this the year that Plush had us maybe missing our first Bowl Game? I'm also reading that's almost definitely not gonna happen now!

 

No, I most definitely did not. I slated them at 8-4 with a wiggle room of one game either way most likely.

 

Someone did say (not sure if they flat out predicted it) they could miss a bowl game...or having a losing record. I did outline how that could happen. I did not predict it though.

 

Not sure how bullish I will get after the first week. The Badgers played a terrible team. It was a team that lost 7 in a row to end the year in 2018 and were hyped up on some offensive genius from D2 taking over the offense. Became obvious real quick the hype did not match results. Blowing them out was still a good sign because they should destroy teams like that...but it isn’t like they dominated someone super relevant. How much to consider the struggles of other teams? Well...Nebraska was big in my eyes because they are a team that was getting hyped on potential...they sure didn’t show that.

 

It was a stellar first week for the Badgers overall season prospects. Not sure you could ask for better results than what they got.

 

It was me and like you I said it was possible but unlikely.

[homer]

Badgers played three true freshmen against USF. They'll play you if you're good enough.

[LouisEly]

Badgers played three true freshmen against USF. They'll play you if you're good enough.

Keeanu Benton might be the most physically impressive and imposing true freshman I've ever seen.

 

Legit 6'4", 315, and it's in the legs, upper body, and arms, not a big gut. A true freshman, and he's already a dude.

[PeaveyFury]

Not sure how bullish I will get after the first week. The Badgers played a terrible team.

 

Are they a bad team because they're actually bad, or because a good Badger team dismantled them? Afterall, Vegas thought enough of USF to make the line close-ish, and there were posters here that had this one as a possible loss.

 

I guess we won't know for several weeks, but is it not possible that USF looked like a bad team as a result of how well the Badgers played against them?

[MrTPlush]

Not sure how bullish I will get after the first week. The Badgers played a terrible team.

 

Are they a bad team because they're actually bad, or because a good Badger team dismantled them? Afterall, Vegas thought enough of USF to make the line close-ish, and there were posters here that had this one as a possible loss.

 

I guess we won't know for several weeks, but is it not possible that USF looked like a bad team as a result of how well the Badgers played against them?

 

Well I guess if you read the entirety of my post you would see I essentially would answer yes to both of your questions. I said both the Badgers were really good and USF appears to be pretty bad.

 

The Vegas line is a big nothing burger as far as meaning something. That is like Top 25 rankings in college sports for the preseason. It is all based on assumptions and hype. Remember how Wisconsin was a CFP favorite last year...yah, that turned out about as far from the truth as possible. That USF team was massively hyped because of a D2 offensive genius they brought in.

 

Week 1 can be real fluky. Wisconsin looked like a team that could be solidly in the Top 10...I don't know if I really want to get that bullish with expectations. The Michigan game is pretty much the pinnacle of their season. It is quite winnable being a home game. Win that game and a one or two loss year isn't crazy, thus Top 10. Unless you think they can win at OSU, but basically they need a split with those two to really have an elite season.

[HiAndTight]

Not sure how bullish I will get after the first week. The Badgers played a terrible team.

 

Are they a bad team because they're actually bad, or because a good Badger team dismantled them? Afterall, Vegas thought enough of USF to make the line close-ish, and there were posters here that had this one as a possible loss.

 

I guess we won't know for several weeks, but is it not possible that USF looked like a bad team as a result of how well the Badgers played against them?

 

 

Well they have to be bad if the Badgers beat them that badly.

 

There's a lot of talent USF. Strong had won 17 of his first 19 games until they got hit by injuries last year(A lot of injuries) and folded down the stretch. They get a lot of top recruits who transfer from other Florida schools for whatever reason.

 

I have this feeling that had Ohio State or another team beat them as badly as we did, some would be saying, "look what they did to a good USF team."

 

You can't really say if they're good or bad right now. To do either is just trying to fit a preconstructed narrative.

[HiAndTight]

Badgers played three true freshmen against USF. They'll play you if you're good enough.

Keeanu Benton might be the most physically impressive and imposing true freshman I've ever seen.

 

Legit 6'4", 315, and it's in the legs, upper body, and arms, not a big gut. A true freshman, and he's already a dude.

 

 

He's gotten quite a bit bigger in just the last few months. Added about 15-20 pounds, probably 4 or 5 of solid muscle.

 

I agree I don't know that I remember a True Freshmen looking as physical and athletic as he does.

[HiAndTight]

Wasn't this the year that Plush had us maybe missing our first Bowl Game? I'm also reading that's almost definitely not gonna happen now!

 

No, I most definitely did not. I slated them at 8-4 with a wiggle room of one game either way most likely.

 

Someone did say (not sure if they flat out predicted it) they could miss a bowl game...or having a losing record. I did outline how that could happen. I did not predict it though.

 

Not sure how bullish I will get after the first week. The Badgers played a terrible team. It was a team that lost 7 in a row to end the year in 2018 and were hyped up on some offensive genius from D2 taking over the offense. Became obvious real quick the hype did not match results. Blowing them out was still a good sign because they should destroy teams like that...but it isn’t like they dominated someone super relevant. How much to consider the struggles of other teams? Well...Nebraska was big in my eyes because they are a team that was getting hyped on potential...they sure didn’t show that.

 

It was a stellar first week for the Badgers overall season prospects. Not sure you could ask for better results than what they got.

 

 

They hired a well respected offensive coach. That "terrible team," finished 10-2 and in the top 20 the year before last year and was ranked high again last year when they started off 7-0 before being killed by injuries.

 

But where was this coach getting all this hype? Honestly, how much had anyone on here really heard about their offensive coordinator before the previews for the game this past week? And do you think maybe it had nothing to do with the coaching and maybe the Badgers edge rushers destroying their tackles?

 

Also, it didn't become really apparent really fast to me. To me, it looked like the coach had a pretty good scheme to get some guys open for some big plays. They just happened to miss with a drop and an overthrow. Similar to a couple of shots the Badgers took. But the Badgers were able to fight through that.

 

That USF team was massively hyped because of a D2 offensive genius they brought in.

 

Yeah, or again, maybe it was because they'd been a really good team before injuries derailed their season last year and they were bringing in some highly regarded recruits?

 

They talked about the Offensive Coordinator during the game. You're drastically overstating the impact a D-2 coach had on Vegas and the amount of hype a team that had recently gone 10-2 without him was getting.

[PeaveyFury]

 

You can't really say if they're good or bad right now. To do either is just trying to fit a preconstructed narrative.

 

Exactly.

[homer]

Badgers played three true freshmen against USF. They'll play you if you're good enough.

Keeanu Benton might be the most physically impressive and imposing true freshman I've ever seen.

 

Legit 6'4", 315, and it's in the legs, upper body, and arms, not a big gut. A true freshman, and he's already a dude.

 

He is enormous.

 

 

Jim Leonard had some really good things to say about him after the South Florida game. They really need some help on that D Line. Hope he keeps it up.