re: Can a Team Win a National Championship with a “Game Manager” at Quarterback?

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Whether they're an NFL player is irrelevant.

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I disagree. Last year’s Michigan team was a perfect example. They were a run first and play defense team. They also had a NFL level quarterback. They didn’t put the offense on his shoulders much. But in their toughest games they had to lean on him. And they did against Ohio State. Without a good quarterback, Michigan would have lost that game. His stat line:that game:

16/20; 80%; 148 yds; 1 TD, 0 INT; 158.66 rating

He made throws when he had to. Michigan beat Ohio State by six points.

Against Alabama he was also lights out. With a mid level QB Michigan loses that game too. He took the game over in the fourth quarter; he was just the best and most cerebral player on the field. His stat line.

17/27; 63%; 221 yds; 3 TD, 0 INT; 168.38

Michigan beat Alabama by a touchdown. Michigan was NOT a passing team. Until they had to be. Against Ohio State and Alabama, arguably their two toughest games of the year, McCarthy shined. Without him, they likely would have lost both those games.

That is what I mean by needing a high quality quarterback that can make plays when it counts.

Because even the team with the best defense and best running back in the country last year would have lost two games with a garbage quarterback.

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There have been a lot of national championships won by quarterbacks that never sniffed the NFL. But that seems like a long time ago. College football has trended after the NFL where ultimately a team’s success is tied to the quarterback position.

Do you think it is still possible to win a national championship with a “game manager” QB?

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What the frick do you think Drunkin Bennett was?

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What the frick do you think Drunkin Bennett was?

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A guy who was a more prolific passer than Jayden Daniels in the SEC.

Stetson Bennet had 6,990 passing yards in his last two seasons at Georgia.

Jayden Daniels had 6,725 passing yards in his two years at LSU.

Are you saying that Jayden Daniels was a game manager too? Damn, some of you guys do have high standards.

This whole thread is Greg McElroy erasure.

Going way back, Josh Heupel at OU was a very accurate and not dynamic QB. I don’t think OU could’ve won without him and he never caught on in the NFL

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This whole thread is Greg McElroy erasure.

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He was a good QB. That was back when the game wasn't dumbed down so much and a smart guy running the offense was a bonus.

And sometimes, the only physical skill you need to do is throw a screen to Julio.

It's crazy how much the game has changed since those years.

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He was used very conservatively. He still won them some games they would not have won with a lesser quarterback.

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which ones?

McCarthy was 10th in the Big10 in passing attempts per game with just 22 passing attempts per game. I don't care how high he was drafted (which most agree was too high), he was used in game manager role at Michigan.

This is just not a horrible statline for 2017.

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2017: 2463 yards, 60.0 comp%, 16 TDs, 2 INTs

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An 8/1 TD to INT ratio is pretty elite. And he wasn’t exactly running an air raid offense.

There were 13 quarterbacks drafted in 2018. Danny Etling was one of them. He was seen as an above average quarterback with potential NFL talent. Great? Naw. But better than average. Not what I consider a “game manager”.

I think I have a very different idea of what a “game manager” is than most of you. I consider a “game manager” to be a quarterback who has to be a game manager because his limited talent doesn’t allow him to make all the throws on the field; not that he isn’t asked to because of the offense he is in. That is why I changed it to “potential NFL talent level”.

I think in today’s game, to win a national championship you have to have a talented QB who can read defenses and make clutch throws without turning the ball over, even if they aren’t asked to very often. Because eventually, like Michigan had to last year against Ohio State and Alabama, they will be forced to throw the ball some in order to win.

And then you have people who just have preconceived notions of what a player is. For example, multiple people in this thread have called Stetson Bennet a game manager. All while a look at the state show he had more passing yards in two seasons than did Jayden Daniels.

Greg McElroy laughs in Alabama.

He should have stayed another year in school. Draft stock would have been much higher. But ol Cardale is doing all right for himself these days