1 less QB in the room…
- Thread starter tjb74
- Start date
I was just
The other day, when we added another PWO QB (how many do we have now?), I was thinking that someone(s) is going to decommit. Because of his upside, this unfortunately was one I was hoping we could keep.
He never seemed to want to be here from the 2 interviews I saw so I guessed his name prior to opening the thread. He probably should have chosen Rutgers, less competition. I also questioned his skill set match compared to what Gus likes to see.
He was probably not going to be anything more than 4th string here the next couple of years.
Hope he finds a good fit for himself.
He was probably not going to be anything more than 4th string here the next couple of years.
Hope he finds a good fit for himself.
Yep, from his standpoint, our QB recruiting in the past month or so has to be a head scratcher. And, taking it further, he was FL 4A first teamer and signing as a PWO and the 4A second teamer is getting a scholly from us. Plus, we've added a number of additional PWO's. I'm sure it's hard for him to connect the dots so all we can do now is wish him the best and hope, if he develops like I believe he will, we don't have to face him in the future.
Last edited:
Actually he did, but he played the waiting game to get better offers and when the music stopped he didn’t have a chair. He seemed bitter about missing an opportunity with Pitt.
I mentioned in a post earlier that it didn't make sense for Jay Flash to sign with Ole Miss when they don't have a decent QB after their performances in the Spring game. Could it be that Kiffin and Lebby agree? Of course, it doesn't matter now but the question will be.....should we have offered Navarro's ship to Wydner (or wasn't that an option)? Also, notice how Ole Miss seems to be cherry-picking the UCF roster....interesting.
He was a walk on, I wouldn't call that cherry picking. More like taking leftovers.
I'd call the FL Class 4A QB 1 and Player of the Year cherry-picking since we've not had one of those since Culpepper....this year was very screwed up for recruits and this kid totally misjudged it. But that doesn't mean he's not potentially a big time talent. But enough conjecture. He's gone and we'll see how good he ends up being somewhere else, won't we?
Well he just went to the SEC so hes now a 5star transfer
Kind of weird he enters the transfer portal and then announces his transfer in the same day. Collusion, tampering? I liked his play, better than the ‘23 commit but I’m still high on TC so I don’t think this is that impactful other than a depth hit but man…little fishy no?
There are different rules for PWO's. They are not "official' until they start classes. He was committed but not yet an official UCF PWO, so he wouldn't have used the transfer portal. He was free to speak/work with any school until he started classes. But he did commit to us so, correctly, he decommitted first before committing to Ole Miss. BTW, I wouldn't be surprised if Gus and Chip got wind of this and the reason we signed 3 add'l PWO QB's in the past month or so.
Last edited:
I mean, good for him, but this is the award that leads to the Mr. Football award that Culpepper won.
Kemper Hodges wins Dairy Farmers 4A State Player of the Year
The Air Force Academy bound Hodges may soon earn the title of Mr. Football in Florida
They're both winners but unfortunately one will be at Air Force and the other will be at Ole Miss.I mean, good for him, but this is the award that leads to the Mr. Football award that Culpepper won.
Kemper Hodges wins Dairy Farmers 4A State Player of the Year
The Air Force Academy bound Hodges may soon earn the title of Mr. Football in Floridawww.wjhg.com
My point is that winning awards in high school does not make them great college football prospects. I tend to trust our coaching staff on this more than awards committees or internet nerds.
Trust is a strong word when it's our first year with Chip and second with Gus. I want to as well but, in my mind the jury's out and this will be a good case in point to follow. I would like us to move away from the significant reliance we've had on the portal the past 2 years. That requires recruiting the best HS players we can find and coaching them up. This guy seemed to fall into that group.
Ok, then I respect our coaches opinions more than ours due to their experience and expertise. I hope they recruit the best college prospects and not necessarily the best HS players. Not every player can make that transition no matter how successful they are in HS.
Jury is still out?
This staff just secured the best recruiting class in UCF History.
The Portal is the wave of the future, You are not going to bring in High School kids and have them 4 or 5 years anymore. I think 5 years from now the portal will outweigh the high school class in importance. Let other schools bring em in and build them up for a year or 2 then you reap their rewards.
Also Heupel was crushing it in 2019 according to recruiting rankings and Texas is always a top 5/top 10 recruiting program.
Until the best recruiting class in UCF History starts winning championships, the jury is out.
LOL!
Well...since Gus was hired AFTER the 2021 recruiting season was over...and has been here for just 1 football season...as season that saw the most injuries to STAR players that UCF Football has ever experience in their history...(including to star QB, star RB, star DT, another promising DT, star WR, etc...), and still managed to beat the Florida Gators...thats a very solid start.
You sound like someone who can never enjoy the journey and is only interested in a specifc destination.
Yep, and one year does not a trend make so I'm looking for that to continue. Like I mentioned earlier, we had 8 of the top 100 in FL (until Wydner left so now we have 7). So, you're right, that's a good start. Just would have liked to keep it at 8.
That would be quite a change and I'm not sure it's best for CFB. Before that happens look for the NCAA to tighten up and even rein in on free agency. A good balance of the two would probably be best.
I am a little worried about the offense to be honest ..talent(Keene) was the excuse last season but if we see GOL type ball again this fall then I will question if talent will go to waste
I'm not worried as Gus is now bringing in his guys (JRP, TC) along with a hopefully improved Keene (although he will probably never be what Gus wants, seems smart enough to improve some). There are still interesting options in the portal if he wants to replace Navarro and Wydner.
The recent walk-ons (except for Hansel, who is so hot right now) are camp arms.
Sure he dreams of being the next Kedon Slovis, but most likely ends up as a practice guy or a sideline guy in a green jersey.
I'm not questioning him leaving because he never seemed to want to be here. Did everything except call us "this place"
This is the part of cfb and the portal that needs fixing. There needs to be more commitment from the players so they can develop. Same with coaches. This free agency style only benefits the blue bloods imo
I know that kid. I taught him his freshman year. He is a good kid, or was then. He's doing what is best for him, or what others are advising. Don't be an _hole. Not that you were trying to be, just took it that way. Through him, I am starting to see how today's college football is different than when I played. I wish him the best, TC is probably the guy of the future and he saw that and it would be stupid for him to sit around here on the bench if he thinks he has a shot at playing somewhere else. Honestly, I think he should have looked Sun Belt or FCS, but I don't know if he had offers.
Nice take. I think we're in an era where players might be going to places that are *too high* with the intention of becoming developed by being around high-level facilities, and top notch players and coaches, and then transferring to a place where they can come in an start.
The goal of every player is to 1) start, 2)perform well, 3)rack up stats, and 4)win games. If you can't do 1) or if you can do 1) but can't do 2)-4), you need more time to develop. What better way to do that than join an SEC team.
If you can't do 1-4, simultaneously, you can't get drafted.
Last edited:
He had a lot. But I think the ones he really wanted ended up only giving walk on. Not sure why he didn’t accept some of the others.
<iframe width="340" height="170" frameborder="1" src="https://n.rivals.com/content/prospect_cards/264327"></iframe>
