Is McEntee this team's Easley?

[Nostical]

At a time when we were lacking for playmaking receivers, our best one sat on the bench for too long, overlooked and underevaluated by a coaching staff with preconceived ideas. McEntee seems cut from the same mold. As we struggled as a team with Quarterback accuracy, the trick shot artist sat on the bench as an afterthought. Perhaps he wasn't ready (or still isn't), but I have a feeling we'll soon be repeating the same line from the Easley days--"what was Edsall thinking?"

 

[ZooCougar]

It's totally possible. But I found it interesting that Phil Steele projected Nebrich to start.

 

[Husky7793]

I'm hoping the same thing. I think JM gets the start Thursday night and and the coaches stay with him until we go up three touchdowns. If that happens I think McCummings gets some playing time and Nebrich stays ready. On the other hand, if things don't go well for JM by the end of the first half, I think Nebrich gets his chance. Same scenario for game 2, etc.

 

[jbdphi]

I certainly hope so. I was always a big fan of Endres, the kind of ball he threw and the accuracy he had (and that sounds a bit like the way that McEntee has been described). I never understood Edsall's preference for Frazer who supposedly had superior "leadership" skills but just wasn't as good.

 

[uconnbill]

I liked Endres as well but he showed zero leadership by getting booted off the team not once but two times. The last time was for good.

My hope is that the best quarterback wins whether it is a true freshman or a walk on quarterback

I certainly hope so. I was always a big fan of Endres, the kind of ball he threw and the accuracy he had (and that sounds a bit like the way that McEntee has been described). I never understood Edsall's preference for Frazer who supposedly had superior "leadership" skills but just wasn't as good.

 

[Nostical]

Actually Bill, Endres showed very good leadership as the team loved his easy demeanor in the huddle and ability to shake off adversity-- the same traits being ascribed to McEntee. What Endres showed zero of was judgment, and it ended up hurting the team. It fact, in retrospect, it was a miracle that without him we made it to Phoenix.

 

[jbdphi]

Actually Bill, Endres showed very good leadership as the team loved his easy demeanor in the huddle and ability to shake off adversity-- the same traits being ascribed to McEntee. What Endres showed zero of was judgment, and it ended up hurting the team. It fact, in retrospect, it was a miracle that without him we made it to Phoenix.

Not sure you can distinguish between leadership and judgment since one typically requires at least some of the other. As much as other players may have liked him, that isn't showing leadership by itself. Still, I loved the way Endres read the field and delivered that ball.

 

[Kgun7]

I certainly hope so. I was always a big fan of Endres, the kind of ball he threw and the accuracy he had (and that sounds a bit like the way that McEntee has been described). I never understood Edsall's preference for Frazer who supposedly had superior "leadership" skills but just wasn't as good.

In coach speak ... the definition of "leadership" is a QB who has a good understanding of the playbook and can make the right reads and adjustments. You can be the most accurate passer in the world ... but if you can't properly read a blitz and call the proper protection you will be running for your life.

 

[jbdphi]

From watching the games, I always felt that Endres did a better job of reading the middle of the field and had better vision along with better accuracy. His only fault (other than the chronic) was a tendency to hold on to the ball for longer than he should have but I even felt like he was getting better in that regard as well until he got booted from the team.

To get back to the original question though, I have no idea if McEntee does as good a job of reading the field as Endres did and can therefore emerge as the next big walk-on success for UConn. Once again, I certainly hope so.

 

[jpm25]

In coach speak ... the definition of "leadership" is a QB who has a good understanding of the playbook and can make the right reads and adjustments. You can be the most accurate passer in the world ... but if you can't properly read a blitz and call the proper protection you will be running for your life.

Not the complete definition of leadership in my book. Cody Endres was not a leader.

 

[ZooCougar]

From what I have heard, JM is more like Cody on the field. I liked the way Cody played, I wish he had kept it together. That was a total waste of some good potential.

 

[CTHUSKY74]

I certainly hope Johnny Mac is the next Easley. There can't be anything more fun than a walk-on coming in and restoring the passing game. I'm not expecting him to be a hand-off QB who manages the game well (the euphamism for the QB's that can't pass but avoids the sack well). It would be great if he could re-establsh the passing game and set up the run game. I also would love it if we could play more than one QB effectively and give other teams more to game plan for.

 

[CTHUSKY74]

By the way, I think JM's quotes gave a good indication of why he didn't play before. He didn't have as good an understanding of the playbook as the other QB's and probably never got the sense from the coaches that he was really competing for the starting job. He got that chance with the new staff and so far has made the most of it. It would be a great story for him to win the job and would feel very similar if he could deliver like Marcus did for us.

 

[freescooter]

I think it would be a great story if Johnny Mac could perform well. But I get a sense that there is some revisionist history going on with respect to Easley. For that matter the same can be said for Endres. Easley played in something like 5 games as a junior and did very little to distinguish himself. I think he even played a couple as a sophomore, again doing little to make people think he would be a potential NFL player. I think it was more a case where he figured out how good he could be. And he was a walkon, so it wasn't like he turned down offers from Auburn and Oregon. If anything, Edsall probably deserves a little credit for getting him and using him until he had a breakout game. And Endres apparently had ongoing problem. Remember he "lost" the starting job in 2009 due to an injury, not by his play. In 2010 he effectively took himself out of the competition with his behavior. He had to have failed at least one previous test, who knows exactly when, before his suspension just prior to the 2010 season. He almost immediately won the job back when he returned, only to lose it again when he tested positive again and was suspended. Hard to blame Edsall for making the "wrong" choice when Endres kept self-destructing.

 

[epark88]

If Johnny Mac can be our version of Hunter Cantwell, we will easily match - and most likely exceed - our win total from last season.

Plus I'm getting the sense that the rest of the offense wants him to take the reins, in particular Mo Petrus...

 

[Gate97]

I thought this Johnny Mac quote from Dez's blog last week was pretty insightful:

"I knew the reason I wasn't playing," McEntee said. "It was because I didn't know the offense as well as the other guys. That's what I worked on, getting the offense down and knowing the right reads."

Maybe a situation where he knew he wasn't getting a fair shot so he didn't invest in learning the playbook / reads inside and out.

 

[Husky68]

I think it would be a great story if Johnny Mac could perform well. But I get a sense that there is some revisionist history going on with respect to Easley. For that matter the same can be said for Endres. Easley played in something like 5 games as a junior and did very little to distinguish himself. I think he even played a couple as a sophomore, again doing little to make people think he would be a potential NFL player. I think it was more a case where he figured out how good he could be. And he was a walkon, so it wasn't like he turned down offers from Auburn and Oregon. If anything, Edsall probably deserves a little credit for getting him and using him until he had a breakout game. And Endres apparently had ongoing problem. Remember he "lost" the starting job in 2009 due to an injury, not by his play. In 2010 he effectively took himself out of the competition with his behavior. He had to have failed at least one previous test, who knows exactly when, before his suspension just prior to the 2010 season. He almost immediately won the job back when he returned, only to lose it again when he tested positive again and was suspended. Hard to blame Edsall for making the "wrong" choice when Endres kept self-destructing.

I get the Easley "doing little to make people think he would be a potential NFL player" meaning "the people you are referring to are guys like me, not HCRE". Until the spring game other than him going to lame ol' Bunnell (Harding High alum !) wouldn't have even remembered he was on the team. But "HCRE should have known". HCRE gets to see all these players up close and personal, here is a guy with NFL speed, good hands, can block and finds himself behind a skinny freshman (Difton) for the 1st game of his Red shirt Senior year! If Easley drops the pass in the 5th game of the season instead of taking it for a touchdown, or fumbles the ball, he is on the bench next to Shoemate and now practice teaching for an elementary school job in Bridgeport. Remember Easley wasn't a 7th round pick or a UFA who gets it done, he was a 3rd round pick while only being good enough to have heavy playing time for Uconn (with no Julio Jones starting ahead of him) starting after his 5th game of his red shirt senior year. Other than the QB at USC who plays in the NFL now who sat behind Leinert and never played, can't think of another player so overlooked in college who seems to be the real deal.

"Edsall probably deserves a little credit for getting him and using him until he had a breakout game." is the revisionist history.

 

[freescooter]

H68
As a sophomore, Easley essentially played well enough to earn a spot in the 2-deep. Not so bad for a walk-on. Somebody must have seen something in his play. Easley played in 12 games in 2008. And he did exactly what that anyone remembers? Caught 4 passes for 94 yards. So it isn't like he didn't get out of the locker room. I believe he also played in 9 games in 2007, though only had 1 catch. You guys act like Easley watched the games on tv from the Student Union until midway through 2009. It simply isn't the case. He just never played well enough until that point to be considered anything more than a 5th reciever. Aside from a desire to bash Edsall, when you look at the record, it simply doesn't support the "Easley was somehow intentionally snubbed" line of thought. So here's a walkon who played in 21 games as a sophomore and a junior. Caught a few passes, so it wasn't like he was only in on blocking downs or as a decoy. Sometimes players just get it at some point and suddenly live up to their potential. Apply that to McEntee and maybe it was because he didn't really work that hard at learning the playbook. When he saw an opportunity, he decided to apply himself more and low and behold he suddenly improved.

 

[jbdphi]

Freescoot, there are lies, damn lies and statistics. I'm sure Easley got on to the field and played in the games as you describe above. However, my understanding was that he was almost exclusively put in to be a blocking WR since he had the size and build to deliver on that. Also, not saying this was Edsall's fault, but name a QB that we had who could actually deliver a somewhat accurate deep ball in those years? Putting the non-performance on Easley in the first few years is disingenuous. It wasn't until they actually got Easley on the field at the same time as Endres (in the Pitt game) that anyone realized the potential that those two had together. After that game and the ensuing game with Louisville, "people" started to notice that this kid was really something and he got more targets, etc. Even Frazer, for all his throwing faults, realized that Easley was his best bet and so an NFL draft choice was born. To attribute that to Easley finally "applying himself" doesn't feel right to me.

Once again, not blaming Edsall for overlooking Easley though. I don't remember anybody else knocking down the kid's door to get him a scholarship. Everybody overlooked him. As for Johnny Mac, I have no idea why a kid from CA decided to walk on to the CT football team, but if he is our best option for a somewhat effective passing game, I'm all for it and wouldn't blame Edsall one bit.

 

[Nostical]

One reason Mo Petrus would want Johnnie back there is because Mo is dating his sister Melissa. Shoemate has to want him as well, since they played together in High School. But so do the other guys based on his play and demeanor.

 

[Jarhead_1775]

Freescoot, there are lies, damn lies and statistics. I'm sure Easley got on to the field and played in the games as you describe above. However, my understanding was that he was almost exclusively put in to be a blocking WR since he had the size and build to deliver on that. Also, not saying this was Edsall's fault, but name a QB that we had who could actually deliver a somewhat accurate deep ball in those years? Putting the non-performance on Easley in the first few years is disingenuous. It wasn't until they actually got Easley on the field at the same time as Endres (in the Pitt game) that anyone realized the potential that those two had together. After that game and the ensuing game with Louisville, "people" started to notice that this kid was really something and he got more targets, etc. Even Frazer, for all his throwing faults, realized that Easley was his best bet and so an NFL draft choice was born. To attribute that to Easley finally "applying himself" doesn't feel right to me.

Once again, not blaming Edsall for overlooking Easley though. I don't remember anybody else knocking down the kid's door to get him a scholarship. Everybody overlooked him. As for Johnny Mac, I have no idea why a kid from CA decided to walk on to the CT football team, but if he is our best option for a somewhat effective passing game, I'm all for it and wouldn't blame Edsall one bit.

For the record, I'd crawl across the country through raw sewage for Caroline Doty...

Hehe no idea if that's why he came here, but best of luck to the kid. He seems like a real stand up guy with some real potential.

 

[freescooter]

jbdphi,

I'm not putting it all on Easley. But I don't buy the Edsall missed this incredible talent, either. If he only played because we lost 4 recievers to injury, then performed as he did, that would be one thing. But it isn't true. the facts are that he was not offered a scholarship by any D1A program out of Bunnell High, but Edsall took him as a walk-on. Then Easley showed enough, as a walk-on, to earn a spot on the 2-deep as a sophomore and again as a Jr. He didn't do a whole lot in either role, but again, it wasn't like he watched the games on tv from the parking lot. Edsall saw enough to put him on the field. No question part of it was that there were issues with the quarterback. Nobody who has watched UCONN football over the past few years would ever deny that. And in part it could well have been that he got more catchable balls in 2009. But again, if you look at his career, he played in 9 games in 2007, 12 in 2008 and 13 in 2009. If memory serves, he earned a scholarship for the 2009 season as well. Somebody decided to put him in the games...He had a breakout season, probably for a combination of reasons. But I just don't get the Edsall bashing related to this kid when he was on the field almost every game from his sophomore season onward.

 

[Husky68]

H68
As a sophomore, Easley essentially played well enough to earn a spot in the 2-deep. Not so bad for a walk-on. Somebody must have seen something in his play. Easley played in 12 games in 2008. And he did exactly what that anyone remembers? Caught 4 passes for 94 yards. So it isn't like he didn't get out of the locker room. I believe he also played in 9 games in 2007, though only had 1 catch. You guys act like Easley watched the games on tv from the Student Union until midway through 2009. It simply isn't the case. He just never played well enough until that point to be considered anything more than a 5th reciever. Aside from a desire to bash Edsall, when you look at the record, it simply doesn't support the "Easley was somehow intentionally snubbed" line of thought. So here's a walkon who played in 21 games as a sophomore and a junior. Caught a few passes, so it wasn't like he was only in on blocking downs or as a decoy. Sometimes players just get it at some point and suddenly live up to their potential. Apply that to McEntee and maybe it was because he didn't really work that hard at learning the playbook. When he saw an opportunity, he decided to apply himself more and low and behold he suddenly improved.

Easley was in on running plays. He was an ace blocker. I don't have copies of each game, but let me ask you, if he caught 4 passes in 2008: 1. How many were thrown his way? 2. If it was a lot he must have dropped a lot and with Edsals hook he wouldn't have gotten in much, 3. If they were losey passes then how could he catch them? Oh I know, he just couldn't get open even with Tyler's rocket arm and Brown running wild to take the heat off the passing game, hardly. Your stats make my argument.

Here are the outside receiver stars in 2008

Moore 27 reciepts for 273
Hern. 17 receipts for 261
Even used a defensive back Butler for 9 catches for 123 yards"
Kanuch had 7 receipts for 69 yards.
Easley had 4 receipts for 94 yards.

So in 2008 Easley had a third of the top receivers yardage on 4 catches. Sounds to me like an explosive receiver averaging 23 yards per catch. Again this was no slow possession receiver, Easley is big and fast BY NFL STANDARDS.

It is very simple. In football a wide receiver; if you practice for 4 years and 4 games you do not in the 5th game of the 5th year finally "get it", you "had it" much before but the judge of "it" was asleep at the switch (being HCRE). Just let me know that the Easley saga is not so unique, give me a few examples in the history of college football where a WR "develops" like this. Just to show it was Easley and not a temporary coming of Peyton Manning, how did Uconn passing do in those 9 games in 2009 where Easley was the man vs 2010 with same QBs and other receivers as were there in 2009?

If HCRE could miss so bad on Easley, find it not so hard to imagine him missing on Johnny Mac. Everyone can talk all about the shortning of the play book if not a mobile quarterback, I say how short is the playbook if the QB can't even hit an open receiver (never mind one that is covered)? Would HCRE recognize the talent of the Boise State 6' 1" 191 lb QB Kellen Moore if he walked on to Uconn as a freshman. If HCRE was still here, he'd probably have Kellen alternating with Johnny Mac running the scout team with Box going with the 1's.

You can MAYBE Easley/Johnny Mc didn't work hard or learn the playbook, I can MAYBE that HCRE was a bad evaluator of WR and QB talent.

 

[freescooter]

I'm sure I could go back and find other recievers who produced more as seniors...Actually, I expected ot see someone, not necessarily Easley, make a significant improvement when Joe Moorehead came aboard as OC. He had a kid who did a very similar thing, went from something like 10 catches in his career to 85 catches in a season as a senior. How about Blair white of the colts? Freshman year didn't see the field. Soph 3 Catches. Jr. he had a huge break out season with 43 catches, but only 5 after the first 5 games. I have no doubt there are many others. In fact, it happens a lot with recievers. There are also some who come from D-3 schools, Jerry Rice of course, but currenty Pierre Garcon of the Colts, which suggests that guys improve sometimes. But if you want to insist that he should have been Larry Fitrzgerald but for Edsall's subborness, have at it. Just eplain to me why nobody offered him out of high school? Apparently every coach in the country is incompetent since they all missed his talent? Isn't it possible that he needed a good deal of polish before becoming a complete reciever?

By the way, Johnny Mac is the one who said he didn't work that hard to learn the playbook. His comment, not my speculation.

 

[Husky68]

I'm sure I could go back and find other recievers who produced more as seniors...Actually, I expected ot see someone, not necessarily Easley, make a significant improvement when Joe Moorehead came aboard as OC. He had a kid who did a very similar thing, went from something like 10 catches in his career to 85 catches in a season as a senior. How about Blair white of the colts? Freshman year didn't see the field. Soph 3 Catches. Jr. he had a huge break out season with 43 catches, but only 5 after the first 5 games. I have no doubt there are many others. In fact, it happens a lot with recievers. There are also some who come from D-3 schools, Jerry Rice of course, but currenty Pierre Garcon of the Colts, which suggests that guys improve sometimes. But if you want to insist that he should have been Larry Fitrzgerald but for Edsall's subborness, have at it. Just eplain to me why nobody offered him out of high school? Apparently every coach in the country is incompetent since they all missed his talent? Isn't it possible that he needed a good deal of polish before becoming a complete reciever?

You ask Peyton Manning and he’ll tell you he didn’t study the Tenn. playbook enough or work hard enough, you ask Demarcuss Russell and he’ll tell you he studied the LSU playbook plenty and was a workout warrior. More about the character of the person you’re asking than what they actually did.

I’m not explaining missing Easley’s capabilities for SO LONG very well . Never said Easley had lot of offers, or was NFL talent day one. Just that it took a loooooooooooooooooooooooooooooong time for a coach who was desperate to find receiver talent (enough to use a corner back in key passing situation) to find a 3rd round caliber NFL WR. Jerry Rice was a star at his school, Easley was a scrubb. Where was Easley on the WR depth chart game 1 up to game 5 of his senior year? Then he put it together, but not just put it together, but put it together to be a 3rd round NFL WR draft choice

Box plays in 2010 over Johnny Mac, then new coach comes in, gives 4 QB’s a run at the job and apparently Box came in last and Johnny Mac may win the job. And not because of change in offensive strategy, as Johnny Mac DOESN’T FIT the new mobile QB strategy. Johnny Mac maybe our Kellen Moore, just like Easley was our Julio Jones.

I’d call Easley a super duper miss by HCRE, Johnny Mac is a super miss with the potential to be super duper.