Official UCF Sports Thread - Basketball: NIT Bid? Football: Spring Practice Underway

[tiderulz]

Rumor is fields from UGA is considering transferring to UCF. 5*

i dont see that happening. Hear in GA, i hear OSU and Oklahoma as the realistic landing spots

[nymets1]

Why would Fields come here when they have Mack, just signed Gabriel and what if Milton came back? I was kinda hoping we would get Jarvis Brownlee but we be fine at Cornerback.

[Knightro]

I don't know how much I buy the Fields rumor, but I can say that someone with a really solid source found out A) Fields wanted to transfer and B) he would either consider or people close to him really want him to consider UCF over three weeks ago.

The rumors of a major QB transfer considering UCF surfaced a few weeks ago and we found out it was Fields today.

[Knightro]

Why would Fields come here when they have Mack, just signed Gabriel and what if Milton came back? I was kinda hoping we would get Jarvis Brownlee but we be fine at Cornerback.

Fields is better than Mack and Gabriel by a pretty significant margin.

The odds are more likely Milton never plays again than they are he returns to his old form.

Make no mistake, if Fields came to UCF (and I'm not at all convinced he would) he would be the no questions asked, no competition necessary starter.

[tiderulz]

I don't know how much I buy the Fields rumor, but I can say that someone with a really solid source found out A) Fields wanted to transfer and B) he would either consider or people close to him really want him to consider UCF over three weeks ago.

The rumors of a major QB transfer considering UCF surfaced a few weeks ago and we found out it was Fields today.

again, grain of salt. But here in GA, rumors that Fields might leave have been going on since early November. He has not been happy with lack of playing time and knowing that Fromme is going to stay thru his senior year, that means that he wouldnt get a chance to start until his senior year. So he was already starting to look around.

[Knightro]

My snap reaction to the Fields transfer rumors.

I think someone close to him, his father or someone else in his immediate inner circle, is very interested in him transferring to UCF. Is Justin himself interested? I have no idea.

My guess is that Ohio State or Oklahoma will land him in the end, but if his biggest goal is to step right in and be the unquestioned starter somewhere without having to compete, I feel very strongly that he would get that at UCF.

Ohio State has 4* Tate Martell and 4* Matthew Baldwin on their roster.

Oklahoma has 4* Austin Kendall, 4* Tanner Mordecai, 3* Connor McGinnis on their roster.

Would Fields beat all of those guys out? Probably. But it would at least be a competition. Those guys are all talented.

At UCF he would be "battling" a kid with 2 career starts and a 3* true freshman as the only other scholarship kids. AKA Fields would be the guy from day 1 moment 1 no questions asked.

[Knightro]

And if it's a matter of being in the best place to make the NFL, Ohio State hasn't had a QB drafted in the first two rounds of the NFL draft since 1982.

Oklahoma's had two first rounders at QB and UCF's had two first rounders at QB in the last 20 years.

[UCFJayBird]

Why would Fields come here when they have Mack, just signed Gabriel and what if Milton came back? I was kinda hoping we would get Jarvis Brownlee but we be fine at Cornerback.

To put this into persepective, Fields is the 2nd highest rated QB in the last 20 years by the 247 Composite, he had a .9998 rating. He's the 6th highest rated player overall in the last decade. The only reason he's not starting right now at Georgia is that Fromm is a stud himself. As much as I like Mack and was impressed with his play in the CCG, Fields would be favored to win the starting job by a wide margin if he did transfer. Gabriel is going to redshirt barring injuries (he could still play in up to 4 games and RS though so we might see him in a few games anyway).

My snap reaction to the Fields transfer rumors.

I think someone close to him, his father or someone else in his immediate inner circle, is very interested in him transferring to UCF. Is Justin himself interested? I have no idea.

My guess is that Ohio State or Oklahoma will land him in the end, but if his biggest goal is to step right in and be the unquestioned starter somewhere without having to compete, I feel very strongly that he would get that at UCF.

Ohio State has 4* Tate Martell and 4* Matthew Baldwin on their roster.

Oklahoma has 4* Austin Kendall, 4* Tanner Mordecai, 3* Connor McGinnis on their roster.

Would Fields beat all of those guys out? Probably. But it would at least be a competition. Those guys are all talented.

At UCF he would be "battling" a kid with 2 career starts and a 3* true freshman as the only other scholarship kids. AKA Fields would be the guy from day 1 moment 1 no questions asked.

Don't forget Oklahoma also just signed 5* Spencer Rattler. That's a lion's den to walk into and hope to start Day 1. Ohio State makes more sense if he wants to start right away (though still a tough battle), and take this with another grain of salt, but a 5* WR recruit for Georgia said he knows where Fields is going and it's not OSU.

I'd say the odds on Fields coming here are pretty slim, but the fact we're even mentioned is amazing.

[tiderulz]

And if it's a matter of being in the best place to make the NFL, Ohio State hasn't had a QB drafted in the first two rounds of the NFL draft since 1982.

Oklahoma's had two first rounders at QB and UCF's had two first rounders at QB in the last 20 years.

UCF doesnt run an NFL offense right now though.

[Knightro]

UCF doesnt run an NFL offense right now though.

I don't think that matters at all anymore.

Oklahoma certainly doesn't run an NFL offense either and Mayfield just went No. 1 overall and teams are falling over themselves to try and hire Lincoln Riley as their head coach.

The only thing that matters anymore when it comes to evaluating QBs is their traits. Do they have enough arm? Are they naturally accurate? How quickly and effectively can they process information? How are they as leaders?

The offense they came out of is basically irrelevant at this point.

[tiderulz]

UCF doesnt run an NFL offense right now though.

I don't think that matters at all anymore.

Oklahoma certainly doesn't run an NFL offense either and Mayfield just went No. 1 overall and teams are falling over themselves to try and hire Lincoln Riley as their head coach.

The only thing that matters anymore when it comes to evaluating QBs is their traits. Do they have enough arm? Are they naturally accurate? How quickly and effectively can they process information? How are they as leaders?

The offense they came out of is basically irrelevant at this point.

it absolutely matters. you have QB's who have never taken a snap under center, taking years to develop in the NFL. if you go to an offense that is more pro-style based, your adaption is much quicker. Look at the QB's drafted. Look at Lamar Jackson, who's team cant run 10% of the plays because he never developed into a passer because they didnt run even close to a pro-style offense.

[UCF]

The NFL is quickly changing to meet the strengths of their incoming QB’s. The pro-style offenses aren’t as dominant as they once were.

One thing I did notice when Milton went down is Mack took a few snaps under center. I remember being shocked when it happened.

[tiderulz]

The NFL is quickly changing to meet the strengths of their incoming QB’s. The pro-style offenses aren’t as dominant as they once were.

One thing I did notice when Milton went down is Mack took a few snaps under center. I remember being shocked when it happened.

unless a strength is running. NFL QB's cant handle the beating you take when you run. causes injury and shortens their careers

[UCFJayBird]

So some additional info on the original Fields rumor from a few weeks ago: Fields was apparently interested in transferring before Milton got hurt. The idea may have been that Fields would sit out KZ's senior year and then take the mantle then. But there's also talk Fields may get a waiver to play next year because of some racist comments from teammates or something to that affect. Not sure if that is true or changes things, but interesting food for thought.

[Knightro]

it absolutely matters. you have QB's who have never taken a snap under center, taking years to develop in the NFL. if you go to an offense that is more pro-style based, your adaption is much quicker. Look at the QB's drafted. Look at Lamar Jackson, who's team cant run 10% of the plays because he never developed into a passer because they didnt run even close to a pro-style offense.

It really does not matter at all. The shotgun thing is so overblown it's not even funny.

Baker Mayfield played his entire career in an all shotgun, air raid, misdirection based offense and looks awesome as a rookie. Patrick Mahomes played in the same offense and was even more wild and undisciplined than Mayfield and is going to win the NFL MVP this year. Jared Goff never took a snap under center and is about to make his second consecutive all-pro team. Deshaun Watson played in a straight up spread with a TON of designed running plays and is one of the best QBs in the NFL.

Josh Rosen played under Jim Mora at UCLA and literally played in the single closest thing to an NFL offense you could get and looks absolutely horrific as a rookie.

Lamar Jackson isn't a good passer because he lacks natural accuracy and the ability to quickly and effectively read defenses. That's why he struggles as a passer. Not because of the offense he played in at Louisville.

Offenses don't matter AT ALL. Traits are the only thing that matter.

[tiderulz]

it absolutely matters. you have QB's who have never taken a snap under center, taking years to develop in the NFL. if you go to an offense that is more pro-style based, your adaption is much quicker. Look at the QB's drafted. Look at Lamar Jackson, who's team cant run 10% of the plays because he never developed into a passer because they didnt run even close to a pro-style offense.

It really does not matter at all. The shotgun thing is so overblown it's not even funny.

Baker Mayfield played his entire career in an all shotgun, air raid, misdirection based offense and looks awesome as a rookie. Patrick Mahomes played in the same offense and was even more wild and undisciplined than Mayfield and is going to win the NFL MVP this year. Jared Goff never took a snap under center and is about to make his second consecutive all-pro team. Deshaun Watson played in a straight up spread with a TON of designed running plays and is one of the best QBs in the NFL.

Josh Rosen played under Jim Mora at UCLA and literally played in the single closest thing to an NFL offense you could get and looks absolutely horrific as a rookie.

Lamar Jackson isn't a good passer because he lacks natural accuracy and the ability to quickly and effectively read defenses. That's why he struggles as a passer. Not because of the offense he played in at Louisville.

Offenses don't matter AT ALL. Traits are the only thing that matter.

guess we arent going to agree on this.

[Knightro]

guess we arent going to agree on this.

It's just antiquated thinking. This isn't 2000. Hell this isn't even 2010.

The line between what the most successful NFL offenses run and what high end college programs run has become increasing blurred to the point of basically being one and the same.

If you watch a Chiefs or Bears game, they essentially run the same college style spread offense that teams like Oklahoma, Ohio State and Texas Tech run. There's less designed QB runs in the pros, but everything else is basically the same spread concepts.

Hell, the Chiefs and Bears (#1 and #6 in PPG) are literally running shotgun on EIGHTY PERCENT of their snaps.

There are 5 main reasons why QBs fail in the pros.

1. They are inaccurate.
2. They lack processing ability and/or processing speed.
3. They have a weak arm.
4. They are injury prone or lack intangibles (leadership, toughness, character)
5. Some combo of all of the above.

A guy like Lamar Jackson isn't failing in the pros because he ran some gimmicky offense in college. He ran that gimmicky offense in the college because he didn't have the capability to run something more sophisticated that required tougher reads and more accurate passing.

It's all about traits man.

[tiderulz]

guess we arent going to agree on this.

It's just antiquated thinking. This isn't 2000. Hell this isn't even 2010.

The line between what the most successful NFL offenses run and what high end college programs run has become increasing blurred to the point of basically being one and the same.

If you watch a Chiefs or Bears game, they essentially run the same college style spread offense that teams like Oklahoma, Ohio State and Texas Tech run. There's less designed QB runs in the pros, but everything else is basically the same spread concepts.

Hell, the Chiefs and Bears (#1 and #6 in PPG) are literally running shotgun on EIGHTY PERCENT of their snaps.

There are 5 reasons why guys fail in the pros.

1. They are inaccurate.
2. They have a weak arm.
3. They lack the processing speed.
4. They are injury prone or lack intangibles (leadership, toughness, character)
5. Some combo of all of the above.

A guy like Lamar Jackson isn't failing in the pros because he ran some gimmicky offense in college. He ran that gimmicky offense in the college because he didn't have the capability to run something more sophisticated that required tougher reads and more accurate passing.

It's all about traits man.

its not antiquated thinking. If one a QB's strength is running, he will NOT be running in the NFL. If you base an offense on RPO where the QB is running more often, that is not a QB that will play or last in the NFL. you mentioned Goff, he also didnt look like an NFL player his rookie year, because of his lack of anything resembling a pro system in the NFL.

[Knightro]

its not antiquated thinking. If one a QB's strength is running, he will NOT be running in the NFL. If you base an offense on RPO where the QB is running more often, that is not a QB that will play or last in the NFL. you mentioned Goff, he also didnt look like an NFL player his rookie year, because of his lack of anything resembling a pro system in the NFL.

A few things...

"RPO" stands for run pass option. What that means is that the play call is a hand off to the running back. At the snap the offensive line run blocks (drives forward rather than falls back) and the quarterback, based on what he reads right after the snap, has the option of giving the ball to the back as designed or pulling the ball away from the running back and throwing a quick pass before the offensive line has become ineligible men downfield. There is no real option for the quarterback to run. The choices are A) hand off or B) hit a quick pass before the OL gets too far down the field. This has become a VERY popular scheme in the NFL this season.

What you seem to be talking about is the read option. The read option is where the QB has the choice between either handing the ball off or pulling the ball out of the running back's belly and running the ball himself. This type of offense was popularized by Vince Young at Texas in the mid 2000s.

BUT....

No one actually runs a straight read option offense in the pros or in college anymore. It's sprinkled in a lot more in college, but it's only run like 5-8 times a game v. 60 straight plays of it.

NFL teams will run read options maybe once or twice a game as a change of pace.

And Goff didn't struggle as a rookie because he played in an air raid in college. He struggled as a rookie because A) he was a rookie and *most* rookies struggle and B) he was saddled with one of the least imaginative coaches in the history of the NFL in Jeff Fisher. A guy way past his prime.

Had Goff been paired up with an actual modern NFL play caller like McVay as a rookie, he would have been just fine.

[tiderulz]

its not antiquated thinking. If one a QB's strength is running, he will NOT be running in the NFL. If you base an offense on RPO where the QB is running more often, that is not a QB that will play or last in the NFL. you mentioned Goff, he also didnt look like an NFL player his rookie year, because of his lack of anything resembling a pro system in the NFL.

A few things...

"RPO" stands for run pass option. What that means is that the play call is a hand off to the running back. At the snap the offensive line run blocks (drives forward rather than falls back) and the quarterback, based on what he reads right after the snap, has the option of giving the ball to the back as designed or pulling the ball away from the running back and throwing a quick pass before the offensive line has become ineligible men downfield. There is no real option for the quarterback to run. The choices are A) hand off or B) hit a quick pass before the OL gets too far down the field. This has become a VERY popular scheme in the NFL this season.

What you seem to be talking about is the read option. The read option is where the QB has the choice between either handing the ball off or pulling the ball out of the running back's belly and running the ball himself. This type of offense was popularized by Vince Young at Texas in the mid 2000s.

BUT....

No one actually runs a straight read option offense in the pros or in college anymore. It's sprinkled in a lot more in college, but it's only run like 5-8 times a game v. 60 straight plays of it.

NFL teams will run read options maybe once or twice a game as a change of pace.

And Goff didn't struggle as a rookie because he played in an air raid in college. He struggled as a rookie because A) he was a rookie and *most* rookies struggle and B) he was saddled with one of the least imaginative coaches in the history of the NFL in Jeff Fisher. A guy way past his prime.

Had Goff been paired up with an actual modern NFL play caller like McVay as a rookie, he would have been just fine.

RPO stands for RUN PASS OPTION? wow, i had no idea. As i said, when you base the RPO where the QB runs more. yes, a QB can run the ball in an RPO, it is not always handed off to the RB.

I'm probably older than you, watched a lot more college football than you. I'm done talking about this, like i said, we just wont agree.