The Current QB Situation

Good post. When it comes down to it, Potts is getting a second chance. He won’t waste it. He will be ready for the Aggies and hopefully he can gain confidence for the Jayhawks after that.

When Sheffield gets back: Leach is going to have a real conundrum and it depends a lot on how the team responds to Potts being back in the saddle. And that, I think, depends on if Potts used his time off to study tempo. I wouldn’t be surprised to see Leach open up the QB battle and let them go each week fighting for the starting role. I also wouldn’t be surprised if Leach gave each playing time during the game, not to the point of rotating by series, but perhaps rotating out to the bench player if one drive doesn’t end in points (going with the hot hand).

Really, with Leach, would anything surprise you?

I kind of suspect Potts will come out playing at a level we as tech fans havent seen in a very long time. Hell, he can move decent (or did in HS), maybe he runs one in from 20 yds out! If not, Sticks should be the guy when he comes back. If Potts shows us something great, yes gentlemen, we have a battle. I don’t know about Leach pulling a QB because of one bad drive though. If it were me, I would pull a QB after their second pick in any game, or their 3rd hard hit in the back field. Maybe even if they look confused AKA Potts against NM. Interested to see how this one pans out.

Unless Potts’ synapses are completely shorted out, he knows what he has to do to get his job back. Being named as the main man back in the spring may have subconsciously made him ease off a bit. Both QBs have made mental mistakes, it’s just that Potts’ tend to end up as turnovers while SS’s tend to end up as sacks.

KW, I’ve got some Harley parts laying around. What do you need and what do I get?

The way I see it, Potts has been sitting on the side lines watching Sheffield win the games and get the glory. Now he gets his shot back and to prove that he deserves the #1 position, he’s got to tear the Aggies a new one. It might get bloody on that field. God, I wish I could see it.
I think the Aggie team morale is pretty low and they are going to come into the game fearing the inevitable.
The Stadium is going to be rocking.. I bet less there are less than 5% Aggie Fans at that game. Our reputation for being "Rowdy" has pretty much scared off all but the Diehards.
I’m Backing Up Potts 100%. Show ‘em who’s Boss! WRECK ‘EM!

Hopefully we all understand that when those of us make comments about preferring Sticks to Potts, you understand that we aren’t saying Potts is a spare. …far from it. He is as tough as we have seen and we all will be 100% in for him and the offense. We now have a large enough sampling of both that I can live without second guessing MIke’s decision once Sticks is healthy…..but I have to say that #1 is the leader in the clubhouse.

will be devastated if somehow Sheffield isn’t the starter when he is healthy again. He is a better gamer, you can just see it by the way the team plays with him out there. I really believe we have seen all we need to see out of Potts, and he just plain and simply is not the right guy for us. He is a solid kid, a good athlete, but Sheffield needs to be the leader and starter for this team. Potts just made too many mistakes, tried to throw passes that weren’t there, and had no pocket prescense/mobility at ALL. Sheffield also seems to recognize when to change the play to a run much more effectively. Sheffield, IMO, is such an obvious choice and is just much, much better in every aspect of a QB.

The ONLY thing I think Potts will never really have is leadership. I think some people are leaders and some people are follows. Maybe a genetic thing, who knows. But I know that if you don’t already have it in you, it doesn’t ever really happen. Look at Tony Romo. Talented kid, zero in the leadership department. I think the same about Potts. Talent upon talent, but he doesn’t get to maximize it because he doesn’t make the guys around him better. Sheff has that intangible thing that makes everyone, even the defense according to the team, play better/harder.

Like Old School said, I don’t think Potts is a spare at ALL. I think he’s good with a chance to be really good. But I happen to think Sheffield is great and on the cusp of being special.

But if I’m Mike Leach, once both my quarterbacks are healthy again, I don’t hesitate for one second to name Sheffield my starter again.

My guess Leach won’t replace Potts or Doege for that matter, if either one of them is efficent in running his offense. It just doesn’t make sense to replace a productive QB in the middle of the season. And I think Sheffield out played Potts in the spring game. We all know how he sparked the offense when he replaced Potts in the New Mexico game and how that carried over to the KSU and NU games.

I fully expect Potts just as effective as he was early in the season. He was leading the nation in pass offense. I just hope he begins to step into his throws and shows a little scrambling ability this Saturday.

Wreck’em Tech!

Leach has had the team vote for captains each week, he may leave it up to the team as to who gets to start for them… one of the qb’s is gunna be captain on a consistant basis, and i doubt they’d vote sticks captain and have him ride the bench

no one knows what the situation will be in 3 to 4 weeks. Will Sticks be ready? How will Potts play? How will the team respond? Just like no one knew what was in store before the NM game. To suggest what needs to be done in the future at this point in time is ludicrous.

I feel that Potts will be one motivated qb against aTm. He’s playing for his future. He’s seen how effective getting the running backs touches can be, either by short passes or checking into running plays. Hopefully, it’s been drilled into him not to force the action downfield, but be deliberate. He may not run out of trouble like Sticks, but he may not take sacks for -16 yds and throw pick 6’s. He may be better with 4 starts under his belt, just as the whole team has improved lately. After all, he was the nations leading passer when he went down.

If Sticks is out 3 weeks, he won’t be ready for OSU. He would miss the 2 weeks of preparation before the game. If he misses much more than that, the season will have passed him by. There may not be a decision to make about who’s starting in a month. Why debate it now? It’s Potts’ gig.

I do believe everyone here is unified on one point and it is that we want TTech to run the table and just see where things fall from there. Maybe if we could win out we get our shot at a BCS bowl(how screwy but poetic). But not it would still be amazing to see where we are with two 10 plus wins years in a row. Recruiting is up and it could get even better which makes TTech so much better. Our coaches actually know what to do with talent as opposed to the atm. Anyway, I’m pullin for TTech Red(pirate) Raiders!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Wreck’Em Tech

Taylor,

This is your chance to redeem yourself . Some people never get a second chance; make the most of it. You may not get another.

We’re pulling for you.

“Potts is sacked” “Potts goes down” :(

Potts came into the season with a lot of hype about his size and arm strength. People were saying he was better than Harrell because of these attributes before he even won a game. This caught me by surprise since Leach has never stressed size and arm strength. I would have felt much better if Leach stressed his ability to read defenses, find the space in coverage, make quick decisions, and deliver the ball accurately on time.

He did not do those things well. He often locked in on his first read, which resulted in holding onto the ball too long or throwing into coverage. Now, he has taken the criticism and watched a walk on run the offense more efficiently. Mostly, he just didn’t take care of the ball consistently, and Sheffield was further along in this offense.

What will he do with this experience? I think mentally he will be in the right place, trying hard to learn from his mistakes. I think he will respond positively to the challenge. I think the team and the fans will be behind him. However, breaking bad habits is hard work, but I hope for the best.

Whether Leach starts Sheffield in Stillwater depends entirely on how Potts performs these two games and how Sheffield looks in practice. It won’t be determined by some philosophy on sticking with the current starter just because. Whoever demonstrates he is the better man gets the job, and that is yet to be determined. We don’t know if Potts has learned from his struggles and we don’t know how Sheffield will look after missing two games and two weeks of practice.
  

TECH IS UP @#$ CREEK if we have to play Potts for one more game.

Now I have to hear my Father in Law sing the EYES OF TEXAS ARE UPON you ALL NIGHT LONG!

DAMn it!