Are you 100% certain about Miltons abilities?

[rjd970]

If he puts it together in Gainesville and lights it up, everyone better get their seatbelts on because it is going to be a fun ride next year.

 

[HiltonHeadVol]

I think that and having the courage to comeback after the Ole Miss debacle shows a lot of character. A lot of people would’ve mailed it in the rest of the way and hit the portal, but he stuck around and has become a team leader and potential star .

Solid point here bro. Showed some guts.

 

[apevol]

Nope. He has a tremendous arm, but I've seen a ton of those types over the decades who couldn't consistently read a defense, hit the open receiver, manage the game in crunch time, etc. He's shown flashes here and there. Granted, he finished last season on a high note, but let's see how he does over a long, tough SEC schedule. Doubts are one thing, but I'm certainly hoping he's the second coming at QB for UT this year.

No offense to you but nobody has seen a "ton" of arms like Milton's. I can think of a handful, but thats it

 

[Wrangler95]

Pretty much agree with this. We've seen one game where he put it all together, and that was a meaningless bowl game. Will he be able to accurately hit a wide open WR streaking down the field in the swamp? That I am not so sure of.

Orange Bowl meaningless!

 

[Volador]

Are you 100% certain about Miltons abilities?

I am all in. Every chip on my side of the table has been placed in the middle. Have to. Don't want to go into our Fall campaign doubting the QB that Coach Hype believes is the best player on the field to lead us.

Going to stick with Joe Milton all the way to the SEC Championship and hopefully to the playoffs.

Joe IS our man folks.

 

[Mccage]

The "Elephant in the Room" that many of us are struggling with is...

Joe doe does not seem to possess equal "cerebral abilities" that Hendon had/has...

HOWEVER...Joe DOES possess "physical capabilities" at a much higher level than Hendon...

Will physical ability advantage equate to similar or to more on field success, despite cerebral shortcomings?

*my guess is it'll depend on how loose & free Joe plays...like more "playground-like" over "ad nauseam play-study like" or tight...which could be a disaster!

Oh...and I'm REALLY worried about the O-Line, too...

Can you give us some examples on Joe’s shortcomings Dr. ?

 

[VolDaddy61]

I'm totally sold especially year 3 under Heupels guidance
Only question is our o-line going to be able protect him.
You ?

I'm sold on this staff's ability to get the most out of these Young Men, and putting them in positions to succeed. I'm sure there was a fair amount of angst when an unknown Hendon came in against Pitt, and how did that turn out ?! The common denominator is this staff.

 

[UTFanHades]

To play Devils Advocate here. He/coaches/team had an entire month to prepare for Clemson. Can he look as good against different schemes and players each week? Will his penchant for over throws come back if/when he gets rattled? He has proven, at least in the past, he is not all in for Tennessee (Ole Miss stepping out of bounds after time had already expired).

Dude has a legitimate arm, for sure but, one game doesn’t make up for a career spanning two schools of not being able to get it done. Maybe, just maybe CJH is the QB guru and whisperer we think he is and Joe wins the Heisman this year.

Post Script: how many of you could catch a 15 yard bullet from him crossing the middle? Even with gloves that has to be painful!

He roomed with the guy who beat him out of his starting job. Continued to grow with that guy and, when called upon, won 2 straight starts. He’s all in for TN and has earned the right for us to not relive an Ole Miss game decided by horrible officiating.

 

[Tnphil]

Wait and see mode. He has all the tools. I agree with how he will do preparing week to week. He did very well in the Orange Bowl but he also had a month to prepare for Clemson.

 

[UTFanHades]

Joe has not demonstrated that he can transition from practice to playing. This for us will be a disappointing year unless Heupel replaces Joe with our freshman and takes the hit this year. I want to see Tennessee be successful however it is impossible with Milton.

Alabama would gladly trade places with us to have an experience senior true leader showing a very talented freshman the game. A lot of teams would trade a lot for that qb room situation.

 

[1974Vol]

He's always been superior PHYSICALLY to Hooker...arm, physical make-up and straight line speed. Hooker beat him out due to his poise, accuracy and pocket awareness. If Milton squared any of that away in the two years under Heupel's tutelage, we have a potential benchmark at the position...IF. I would also add that Hooker had a tendency to zero in on a specific favorite target. IF Milton can spread it around, that would amplify the offense...hard as that is to believe.

Agree, and would add we all will be judging Joe against the QB that made fewer mistakes than anyone I can remember in Hooker. So, the first pick he throws we'll all be "he's big, strong, and throws a lot of TD's....BUTTT he ain't no Hendon!" lol

 

[Go47]

The greatest predictor of future behavior is past behavior. Based on that, we will see:

1. Joe hit occasionally on some deep throws that few people can make because of his arm strength. However, he will miss more often than not (in fairness, deep throws are low probability for most all QBs).

2. He will often throw high over the middle and often overthrow deep receivers.

3. He will sparingly make “wow” plays that will showcase his unique arm strength.

4. As a runner, he will be ok. Maybe a little above average.

5. He will have some really good games and some relatively bad games.

All that to say . . . I think he will have an overall good year . . . But not a great year.

If the oline is dominant and our ground game is really good . . . He could have a great year.

 

[butchna]

Agree, and would add we all will be judging Joe against the QB that made fewer mistakes than anyone I can remember in Hooker. So, the first pick he throws we'll all be "he's big, strong, and throws a lot of TD's....BUTTT he ain't no Hendon!" lol

All’s fair when you follow a guy who set the standard.

 

[Vol Farmer]

I think he's gonna light it up.

Take us to the promised land. GBO

 

[DougVol]

Not 100%. I do get a better vibe than Worley and Gaurantano.

 

[Vol Farmer]

The greatest predictor of future behavior is past behavior. Based on that, we will see:

1. Joe hit occasionally on some deep throws that few people can make because of his arm strength. However, he will miss more often than not (in fairness, deep throws are low probability for most all QBs).

2. He will often throw high over the middle and often overthrow deep receivers.

3. He will sparingly make “wow” plays that will showcase his unique arm strength.

4. As a runner, he will be ok. Maybe a little above average.

5. He will have some really good games and some relatively bad games.

All that to say . . . I think he will have an overall good year . . . But not a great year.

If the oline is dominant and our ground game is really good . . . He could have a great year.

I think he will bring another element that CJH will utilize

 

[BigOrangeTrain]

Pretty much agree with this. We've seen one game where he put it all together, and that was a meaningless bowl game. Will he be able to accurately hit a wide open WR streaking down the field in the swamp? That I am not so sure of.

Just stop with your meaningless bowl game BS.

 

[BigOrangeTrain]

If our OL isn’t good it doesn’t matter how good Milton is.

 

[volmandu]

He is not going to be as clean and crisp as Hooker was. We will have more INTs and more sacks. However he will make more bigger plays with that arm, now that he has improved his accuracy.
Also he is not as elusive is Hooker but is more of a physical runner. It will be different style of QB run game with his legs.

 

[Brave Volunteer]

Why don’t you ask the opinion of the 30-40 guys that put their bodies on the line in the orange bowl? Or ask the 40-50k fans that travelled all the way to Miami

Or we could ask Darnell Wright or Byron Young whether or not it was meaningless.

You misunderstood. I'm not agreeing that the OB was meaningless. I was using my post to take a shot at Hyatt because I'm petty that way.

 

[hndog609]

No offense to you but nobody has seen a "ton" of arms like Milton's. I can think of a handful, but thats it

In fairness I think with the phrase "those types" he was generalizing "great arms don't necessarily mean great players". That's a pretty vettable take historically.

If it was indeed a direct comparison like you suggest then yeah...it's a pretty small pool of dudes that I think would qualify as direct analogues.

 

[BigOrangeTrain]

Nope. He has a tremendous arm, but I've seen a ton of those types over the decades who couldn't consistently read a defense, hit the open receiver, manage the game in crunch time, etc. He's shown flashes here and there. Granted, he finished last season on a high note, but let's see how he does over a long, tough SEC schedule. Doubts are one thing, but I'm certainly hoping he's the second coming at QB for UT this year.

Name the tons of QBs that have stood flat footed and launched balls for 80-90 yards with ease. Name the tons of QBs who have had guys like Peyton Manning brag about their arm strength. Name the tons of QBs that people have said, in their final year of college, that said QB has the strongest arm in not only college but the NFL.

 

[TAF]

Can you give us some examples on Joe’s shortcomings Dr. ?

You...are obviously not cerebral enough to understand.

 

[Pride85]

The "Elephant in the Room" that many of us are struggling with is...

Joe doe does not seem to possess equal "cerebral abilities" that Hendon had/has...

HOWEVER...Joe DOES possess "physical capabilities" at a much higher level than Hendon...

Will physical ability advantage equate to similar or to more on field success, despite cerebral shortcomings?

*my guess is it'll depend on how loose & free Joe plays...like more "playground-like" over "ad nauseam play-study like" or tight...which could be a disaster!

Oh...and I'm REALLY worried about the O-Line, too...

Based off all the games last year, please tell me what leads you to believe he doesn't have the cerebral skills to function. He made the correct read in almost every case and his accuracy was markedly better than his short stint as a starter at the beginning of his career. Hendon may have taken to this system better at a quicker pace, but it does not in any way mean Milton can't have an amazing year next year. He was very loose in the bowl game and I see nothing that points to the fact it will not continue.

 

[Pride85]

Hi weakness is his run game, or more specifically his willingness to get hit. His big arm can make up for accuracy issues, but we need a big heart in the run game from him to be a playoff team.

I will say the same thing to you I did to an earlier poster. Judge his running ability and willingness to get hit based off last year's results, not the year before. I saw him plant more than one tackler last year. I would much more prefer he only run of needed, but I believe he learned his lesson after Ole Miss two year's ago.