Following the Spring Game, the quarterback competition remains decidedly unresolved. If anything, the debate over who should start will be more heated now than ever. To put it concisely, Braxton Miller looked too good to keep off the field while Joe Bauserman looked too shaky to be counted on during crunch time in a hostile environment (namely, at Miami).
The simple solution, and the one that a majority of fans will no doubt be on board with, would be to name Miller the starter and roll with it. He can just flat out make plays and he showed it in the spring game. He led some tremendous drives throwing and running the ball, and he looks more than capable of successfully leading the offense.
The downside with Miller would be his inexperience. In crunch time, could he be counted on to protect the ball? To not force plays while driving the team down the field? He could, but expecting true freshman quarterbacks to play mistake free football is a gamble to say the least.
On the complete opposite end of the spectrum is fifth year senior Joe Bauserman. The argument for Bauserman centers on his experience and ability to make smart decisions and protect the football (even though last year’s Illinois game casts some doubt even on that).
A major negative is how remarkably (sometimes painfully) unexciting he is on the field. He has the experience to limit mistakes, but does he have the talent to make plays? Based on the spring game, the answer to that question is still very much up in the air.
At worst, any benefit that Bauserman’s experience brings to the field would be negated by his inability to make plays. Would defenses respect the passing game with him on the field, or would they load the box with nine players and blitz the house on every play?
I strongly suspect that the second answer is the correct one. I also strongly suspect that situation would quickly get ugly and unbelievably frustrating with Bauserman at QB.
Against a stacked box, at least Braxton Miller is dangerous enough to make plays and keep the defense relatively honest… if through nothing other than running with the football.
The other defense of Bauserman revolves around the quarterback’s role in next year’s offense for the first five games. My vision of Bauserman at QB primarily consists of him handing the ball off (a lot) and throwing passes into the flats to spread the defense if they key in on the run too much.
In a run heavy offense with very little expected from the passing game, why not put your most experienced quarterback on the field to take care of the ball? At the same time, if Bauserman can be successful running a limited offense, the other three QBs on the roster can surely be successful as well.
I have always thought that Bauserman’s experience trumped his lack of play making ability. Now I am not so sure.
If the offense is going to be scaled back with Bauserman at the helm (which it almost certainly will be), why not put someone back there who can make plays outside of the confines of the scaled back offense?
In that scenario, there is absolutely no reason to keep Braxton Miller off of the field. At the very least, bring him off the bench throughout the game to create a whole new look for the offense, similar to how Florida utilized Tim Tebow as a freshman.
No matter who starts the first give games at quarterback, I want to see Braxton Miller on the field in the fall. That is the number one thing I took away from the spring game.
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