Today we quiz Kartik, a long-time UM observer and publisher of the always-engrossing Florida College Sports. Kartik lives in the Canes backyard and knows his way around the Orange Bowl better than Larry Coker. Who better to answer our questions about the team that new coach Randy Shannon brings to Tallahasseee Oct. 20th.
ChantRant: How is UM different after Shannon's first spring game compared to a year ago after Coker's last?
ChantRant: Both QBs have had their problems. Is this the achilles heel of the team, and will it seriously affect UM's won-loss record this year?
Kartik: Quite frankly I would take both Quarterbacks at Florida State over our QBs. Kyle Wright, short of a Carson Palmer like Senior year turn around will go down as
one of the great failures in UM history.
He'll be compared to the likes of Brian Fortay and Frank Costa, and in
my opinion Costa was a far superior QB. Despite the frustration of
Seminole fans with Drew Weatherford, he is a far better reader of the
game than is Wright. Wright proved in his very first prolonged action
as a freshman in relief of Brock Berlin vs Georgia Tech that he had no pocket presence and little clue when to get rid of the ball. Thankfully in that game Berlin
had thrown 3 early TDs to give UM an insurmountable lead. But Wright
hasn't improved at all since then. Unlike Weaterford who has made plays
against good team, Wright has a grand total of four TDs in his career
against what I would consider respectable opposition. Patrick Nix from Georgia Tech?
Kartik: I like the Nix hire. At Ga Tech he ran the ball between the tackles with P.J Daniels and Tashard Choice and also used Reggie Ball's mobility to move the pocket and spring some big passes down field. Despite Ball's inconsistency he is still a far better QB than Kyle Wright and should Wright be the starter, Nix will have to dumb down his playbook since Wright's confidence is lacking. Nix was also an excellent College QB himself at Auburn and I believe he understands the frustrations and difficulty which come with playing the position at this level. That's why he was so patient with Ball.
of the past?
Shannon's strong ideas about discipline may not
sit well with all the players. Shannon will not tolerate the sort of
off the field nonsense that Coker tolerated late in his tenure (in
fairness Coker was a pretty strong disciplinarian early in his tenure,
but as he became more besieged as a coach he let the team's behavior
suffer) and is also deadly serious about student athletes going to
class and being successful students. It's that emphasis on the
classroom which really helped sell Donna Shalala on hiring him. The
other part of Shannon's interview that blew away Shalala was a five
year plan he has developed to reinvigorate the fan base in South
Florida. Moving to Dolphin Stadium which seems almost certain at this
point was not part of the plan to my knowledge, but that
indirectly could help increase attendance even though I personally am
very sentimental about the Orange Bowl.
Comments? Questions? Kudos?