Cato Throws with Varlacity!
- Thread starter bgr30
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Free agent.. possibly.. no more.. hope the best for him though as he has 2 kids i know of already. Needs to be able to support that family! He's a good fellow i know and i dont know how anyone could root against him. Lack of a GREAT senior year on his part (too many unsuccessful deep passes killed his accuracy numbers) and his lack of size hurts him - and before someone compares Drew Brees to cato - he is no Drew Brees but if given the chance maybe he could grow into a GREAT nfl qb.
He's never thrown a great deep ball. Not sure how he ever got the reputation of having a good deep ball. His strength is he is a solid game manager who can also make plays and has great intangibles. The actual ball he throws, IMO, is average. Are the former attributes enough to land him on a squad? I hope so.
He is extremely accurate on short and intermediate throws. CFL would be a great fit. Hell, I wouldn't mind living in Toronto or Vancouver and playing football - darn nice life if you ask me.
Sooo...
You're saying that he does not have the ability to make himself into an NFL qb...
Buuut....
If he has good coaching he could be a great qb?
In short, saying a negative but leaving with a positive to cover yourself in case you are wrong?
Thats like saying its not going to rain because the sun is out but if there are lots of clouds it could rain.
You're saying that he does not have the ability to make himself into an NFL qb...
Buuut....
If he has good coaching he could be a great qb?
In short, saying a negative but leaving with a positive to cover yourself in case you are wrong?
Thats like saying its not going to rain because the sun is out but if there are lots of clouds it could rain.
It looked to me that he said he does not believe he will be drafted because his size and senior year numbers were low due to an inaccurate deep ball. However, if he is signed as an undrafted free agent and he is able to sit and learn as a pro he could end up being a "great" NFL player.
He didn't have a good senior year? Really? His efficiency rating went up each and every season. Removing his sophomore year his completion percentage was basically the same. Everyone thought he had an amazing year in 2013 and had a letdown in 2014 when in fact that couldn't be further from the truth. Yards were comparable, average per play improved, TDs improved, and his efficiency rating went up as well. The only negative stat wise for Cato was his increased INTs although it was only a total of 13. Cato was 15/11, 37/11, 39/9, and 40/13 over his career. That is pretty phenomenal.
Does he struggle with the deep ball. Yes. He isn't that great but he isn't terrible. Will he drop dimes 50+ yards down the field? Most likely not unless it's on play action and the defense bites. However the only thing that is keeping Cato out of the headlines about being a top QB in this class is the fact that he is barely six feet tall and only weighs 178lbs. If Cato was 6'2"-6'4" and weighed in the 225lb-235lb range he would be a top QB in this draft. He probably goes in the first round.
He is very football smart, will kill you when the play breaks down, and will never stop fighting. If you listened to Bill Polian during the bowl Cato played in you would have heard him say that if there was one QB in this draft you wanted based on skill and intangibles it would be Rakeem Cato but only weighing in at 178lbs was going to keep him off of a lot of draft boards. And before you say or think to yourself who in the heck is Bill Polian he was the GM of the Buffalo Bills from 1986 to 1992 when they made four straight Super Bowls, was the GM of the Panthers from 1995 to 1997, and was with the Colts from 1998 to 2011. Polian was also just inducted into the NFL Hall of Fame.
2011
Completions 182
Attempts 304
INT 11
Yards 2,059
TDs 15
Completion % 59.9
Average Per Play 6.8
Average Per Game 158.4
Efficiency 125.8
2012
Completions 406 (+224)
Attempts 584 (+280)
INT 11 (E)
Yards 4,201 (+2,142)
TDs 37 (+22)
Completion % 69.5 (+9.60)
Average Per Play 7.2 (+.40)
Average Per Game 350.1 (+191.70)
Efficiency 147.1 (+21.30)
2013
Completions 298 (-108)
Attempts 499 (-85)
INT 9 (-2)
Yards 3,916 (-285)
TDs 39 (+2)
Completion % 59.7 (-9.80)
Average Per Play 7.8 (+.60)
Average Per Game 279.7 (+70.40)
Efficiency 147.8 (+.70)
2014
Completions 268 (-31)
Attempts 451 (-48)
INT 13 (+4)
Yards 3,903 (-13)
TDs 40 (+1)
Completion % 59.2 (-.50)
Average Per Play 8.7 (+.90)
Average Per Game 278.8 (-.90)
Efficiency 155.4 (+7.60)
Does he struggle with the deep ball. Yes. He isn't that great but he isn't terrible. Will he drop dimes 50+ yards down the field? Most likely not unless it's on play action and the defense bites. However the only thing that is keeping Cato out of the headlines about being a top QB in this class is the fact that he is barely six feet tall and only weighs 178lbs. If Cato was 6'2"-6'4" and weighed in the 225lb-235lb range he would be a top QB in this draft. He probably goes in the first round.
He is very football smart, will kill you when the play breaks down, and will never stop fighting. If you listened to Bill Polian during the bowl Cato played in you would have heard him say that if there was one QB in this draft you wanted based on skill and intangibles it would be Rakeem Cato but only weighing in at 178lbs was going to keep him off of a lot of draft boards. And before you say or think to yourself who in the heck is Bill Polian he was the GM of the Buffalo Bills from 1986 to 1992 when they made four straight Super Bowls, was the GM of the Panthers from 1995 to 1997, and was with the Colts from 1998 to 2011. Polian was also just inducted into the NFL Hall of Fame.
2011
Completions 182
Attempts 304
INT 11
Yards 2,059
TDs 15
Completion % 59.9
Average Per Play 6.8
Average Per Game 158.4
Efficiency 125.8
2012
Completions 406 (+224)
Attempts 584 (+280)
INT 11 (E)
Yards 4,201 (+2,142)
TDs 37 (+22)
Completion % 69.5 (+9.60)
Average Per Play 7.2 (+.40)
Average Per Game 350.1 (+191.70)
Efficiency 147.1 (+21.30)
2013
Completions 298 (-108)
Attempts 499 (-85)
INT 9 (-2)
Yards 3,916 (-285)
TDs 39 (+2)
Completion % 59.7 (-9.80)
Average Per Play 7.8 (+.60)
Average Per Game 279.7 (+70.40)
Efficiency 147.8 (+.70)
2014
Completions 268 (-31)
Attempts 451 (-48)
INT 13 (+4)
Yards 3,903 (-13)
TDs 40 (+1)
Completion % 59.2 (-.50)
Average Per Play 8.7 (+.90)
Average Per Game 278.8 (-.90)
Efficiency 155.4 (+7.60)
Can't wait to see Cato's Wonderlic score.
Couple that with his lack of height and arm strength and he will not get a whiff of an NFL camp.
He's a Son of Marshall and you can be proud of him for sure but he just doesn't project to the League. CFL, Arena Football, maybe.
Couple that with his lack of height and arm strength and he will not get a whiff of an NFL camp.
He's a Son of Marshall and you can be proud of him for sure but he just doesn't project to the League. CFL, Arena Football, maybe.
Maybe it is just some silly word him and his friends made up. Regardless, kinda sad to see adult men following a college kids facebook and then making fun of him.
But remember, Cato throws with "varlacity" which, obviously is an unknown factor that just may get an NFL teams attention! Meant only as humor - not to be taken serious.
Cato could have a great CFL career, and truth be told, that's what I hope he does. (I know, my thoughts are just that, "my")
You do realize that Cato is 22 years old and I'm pretty sure that makes him an adult and not a "kid". I doubt "varlacity" is a made up word, if you have listened to him speak during interviews, it wouldn't surprise me if he has some sort of learning disability.
I have not noticed Cato using the wrong words or not being able to say a word. He is nervous and his super fast talking verges on stuttering at times. All these things have improved during his career. Varlacity is no different than typos, etc. seen on these boards.
The Wonderlic Cognitive Ability Test results could be interesting / scary or embarrassing to the university.
Even if he's 22 the basic premise is the same - following someone you don't even know on social media is weird/creepy, even if it's become commonplace in our society. Our celebrity obsessed culture is absurd.
Posted from Rivals Mobile
Posted from Rivals Mobile
That is why I said college kid. Big difference. So you are making fun of a possible learning disability? Bottom line you are hanging on a jock strap of some college football player by being on their facebook, and you cannot wait to come over here to make fun of him. I think you just proved just because a person is of an adult age, does does not mean that they are mature.
This post was edited on 3/12 9:11 PM by marshallsig
Cato was a great quarterback for us. Many idiot Marshall fans are unable to recognize that there is a vast gulf between being a great Marshall QB and being an NFL QB. Cato will not make it in the NFL. He does not have the necessary skills. Very few people can effectively play QB in the NFL. Cato is not among them. Maybe somebody will draft him. Somebody drafted Tim Tebow even though he was obviously not NFL material. But he won't make it.
More than likely he goes undrafted. Many great Marshall players have.
Enjoy the memories he gave us. He will always be one of our own.
More than likely he goes undrafted. Many great Marshall players have.
Enjoy the memories he gave us. He will always be one of our own.
And why does it say "Bronze Buffalo" below my name? I'm a fkn paying gold member and have been for a while. Go bronze buffalo your mom.
If guys like Thad Lewis and Ryan Lindley can get backup gigs in the NFL then Cato can as well. Like someone said earlier, Cato is excellent at the short to intermediate routes, a high FB IQ, and has great intangibles so all he needs is an opportunity to work on improving his deep route accuracy. His size will keep him from getting drafted be he has the potential to develop into at least a backup caliber NFL QB.
Lewis is 6-2, 220lbs. Ryan Lindley is 6-4, 230lbs. Cato is 5-11ish, 175lbs-ish. He's not getting drafted, and is a long shot to get a legitimate look at making a camp next fall. He'll likely get invited to a minicamp this summer, but likely will struggle to get invited to a camp in August.
herdcase posted "Have any of you stopped to consider the fact that he might of been trying to spell VERACITY ( which btw is not an easy word to spell ). Veracity could be used in his sentence to mean accuracy, as in "i throw with accuracy". JMHO." Yes, I believe we all got it. Probably a typo. But Rakeem does throw with varlacity!
Some of you guys should be ashamed of yourselves. Rakeem Cato is a success story and a testament to himself and Marshall University. Marshall has helped so many of us. Without Marshall, I am not sure were I would be in life and I bet that is true for many people who visit these forums.
Give Cato a break. He is one of our all time greats. A kid who came from a situation that is hard to imagine and now you all are busting on him? How many of you have had people make fun of the way you talk? I bet many of you being from WV. I know I have. So what, Cato is trying to make something of himself.
You all should be ashamed.
Give Cato a break. He is one of our all time greats. A kid who came from a situation that is hard to imagine and now you all are busting on him? How many of you have had people make fun of the way you talk? I bet many of you being from WV. I know I have. So what, Cato is trying to make something of himself.
You all should be ashamed.
I somewhat disagree with the "vast gulf" comment. That implies that the progression from college to pros is a linear measurement. By that standard if RC doesn't make it in the NFL it implies that he wasn't very high up the line as a college player. Based on his numbers, wins, and stats we know that's not the case.
I believe a more accurate comment would be that the skill set that is necessary to be successful in college is broader than what the NFL looks for in a qb. Cato was one of the top qbs in college football the last few years. He will be placed on the Mount Rushmore of Marshall qbs along with Pennington and Leftwich. (No desire or intention to debate where those three rank.) Unfortunately the tangibles and skill set of Cato, one that has served him and Marshall well, doesn't fall within the narrow parameters of the NFL mindset. That's sad, because I think the NFL misses the boat sometimes with their narrow thinking. Bill Parcells has built a very nice coaching career finding those athletes who are winners, but just fall outside the narrow parameters of NFL think.
Hopefully RC is given a fair chance to succeed. He is going to have to be drafted or hook up with a team that is serious about giving him a chance. I believe he could certainly help someone at the next level. But if he doesn't make it, it doesn't change the fact that he is one of the greatest players to play at Marshall. I'll be forever thankful and appreciative of what he's done. But unfortunately, we have too many narrow minded fans who wait to judge the worth of an athlete by their next level success. That's just silly. Their worth should be judged by whether they got the football in the end zone or the basketball in the basket when they played for us. Being in the top five in the nation in a ton of categories over the last few years doesn't come off the record books if they don't make it at the next level.
RC deserves our respect. He both earned and deserves it.
herdon, 77 is a gamecock, Cato is smarter than Lattimore or Clowney--carries himself better as well. I'm sure his score would exceed either of those two. I root on SCAR as well, my wife's entire family has graduated from the school in Cola. I however don't trash MU because I adopted a team that took 100 years to win a bowl.
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