No longer with the program; it might be a long year if we can't run the ball!
Mitch Griffis
- Thread starter bgr30
- Start date
Guess that answers the QB question... Pennington it is... Lets hope he's had a good spring/summer and comes in to fall camp ready to be the guy.
All new WRs, a totally rebuilt offensive line (with the exception of Osburn), and a new RB (whoever it is)... There is no way anyone can possibly know what this team is going to look like on Aug. 31.
All new WRs, a totally rebuilt offensive line (with the exception of Osburn), and a new RB (whoever it is)... There is no way anyone can possibly know what this team is going to look like on Aug. 31.
And a new OC that has never been an OC before.
I dont know that I would go so far as to say he was "bad"... But it was definitely a mixed bag on defense last season... That unit was certainly not helped by the fact that we couldn't consistently move the football on offense. They were on the field forever in some of those games late last year (App State, Coastal, etc).
What happened to the kid from Tulsa? Did he drag up as well? If Cole wins the job by default, wins are going to be precious Huff's swan song season!
Who do you like better?.... Braxton lost the starting job at Tulsa and transferred when they mentioned trying him at WR... Parachek, last years #4 guy?... Long as a true freshman?
Unless Pennington is really awful this fall I can't see him not being the starter at this point.
I think making any assumptions at the QB position at this point is completely off base.
Its mid-June and we have four guys on the roster. Unless we are going wildcat every snap I think its fair to look at what we have and make an assessment.
I don't own a Ouija board and I don't believe in fortune tellers... And if we're possibly bringing in another QB two months before the first game and hoping they will start, we're probably F'd.
I don't believe we're bringing in another QB at this point, but if we're judging anyone off previous performance then I don't see how we're so easily settling on Cole.
His 2023 season was less than desirable and no better than anything Braxton accomplished.
Not good enough to start for a bad Tulsa team.
Yeah, but we get the guy after the injury, the guy that completed 44% of his passes with 2TDs and 6 INTs in 2023.
Our offense the last two years was more painful to watch than the Sonny Randle/Frank Ellwood years. It was that bad.
He was so bad last year that he not only got benched, they were talking about moving him to WR (and Tulsa was awful)... So he transferred... Im not saying he can't be a serviceable QB, but if you are hoping he is going to come in and be a world beater I think you are setting yourself up for disappointment.
So here is what we have...
Pennington -- Not great last year, too many turnovers/negative plays, not an elite athlete. Hopefully improved?
Braxton -- Bad last year, transferred to us, was an elite athlete out of high school before injury. Hopefully serviceable after change of scenery?
Parachek -- Backup level guy. Hopefully only plays in an emergency?
Long -- True freshman who hasn't taken a college snap yet. Hopefully shows us something?
That's an awful lot of hopefully's for a team with a lot of other question marks on offense.
What is the down side of bringing in a guy like this, back in the portal? Far from a sure thing, but seems he would be worth rolling the dice. 
I don't know if its a downside... But if you don't think he's going to be ready to start Aug. 31, you probably don't bring in anyone at this point.
I can't imagine a kid leaving Texas is going to be enthralled by the idea of coming to Marshall to be a backup this season, even if it means he'd have a chance to compete for the job next year.
He actually transferred to App State and left after their spring. I think he is far and away the most talented QB still in the portal, and he left App when he didn't unseat Aguilar, which is no shame since that kid is writing their record book.
Guess this guy (Griffis) just now got around to reading all those "glowing" comments, statements, etc., that Huff has made about "living in Huntington"!!
Pennington didn’t have enough playing time to make an evaluation.
I think we are all hoping that he's improved a great deal... But he played enough last year to make an evaluation of his performance.
He completed 55 percent of his passes, threw 6 interceptions and 0 touchdowns in 112 attempts. On 15 rushing attempts he lost 70 yards and had a couple of fumbles.
Hopefully another year in the weight room, throwing with his teammates, and a new offensive system will help him... We're going to need him.
He did get some valuable playing time but I think he was also put into some situations where the play calling made it tough on him. We had a game, at home, where he went in with the ball on our own 1-2 yard line and throw a pass on the first play that was picked. Earlier when Fancher was in the game, same situation, we ran the ball and got it out to the 12-15 yard line. There were other situations, that one just sticks out to me.
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While we all wish Cole would come on and be the second coming of his father, he's got a long ways to go. That said, he couldn't ask for a better teacher than his father. jmo.
I think we need to ask a serious question about Cole: would we have even recruited him if it weren't for Chad?
1. Cole is still a step or two slower than the game. That's to be expected given his experience level and the situations in which he was thrown into action.
2. If his name weren't Pennington, he'd be getting it a lot worse on here.
If he can take a big step forward this season then it would be a big boost to the program and him being Chad's son will bring more attention to the program and the headlines would write themselves.
I am sure that Chad has been working a lot with Cole trying to get him ready. Cole has a resource that no one else has.
2. If his name weren't Pennington, he'd be getting it a lot worse on here.
If he can take a big step forward this season then it would be a big boost to the program and him being Chad's son will bring more attention to the program and the headlines would write themselves.
I am sure that Chad has been working a lot with Cole trying to get him ready. Cole has a resource that no one else has.
No. I believe his only other true offer was Akron. He's also only been discussed as much as he has because of who he is. I am not saying that to take a shot at Cole either. It's just the truth.
He had offers from Akron, Ball State and Tennessee-Martin... Would we have recruited him if it wasn't for Chad? No idea... But he was a 3-star recruit out of high school, so its not like we took the kid because we had to as a legacy. We've recruited plenty of 1 and 2 star kids over the years.
I have a feeling we chose him because it was good business off the field, not because of his talent.
Pennington bio on Herdzone
Then our own website is wrong... "Rated a three-star prospect by ESPN.com and 247Sports.com … Received offers from Akron, Ball State, Eastern Kentucky and Tennessee-Martin … Helped lead Sayre to an 8-1 record a junior … Also played free safety at Sayre … Runs the 40-yard dash in 4.87 seconds with a shuttle of 4.44 … Plays basketball as well."
I remember how his recruiting went. It was us and really no one else. As I recall his only other official visit was Akron.
I say none of this to demean Cole. I am rooting for him, but the only reason he's had the attention paid to him thus far is because of being Chad's son. Had he just been some random 2/3 star QB with a low offer list he came in with, absolutely no one would have been talking about him and his performance thus far would be getting a lot more criticized. QBs have been thrashed on these boards, including Cato.
