David Yost has been teaching quarterbacks in school soccer’s highest stage since 1996.
His methodology of evaluating the game’s most necessary place has not modified a lot over time.
The previous offensive coordinator at FIU, Texas Tech, Utah State and Missouri has a guidelines he makes use of to determine gamers he want to coach.
Does the peak and weight match what’s listed? Does his athleticism match my staff’s wants? Can I stay with the way in which the ball will get launched from his hand? Does he full deep passes?
What’s modified over time for Yost is the significance he’s placed on accuracy and the flexibility to make anticipatory throws into tight home windows — one thing he discovered whereas working for Mike Leach because the large receivers coach at Washington State from 2013-15.
“Coach (Leach) wished to know what the man’s completion proportion was,” Yost mentioned. “So what I wish to see is the final 100 performs of no matter season you simply accomplished. Of that, I’m hoping to get 75 throws to attempt to get what I confer with as a real completion proportion. Not screens. What’s your completion proportion while you’re throwing the ball down the sector? Should you hit the man within the fingers, however he dropped it, I name it a completion. Should you throw it badly and he makes an unbelievable catch, it’s an incompletion. Should you discover a QB above 50, 55 p.c, that’s a reasonably correct thrower at the highschool stage to me.
“The fellows who hit that quantity or above, they often find yourself turning into guys who full every thing once they get to varsity. The fellows I didn’t take who didn’t hit that quantity, most don’t ever find yourself turning into correct throwers.”
The issue for Yost and different longtime coaches is that prime college recruiting and participant improvement are now not the first strategies employed by school soccer groups to fill their quarterback wants. That’s given strategy to the switch portal.
Of the 141 FBS quarterbacks who began not less than 5 video games this season, greater than half (76) had been plucked out of the portal. And 30 of the highest 50 quarterbacks in passing effectivity had been on their second (not less than) cease in school.
So, how do coaches determine the fitting guys, put them in the fitting system and keep away from an enormous swing-and-miss that may sabotage a season and set a program again financially as a consequence of misappropriated NIL funds?
Yost sometimes prefers a quarterback who has performed numerous snaps.
“The fellows who’ve performed, it doesn’t matter what stage they’ve performed at, they might not be an amazing quarterback, however they’re most likely a reasonably good participant,” he mentioned. “Should you’re a reasonably good participant at D2, FCS or Group of 5, it’ll most likely translate on the subsequent cease up. It does translate. Like what Indiana did with (Kurtis) Rourke. He was a great participant at Ohio. Guess what, he was a great participant at Indiana. The chance is taking the man who hasn’t performed as a lot.”
There may be ample proof that helps Yost’s principle.
• Rourke began 34 video games at Ohio and was named 2022 MAC Offensive Participant of the Yr earlier than incomes second-team All-Huge Ten honors in his solely season at Indiana.
• Cam Ward was a second-team FCS All-American at Incarnate Phrase earlier than starring at Washington State and Miami.
• Dillon Gabriel threw for 7,223 yards in his two wholesome seasons at UCF earlier than shifting on to Oklahoma and Oregon.
• Diego Pavia guided New Mexico State to 10 wins earlier than main Vanderbilt to a 6-6 file in 2024 — highlighted by a win over Alabama — and its first bowl recreation since 2018.
Diego Pavia was a second-team All-SEC decide by the AP in 2024. (Butch Dill / Imagn Photographs)
When coaches recruit a quarterback who has not performed a lot at his earlier cease, it’s necessary to speak to as many individuals as doable to search out solutions for the next questions:
Did he have a foul angle? Did he observe laborious? Did he proceed to compete even after he did not earn the beginning position?
“It doesn’t matter if it’s school or the NFL, it’s laborious,” mentioned a Group of 5 offensive coordinator who was granted anonymity so he might communicate candidly. “It’s laborious to know precisely what you’re getting from a expertise standpoint, from a psychological make and all these sorts of issues. It’s laborious. You simply by no means know what habits they type from a 12 months at a program. There are such a lot of stuff you don’t know.”
The coordinator mentioned his program took two quarterbacks out of the portal final cycle, however they had been gamers he was accustomed to from camps and the highschool recruiting path.
He additionally made the purpose that the game’s newfound reliance on transfers has affected the way in which some applications construct an offense.
“One factor I feel and it sucks as a result of it hurts the long-term improvement of those quarterbacks — it forces you as coordinators and play callers, you’ve received to remain easy,” he mentioned. “Very not often are you going to have the ability to construct a system and have a number of gamers, quarterback included, in it for 2 or three years. So that you’ve received to simplify issues. … A few of these individuals who run pro-style stuff, they’ve received to rethink or retool a number of the stuff they do and imagine in as a result of in the event that they don’t, you’re placing rather a lot on these guys. It’s principally asking a rookie quarterback to go play within the NFL whereas studying a troublesome system. That’s not going to go effectively.”
To mitigate additional danger, one other ex-G5 coordinator mentioned he often targets extra athletic quarterbacks within the portal.
“You’re all the time a bit bit safer to take an athletic child,” he mentioned. “Even when he can’t throw it that nice, he can do one thing for you at that place. You possibly can have a package deal for him to run. That’s the safer factor. That’s why so many individuals are on the lookout for dual-threats now, whereas the pure pocket passer that doesn’t work out is kind of caught within the mud. There’s nonetheless numerous youngsters that may throw the ball and work in your system, however you’re much less prone to make a mistake by way of worth by taking the extra athletic man.”
Yost’s final quarterback, FIU’s Keyone Jenkins, ranked twenty first nationally in passing effectivity in 2024. Jenkins entered the portal after coach Mike MacIntyre was fired together with Yost however determined this week to return to highschool.
Yost didn’t have numerous time to develop Jenkins. He was FIU’s beginning quarterback by his second recreation as a real freshman. Jenkins beat out veteran Grayson James, who transferred to Boston Faculty and took over because the Eagles’ starter late within the 2024 season. James compelled Thomas Castellanos out. Castellanos is now at Florida State, which is hoping to bounce again after a disastrous season that went off the rails due largely to a poor analysis (DJ Uiagalelei) out of the portal.
Will Castellanos be the reply? Who is aware of.
However one factor is obvious: The sport of quarterback musical chairs will not be slowing down.
Coaches will proceed to seek for solutions. And lots of will proceed to swing-and-miss.
“Match and system issues,” a Huge 12 offensive coordinator mentioned. “However to me, not everybody goes to bat 100%. No matter the way you do it, at occasions you’re going to (misevaluate) that place.”
(High photograph of Kurtis Rourke: Jason Mowry / Getty Photographs)