Jamal Turner Looks the Part
2 comments so far
January 31, 2010 by
Nebraska fans have spent months fretting over the quarterback position. Zac Lee was too shaky. Cody Green was too inaccurate. And there wasn't a clear successor in the 2010 recruiting class. But the commitment of Jamal Turner should ease some of the longer term concerns about the position. The stat that jumps out is this one. Turner had a streak as a sophomore of 184 passes without an interception. Apply that kind of consistency to a typical college season and that might be 2 or 3 interceptions all year.
It's easy to put aside high school achievements, because it's against high school competition. But Turner did in Texas class 5A, the largest classification in a state renowned for the quality of it's prep football. No doubt, that's why he reportedly has already received schollarship offers from Oklahoma, Texas A&M, and TCU. Beyond the passing effectiveness, Turner's a true dual-threat quarterback who is the only player in the history of their school district to rush for 200 yards and pass for 200 yards in the same game. He's done it four times and he still has another year to play.
Nebraska will have to work to hold the commitment. They've got over a year. Josh Freeman, Blaine Gabbert, and Tyler Gabbert were all players that committed early in recent years but failed to sign their letter of intent with Nebraska. Cody Green, more recently, followed through after a long period of commitment.
Maybe by September Lee or Green (or Taylor Martinez, Kody Spano, LaTravis Washington, or even Bronson Marsh) will make Husker fans more comfortable about the quarterback position for 2010. But for now, Turner ought to provide some genuine confidence that the QB spot will look better in the years to come.
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stew Feb 01 10
I think we should already be confident about the QB position, even if Turner's commit falls through. I don't think there's any doubt Lee will get the majority of the PT next season, & that will be great if he picks up where he left off vs AZ. Right next to him though is someone with tons of potential, someone we're being too hard on - Cody Green. Remember he was just a frosh last year, & admittedly '09 wasn't the best situation for him to come into.
We were raving about Green coming into the '09 season, and for good reason. Even considering Turner's output as a HS Jr in Texas, I think Green is going to be a spectacle with the offense Bo & Wats have in store.
Bill Feb 01 10
I agree with you stew. I, myself have been too quick to dismiss Green in all of this. He is still a kid... and a kid who stepped into a horrible offensive situation. We were asking the kid to "save the day." It is unfair to judge him for at least 1 more season.
As for Lee, I fully expect him to be "the guy" this year. His now apparent injury coincides to exactly when our offense began to fall apart. Look what a little rest did for the guy in San Diego. Imagine what having it corrected is going to do for him.
If he isn't the guy... don't sleep on Kody Spano.
His 2008 recruiting file on ESPN:
http://insider.espn.go.com/ncf/recruiting/tracker/player?recruitId=49143&season=2008