Why do we recruit and sign highly rated prospects if we're going to immediately look to the portal if we sense a problem? Shouldn't we be asking "who's up next" first? And if the guys who are already in the stable aren't ready, then why not?

I understand that somebody proven might be a more attractive look, but how many of those guys are really out there, and does Elko seem like a guy who is going to go QB-hunting in the portal?

Reed needs better accuracy, quicker decision making especially on runs.

The accuracy might be improved with not getting happy feet when pressured.

I appreciate keeping eyes down field, but too many times a good run was there for the taking and he passed (pun intended) on it to throw an inaccurate pass.


Unless he wants to much $$$, I think he starts next year.

Heineken-Ashi said:

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SunrayAg said:

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Reed is 0-5 in games that advance the program in the last 2 years.

2024, win 1 of our last 3 conference games and we advance to the championship game. Went 0-3.

2025, win the final regular season game to advance to the conference championship game, went 0-1. Then had the worst game of his career in the playoff game, for 0-2.

I'd like to see what is behind door number 2, please.

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11-2 advanced the program whether your little girt temper tantrum can admit it or not. ON top of that, beating Notre Dame in South Bend advanced the program, as did beating LSU at home in 24 and in Death Valley in 25.

Getting to the playoffs absolutely advanced the program.

Run along now

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Have a little tantrum all you want. But in high pressure win and you advance to the championship level games, he is 0-5. Plays small in the biggest games. Melts under the brightest lights. Whatever you want to call it.

But yeah, sure, it was nice to beat up on the bottom tier where he could miss open receivers and win anyway. That was fun. Winning games that matter when the pressure is on… Nah, I guess we just shouldn't expect to win those anyway, right?

If we were QB hunting, we would have hired an OC that we could point to in selling a portal QB. Portal QBs are looking at pay day + OC.

"on the other hand, only handed the ball off 8 times in the second half. Stupidity"

Won't miss Klien. He was playing to our weakness, pocket passing. Especially in the playoff game. That was OC malpractice.

Delete

Maroon Flash said:

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"on the other hand, only handed the ball off 8 times in the second half. Stupidity"

Won't miss Klien. He was playing to our weakness, pocket passing. Especially in the playoff game. That was OC malpractice.

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As a former QB, I think he struggles to reign in his desire to make the QB the hero. In our meltdown last year Reed dropped back over 40 times in every loss but texas. Over 50 times twice. Reed isn't that guy.

Quote:

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I imagine Elko is sitting pretty secure right now.

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Totally agree. Following the Jimbo Fisher model, as provided by the big donors, Elko is sitting on generational wealth.

Now, I don't think he's the type to just mail it in. I believe he wants to be successful. In spite of his physical appearance, he's actually quite a young man. Much younger than Jimbo. But let's not continue with some illusion that he is actually under some sort of pressure. He holds ALL the cards.

The only hope for 2026 is that the new OC is a quantum leap upgrade from Klein. And, moreover, that he is not blind to the limitations and uncertainties of Reed, while being curious and open to the other qbs already here or on the way. But 'hope', as we all have learned, is not a strategy.

CB, '67

I think Reed is a guy you have to develop an offense around. Trying to mold him into a passing qb isn't ever going to work. He makes the occasional good throw, but hitting spots is not his forte. He is more accurate down the field, but his receivers bailed him out of a lot of poor throws. His natural innate ability is to run, and when that is your first instinct, sitting in the pocket is never going to feel natural. Will we catch lightning in a bottle one year with him (next year)? Who knows, but not having a solid backup limits our options. Similar to when he came in for Wiggy; LSU had no answer for Reed bc of his scrambling capability. They didn't even think to scheme for him. I do think the playbook was limited bc of what Reed could produce; however, he is easier to scheme for towards the end of seasons bc of that.

IDK the answer; happy that we won 11 games, but this was an inevitable outcome IMO. You could see this ending from a mile away based on our inability to put 4 good quarters together in a single game.

We should be more concerned with our kicker situation IMO...

The Banned said:

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Maroon Flash said:

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"on the other hand, only handed the ball off 8 times in the second half. Stupidity"

Won't miss Klien. He was playing to our weakness, pocket passing. Especially in the playoff game. That was OC malpractice.

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As a former QB, I think he struggles to reign in his desire to make the QB the hero. In our meltdown last year Reed dropped back over 40 times in every loss but texas. Over 50 times twice. Reed isn't that guy.

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IMO y'all are forgetting a key factor in every game: the defense. They can't dictate everything to the offense, but they can do things like sell out to stop the run and play to contain a mobile QB

If that happens (and it did against the better teams we faced), the solution for every OC is to take what the defense is giving you and throw the ball. Klein was doing the smart thing, but our QB couldn't deliver.

I think it's telling that nobody's complaining that our WRs didn't get open, that we didn't use pre/post snap misdirection, that our WRs weren't fast enough or didn't have good enough hands this year. All that stuff was there.

What we lacked was a QB that could consistently deliver his end of the bargain

Paul Pierce Ag said:

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The Banned said:

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Maroon Flash said:

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"on the other hand, only handed the ball off 8 times in the second half. Stupidity"

Won't miss Klien. He was playing to our weakness, pocket passing. Especially in the playoff game. That was OC malpractice.

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As a former QB, I think he struggles to reign in his desire to make the QB the hero. In our meltdown last year Reed dropped back over 40 times in every loss but texas. Over 50 times twice. Reed isn't that guy.

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IMO y'all are forgetting a key factor in every game: the defense. They can't dictate everything to the offense, but they can do things like sell out to stop the run and play to contain a mobile QB

If that happens (and it did against the better teams we faced), the solution for every OC is to take what the defense is giving you and throw the ball. Klein was doing the smart thing, but our QB couldn't deliver.

I think it's telling that nobody's complaining that our WRs didn't get open, that we didn't use pre/post snap misdirection, that our WRs weren't fast enough or didn't have good enough hands this year. All that stuff was there.

What we lacked was a QB that could consistently deliver his end of the bargain

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We were able to manufacture first downs on the ground in both games. There weren't any big gains, which I think Klein is addicted to. In both games we started drives in the 3rd with the ground game. Got a first down. The threw 3 straight times and either punted or it was picked. I know 3 yards and a cloud of dust isn't sexy, but we were capable of doing it. And if we had committed to it, those throwing lanes would have started to open up. But we bailed on the run every single time.

Duckhook said:

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I understand that somebody proven might be a more attractive look, but how many of those guys are really out there, and does Elko seem like a guy who is going to go QB-hunting in the portal?

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Considering that he did it last year with Zeno, yes

Sorsby is the only 1 of those 4 you listed that I'd say is a sure upgrade

I think your bring in someone to replace O'Neill not Reed.

SunrayAg said:

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Heineken-Ashi said:

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SunrayAg said:

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Reed is 0-5 in games that advance the program in the last 2 years.

2024, win 1 of our last 3 conference games and we advance to the championship game. Went 0-3.

2025, win the final regular season game to advance to the conference championship game, went 0-1. Then had the worst game of his career in the playoff game, for 0-2.

I'd like to see what is behind door number 2, please.

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11-2 advanced the program whether your little girt temper tantrum can admit it or not. ON top of that, beating Notre Dame in South Bend advanced the program, as did beating LSU at home in 24 and in Death Valley in 25.

Getting to the playoffs absolutely advanced the program.

Run along now

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Have a little tantrum all you want. But in high pressure win and you advance to the championship level games, he is 0-5. Plays small in the biggest games. Melts under the brightest lights. Whatever you want to call it.

But yeah, sure, it was nice to beat up on the bottom tier where he could miss open receivers and win anyway. That was fun. Winning games that matter when the pressure is on… Nah, I guess we just shouldn't expect to win those anyway, right?

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Can literally hear your keyboard mashing. Calm down sweeite.

Paul Pierce Ag said:

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The Banned said:

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Maroon Flash said:

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"on the other hand, only handed the ball off 8 times in the second half. Stupidity"

Won't miss Klien. He was playing to our weakness, pocket passing. Especially in the playoff game. That was OC malpractice.

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As a former QB, I think he struggles to reign in his desire to make the QB the hero. In our meltdown last year Reed dropped back over 40 times in every loss but texas. Over 50 times twice. Reed isn't that guy.

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IMO y'all are forgetting a key factor in every game: the defense. They can't dictate everything to the offense, but they can do things like sell out to stop the run and play to contain a mobile QB

If that happens (and it did against the better teams we faced), the solution for every OC is to take what the defense is giving you and throw the ball. Klein was doing the smart thing, but our QB couldn't deliver.

I think it's telling that nobody's complaining that our WRs didn't get open, that we didn't use pre/post snap misdirection, that our WRs weren't fast enough or didn't have good enough hands this year. All that stuff was there.

What we lacked was a QB that could consistently deliver his end of the bargain

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I've mentioned plenty of times that never ran RB screens, failed to utilize the TE's in the seams (had them running curls, outs, and crosses instead of pressing against the leverage of the LB's), and lost all creativity in the offensive scheme starting with the SC game. Klein pretty much ran the offense he put on film all year.

Bassinagfan said:

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Reed can go, we've seen his peak.

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Blinn is calling !

CoachLB said:

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Bassinagfan said:

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Reed can go, we've seen his peak.

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I don't think we have seen Reeds peak. Remember when Bo Nix kept making stupid decisions at Auburn? He goes to Oregon and was great. Reeds problem is not a lack of talent. I hope Wiggins
And a new QB coach can turn his decision making around. I think the right coaching can.

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Do you consider hitting the side if a barn talent?

CoachLB said:

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Bassinagfan said:

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Reed can go, we've seen his peak.

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I don't think we have seen Reeds peak. Remember when Bo Nix kept making stupid decisions at Auburn? He goes to Oregon and was great. Reeds problem is not a lack of talent. I hope Wiggins
And a new QB coach can turn his decision making around. I think the right coaching can.

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Isn't it possible that some of this is addressed in the off season?

I thought he made some progress between this season and 2024.

Anecdotally he looked better this season, but the stats aren't really that much better (beyond him playing more, thus having more completions, attempts, & yards). His avg increased, but I'd venture a guess our YAC was much improved. He is part of the reason for that sure, but I just have a feeling our WRs were better based off the eyeball test.

I do think he looked better at times, but his bad moments were really rough. There is a lot of work to go do to take his game to the next level.

The problems with Marcel are:

1) Indecision/holding the ball too long. He passes up positive yards scrambling because he doesn't take the easy yards. This has led to sacks, weird fumbles or just throwing the ball away when he could have picked 5, 10, 20+ yards running.

2) extremely inaccurate in his check downs. In the Miami game alone we probably could have picked up 7-8 more first downs with simple check down passes. Instead he threw the ball over receivers/RB's heads or behind them stopping their forward momentum.

3) When the pocket/play breaks down and he throws on the run I have zero confidence of a completion. Once he starts to move his mechanics break down so bad a completion is unlikely. When JFF started to get flushed it almost always led to him taking off on a big run or a big completion. With Marcel I have little to no hope when the play goes off schedule.

When he came in for Weigman in the LSU game he excelled as he was decisive and was run focused. He tries to avoid running at all cost. That maybe offensive scheme as he is small framed and they are worried about injury? He is not going to put on weight and because of that and his other deficiencies I don't see the NFL calling him up early. If Elko is loyal to him we are in for 2 more seasons as outlined above unless he improves.

Law Of The Quad said:

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Mike Elko has a very difficult big decision to make Jan 2

The list of talented QB's in the portal is as high as it has ever been.
A&M will have a different offense next season Wiggins is not Klein.
If he and Wiggins want to buy a QB the shelf is full of talent.

Elko says Reed has room to grow, but do you put a season and maybe your job on potential?

Drew Mestemaker
Brendan Sorsby
Josh Hoover
DJ Lagaway

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Job on Potential??

LMAO

guaranteed $72 millions dollar

he will cop an attitude as bad as Jimbo had and do as his ego dictates

If Reed didn't get coaching it's Elko's job to fix. Don't **** on the player.

ag0207 said:

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The problems with Marcel are:

1) Indecision/holding the ball too long. He passes up positive yards scrambling because he doesn't take the easy yards. This has led to sacks, weird fumbles or just throwing the ball away when he could have picked 5, 10, 20+ yards running.

2) extremely inaccurate in his check downs. In the Miami game alone we probably could have picked up 7-8 more first downs with simple check down passes. Instead he threw the ball over receivers/RB's heads or behind them stopping their forward momentum.

3) When the pocket/play breaks down and he throws on the run I have zero confidence of a completion. Once he starts to move his mechanics break down so bad a completion is unlikely. When JFF started to get flushed it almost always led to him taking off on a big run or a big completion. With Marcel I have little to no hope when the play goes off schedule.

When he came in for Weigman in the LSU game he excelled as he was decisive and was run focused. He tries to avoid running at all cost. That maybe offensive scheme as he is small framed and they are worried about injury? He is not going to put on weight and because of that and his other deficiencies I don't see the NFL calling him up early. If Elko is loyal to him we are in for 2 more seasons as outlined above unless he improves.

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We had 89 yards rushing and they had 7 sacks. Why can't anyone with eyes see what our problems were. If we had 200 yards rushing and zero sacks we would be singing his praises. We need to focus on fixing what needs to be fixed and not listening to this terrible analysis.

Farmer_J said:

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Causaga

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Listed as 6'-0" and 200lbs, which means he's more like 5'-10" and 185lbs. Not impressive in his last game, could have just been "one of those games", but I'm highly suspect on this kid to play WB in the SEC. A bonus would be if we can get his 5* WR, Jerome Myles, flipped from USC.

rootube said:

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ag0207 said:

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The problems with Marcel are:

1) Indecision/holding the ball too long. He passes up positive yards scrambling because he doesn't take the easy yards. This has led to sacks, weird fumbles or just throwing the ball away when he could have picked 5, 10, 20+ yards running.

2) extremely inaccurate in his check downs. In the Miami game alone we probably could have picked up 7-8 more first downs with simple check down passes. Instead he threw the ball over receivers/RB's heads or behind them stopping their forward momentum.

3) When the pocket/play breaks down and he throws on the run I have zero confidence of a completion. Once he starts to move his mechanics break down so bad a completion is unlikely. When JFF started to get flushed it almost always led to him taking off on a big run or a big completion. With Marcel I have little to no hope when the play goes off schedule.

When he came in for Weigman in the LSU game he excelled as he was decisive and was run focused. He tries to avoid running at all cost. That maybe offensive scheme as he is small framed and they are worried about injury? He is not going to put on weight and because of that and his other deficiencies I don't see the NFL calling him up early. If Elko is loyal to him we are in for 2 more seasons as outlined above unless he improves.

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We had 89 yards rushing and they had 7 sacks. Why can't anyone with eyes see what our problems were. If we had 200 yards rushing and zero sacks we would be singing his praises. We need to focus on fixing what needs to be fixed and not listening to this terrible analysis.

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You always take what the defense gives you. Miami was giving us open WRs (and 1:1s) both downfield and in the short game. Reed couldn't take what the Miami D was willfully giving up

DGrimesAg92 said:

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Farmer_J said:

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Causaga

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A bonus would be if we can get his 5* WR, Jerome Myles, flipped from USC.

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Are you trolling or you seriously not know what you're talking about?

BCR said:

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You don't think Reed is the answer but Lagway is?
Doesn't make sense.

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I think Lagway would run circles around Reed.
Get some W's, get the confidence back, get some momentum going….and look out, here comes the guy everyone expected

greg.w.h said:

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If Reed didn't get coaching it's Elko's job to fix. Don't **** on the player.

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Or maybe he got plenty of coaching, and he reverts to his old self when things get uncomfortable

TxAg76 said:

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BCR said:

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You don't think Reed is the answer but Lagway is?
Doesn't make sense.

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I think Lagway would run circles around Reed.
Get some W's, get the confidence back, get some momentum going….and look out, here comes the guy everyone expected

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Based on what? His performance from this year?

AgsMnn said:

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Is Starkel still playing?

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You didn't get the memo? He's ass my dude. Need go after Tate Martell instead.

We lost by 10 at tu and by 7 to Miami and our offensive play calling was mostly to blame in my opinion. We hardly ever threw the ball to RBs. None of the things Reed did at ND or in the second half vs SC were evident in the 2 close losses. We got real conservative and hardly threw to the TEs or anything over the middle. The Texans offense struggled early but got better as the season progressed. I think Kliens offense hardly ever changed and basically ran out of gas both years. A top Play caller at OC would have used Reed and the skill players better and I hope next season is improved. Reed can win the SEC with better options and variety.

Elko is great at adjustments and motivation and I think we can handle the slightly harder schedule. All of the SEC are playing 9 games and I can see us getting to 5-0 and 8-0 overall before that tough final 4 games. Reed was better than Manning this year and should be again next year.

LincolnBorglum79 said:

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We lost by 10 at tu and by 7 to Miami and our offensive play calling was mostly to blame in my opinion. We hardly ever threw the ball to RBs. None of the things Reed did at ND or in the second half vs SC were evident in the 2 close losses. We got real conservative and hardly threw to the TEs or anything over the middle. The Texans offense struggled early but got better as the season progressed. I think Kliens offense hardly ever changed and basically ran out of gas both years. A top Play caller at OC would have used Reed and the skill players better and I hope next season is improved. Reed can win the SEC with better options and variety.

Elko is great at adjustments and motivation and I think we can handle the slightly harder schedule. All of the SEC are playing 9 games and I can see us getting to 5-0 and 8-0 overall before that tough final 4 games. Reed was better than Manning this year and should be again next year.

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Why do so many people think that when Reed makes piss poor decisions on any given pass play, that it's somehow the OC's fault as a "bad play call"?

The OC makes a play call, and thats pretty much where it ends.
After that, he's trusting QB1 with their decision making pre and post-snap.
He's not telling QB1 where to throw it, that's a QB1 decision depending on what happens thru the course of the play.

Bassinagfan said:

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Reed can go, we've seen his peak.

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Certainly been terrible more than not against the good defenses. We could easily lose in the 1st round either of the next 2 years if we make the playoffs with him at QB at all again. Half the time can't hit the ocean from the beach with his arm. Get him running outside the pocket and better than 50% chance he throws a grounder.

Reed is a good dude. He gives 100% effort. He just isn't a SEC QB1. He's at best a BDF Conference QB which means he's JV while SEC is the elite Varsity.

We admit our schedule was weak. Reed playing tougher schedule will not end well for us. Cut the rope and sail away.

Let's get the best QB in the portal. It shouldn't be hard to get a Top 3 QB and I am certain they'd love to play wearing maroon.