- Oct 8, 2017
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Stewart Mandel has a pay site @ The Athletic. I’ve found it’s definitely worth it.
They just hired a Florida “beat” writer, which I put in quotes to compare it to the typical non-reporting we get locally (meaning throughout Florida papers).
Today he did an in depth piece on former Mullen QBs and their take on the behind the scenes battle for the starting job. It’s a good start for the new writer (he comes from MSU beat):
https://theathletic.com/434073/2018...-competition-history-tyson-lee-joshua-harris/
Harris paused briefly after saying that, interrupted the tale of his story and offered an opinion on Florida’s quarterback race.
“So with those three guys,” Harris said, “if one throws the ball really well and doesn’t run really well, then he is going to play some. If the other guy runs really well but he is not the best thrower of the football, he is going to play some. If another guy has all the intangibles — the leadership — he is going to play some, too. Until one of those guys separates himself to the point where they say we cannot have this guy on the sideline for any amount of time unless it was because of injury, then it will just be a competition all the time.”
. . .
And, oh, by the way, he was facing a live rush [at practice].
“I don’t think he could ever say that I wasn’t tough,” Lee said. “He doesn’t pull punches. If you’re soft, you’re not going to play. He will make that known. You are going to be able to take a lick and get back up.
. . .
Mullen’s offense is heavily dependent on timing. A major adjustment Lee needed to make was with his footwork and rhythm. Mullen wanted precision on his “1, 2, 3, throw” passing plays out of the snap, and Lee struggled with that.
“There was a way he wanted it to be done, and if you extended too much or was too short, it would throw the timing off, and so that drove him nuts,” Lee said. “If you did it right, and he often showed Florida film with Tebow doing it, it was money all time.”
. . .
“He was so relentless, man,” Lee said. “He really was. The expectations were so high. He was so demanding, and that would be another way to put it. It was so hard. I do not, in any way, wish I was one of those Florida quarterbacks right now. They hate it. I promise you. The number of times I wanted to quit? Endless.”
They just hired a Florida “beat” writer, which I put in quotes to compare it to the typical non-reporting we get locally (meaning throughout Florida papers).
Today he did an in depth piece on former Mullen QBs and their take on the behind the scenes battle for the starting job. It’s a good start for the new writer (he comes from MSU beat):
https://theathletic.com/434073/2018...-competition-history-tyson-lee-joshua-harris/
Harris paused briefly after saying that, interrupted the tale of his story and offered an opinion on Florida’s quarterback race.
“So with those three guys,” Harris said, “if one throws the ball really well and doesn’t run really well, then he is going to play some. If the other guy runs really well but he is not the best thrower of the football, he is going to play some. If another guy has all the intangibles — the leadership — he is going to play some, too. Until one of those guys separates himself to the point where they say we cannot have this guy on the sideline for any amount of time unless it was because of injury, then it will just be a competition all the time.”
. . .
And, oh, by the way, he was facing a live rush [at practice].
“I don’t think he could ever say that I wasn’t tough,” Lee said. “He doesn’t pull punches. If you’re soft, you’re not going to play. He will make that known. You are going to be able to take a lick and get back up.
. . .
Mullen’s offense is heavily dependent on timing. A major adjustment Lee needed to make was with his footwork and rhythm. Mullen wanted precision on his “1, 2, 3, throw” passing plays out of the snap, and Lee struggled with that.
“There was a way he wanted it to be done, and if you extended too much or was too short, it would throw the timing off, and so that drove him nuts,” Lee said. “If you did it right, and he often showed Florida film with Tebow doing it, it was money all time.”
. . .
“He was so relentless, man,” Lee said. “He really was. The expectations were so high. He was so demanding, and that would be another way to put it. It was so hard. I do not, in any way, wish I was one of those Florida quarterbacks right now. They hate it. I promise you. The number of times I wanted to quit? Endless.”