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What do we gain by taking our lumps this year? 

Arnett gives you a very good 3rd receiver, right?

Worley should be a better prepared back-up.

The OL has to be better

RBs?

Secondary, are we getting younger folks then we would want experience.

Arnett gives you some hope because Hunter and Rogers made big leaps from last year to this year. I think the staff would prefer to sign JUCO Cordarelle Patterson and get him on the field with JH and DR. Patterson is a gamebreaker.

Honestly, I don't read anything into Worley because I think in the end burning his redshirt is going to prove to be a useless move. I don't think he was any better than Simms. This team needs Tyler Bray. If we have to play the backup next year it'll be bad.

The normal progression is that the OL will be better, but every single person here thought that this year. I will wait and see. I'm not sure if it's Hiestand or what but they have to fix the OL. Too much talent there to see what we are seeing.

RBs... Marlin Lane has shown zilch and we don't appear to be in on a gamechanger.

In the secondary we just need playmakers at safety. Losing Janzen was disaster. I think Lanier is going to be a good player. Ditto Coleman. Ditto Randolph. We are young back there. But we need an eraser at safety.

I can look at next year and be positive but we will have to stay healthy and they have to fix the running game at any cost. I've been pleasantly surprised with the front seven but we lose Malik. We really need to sign Jacobs, Autry, and Sentimore to go with what we have coming back. At LB I think we are good barring injury.

What this season has taught me is not to count on improved performance just because people are coming back, so I'll wait and see. The schedule next year isn't as brutal.

Worley showed me a couple things.

1. He is a true freshman. Made some typical mistakes.

2. He can throw the football down the field with accuracy. Will be a better #2 next year than Simms was this year. 

I thought Worley also did a decent job of getting rid of the ball and throwing it away instead of taking a sack.  The rcvr on the 1st interception ran a horrible route for that kind of timing pass.  I think the kid has some potential.  It seems like a no brainer to play him and see how he develops.  Right now he is as good as Simms, and we pretty much know Simms is not going to progress.

Agree that burning the RS for Worley is a debateable move.  His stats (though based on one game) are worse in every catergory than those of Sims, andthe move was widely panned in the press on Sunday, and I for once agree with the press.


As for people coming back, it will help for sure.  The problem with the people coming back this year is that tehy all got injured. 

Can't wait to see what video games come out in 2012.  :dunno:

I beg to differ on one point. Worley can be much better than Simms and I think he's better than Simms now. Worley doesn't know the offense as well and probably has freshman nerves but I have never seen anything from Simms that indicates he can play SEC football. I cringe every time he goes to pass. He either is going to throw an interception or get hit from behind and fumble. IMBEFO (in my barely educated football opinion) I'd rather take our chances with Worley.

Perhaps we shouldn't have burned his redshirt and for the good of the future just suffered with Simms. But it's agony watching him play.

On the first comment above, I think you miss the important point that one of them is a freshman and the other is a 5th year senior. If they are playing at the same level right now, you can at least expect that experience and development can improve the freshman.

On the second, you are dead on. We had high expectations for the OL and it probably wasn't justified (though it still surprises me that we haven't seen more improvement). Fans should be more cautious about this, as some players simply don't progress as rapidly as others, and don't handle new responsibilities as well as others.

Nope, I don't believe I missed any important point. I do not think that Worley will be any better than Simms at any point this year, and I do not think that Worley will win any games that Simms would've lost this year. I think they are about the same RIGHT NOW. I do not think Worley will be the same as a senior as Simms is as a senior... I recognize that there is more upside to Worley. I think that if there were no redshirt in the discussion I could see going with the young guy, but I still say taking the redshirt off was a debatable move. What's done is done now.

I tend to agree with Revolver to a point. And if it were a lock that Bray will be back by Vandy week, I'd agree completely.

But I think that if Bray isn't back by Vandy, taking the redshirt off Worley and getting him into the game was a good move. We weren't going to beat Alabama regardless of which QB we had on the field, probably weren't going to beat South Carolina with either, and probably won't beat Arkansas with either. You HOPE we could beat MTSU with either, but frankly this game scares the crap out of me right now. IMO, Worley improved from the first quarter to the fourth quarter last week. We're probably going to need a better QB than Simms to beat Vandy. Hopefully, with the experience he's getting against USC-MTSU-Arky, Worley will be a good enough QB to beat them.

I saw some flashes of really good things out of Worley Saturday. That deep ball that Rogers dropped...wow. Considering that was his first long throw at the collegiate level, in that situation... Worley flat out SUCKED in the first quarter. I wanted them to put Simms back in. But as the game progressed, he got a little better. Granted, he still made terrible decisions in the second half that ultimately cost us the ballgame, but I think he's going to be okay once he gets some game experience under his belt.

The question is whether our receivers will be able to start getting some separation and give him some targets to throw to. I'm extremely disappointed in our receiving corps right now. Next to our OL, I think this unit is the most disappointing part of the team.

Assuming that Bray doesn't come back at all, I guess I could allow for the possibility that playing Worley was probably the best move, but in the end I don't think we are going to gain any wins out of it.

Anyway it's just my opinion and it's done, so it's not worth debating much more at this point. The original post was 10EC looking for positives with regard to the backup QB and I don't care what Worley does the rest of the year, if we don't play Tyler Bray next year we aren't going to reach any goals IMHO. All of the spin by people about how Simms managed the running game better and Worley was more cerebral is laughable.

As to Pirate's comment about Marlin Lane... Most consistent since Hardesty? We've only had one back since Hardesty before Lane. I don't get it, don't see it, and am extremely disappointed with him. I think he runs up the back of the linemen. I think Poole has been clearly better than Lane and Poole has stunk for the most part. Lane has been a disappointment to me. I expected more. Maybe he'll get better next year but generally stud running backs are studs when they are frosh.

Moore not being in shape hurt some, but he isn't Janzen. This team is devoid of playmakers in the secondary and at running back, and at QB and WR since the injuries.

We're all missing the biggest point of all. All this talk of 2012 and no one has mentioned the biggest factor which will affect our postseason game chances. Will the end of the world come before or after the SEC Championship?

Do I detect a note of disagreement?  :dielaughing:

I don't disagree that Worley has the potential to be better than Simms, and he flashed that potential in the second half against USC.   

But the fact is, that in a QUANTIFIABLE way, right now, he is worse than Simms.  Period, dot.  He has a lower pass completion percentage, lower yards per completion, more int's per attempt and a lower pass rating.  There is nothing to debate! 

And Droner, I understand your POV, but Simms does not throw ints on every play.  This year he only has three in the two games he started, though that is bad enough I suppose.  Well Worley has two in half the attempts, so I guess that's a case in point.

My disagreement with starting Worley is that IMO it does not really add up to make sense for the team.  It didn't really improve our chance of beating USC, IMO.  Not at all.  I think Simms arguably played better the two drives he was in for.

And for that matter, even if the staff is hot and heavy to get Worley into the game, why not bring him in off the bench if Simms is ineffective (which he would be, but maybe we score a TD on the first pick Worley threw???)

Anyway...the point is no one is arguing that Worley is not more talented than Simms...he just isn't any more effective as a true frosh with ZERO COLLEGE PASS ATTEMPTS ( :rolleyes:) than Simms, and in fact did a bit worse IMO.

The decision to start him was a head scratcher.

It does make sense if certain other considerations played a role in the decision, but I am not going there in this thread.  Maybe later.   :biggrin:

The reason I believe that Worley is playing is that while Simms "knows" the offense he can't execute it.  Yes, he threw only a few picks but SEVERAL other throws should have been picks and the others were late or badly thrown.  In short, the passing game was a DISASTER with Simms.  Hell, even Saturday night on a simple out pattern he was late by at least a count and a throw that should have been made to the numbers ended up being thrown at the sideline, incomplete.  In fact, of all throws Simms attempted Satuday night only one (1) was on time and on direction, the seam route to Arnett.  Worley,after his early over hype wore off was far more accurate and on time with his throws.  His biggest issue was seeing the field, understandable in his frst real action.  Simms can see the field but is not able toexecute what he sees.  THAT is why Simms was sitting on the bench.

right.  But it was a worse disaster with Worley IMO.  So what did we gain?