Hard to say. Bennett throws harder, but he was playing with 3rd stringers and scout team players and they don't play together so it was like a scrimmage. Mariota looked good. Stands tall in the pocket and is accurate but doesn't have much zip on the ball. He runs pretty well and between he & Bennett it's a draw. I can see why he's the starter but I think Bennett is closer than we think.
The reason Bennett isn't starting is mental.... he's emotional to a fault where Marcus is one cool cat. In the spring game Bennett looked destroyed everytime he made a mistake where Marcus looked totally in control..... The QB's are the leaders and in rough water they must button eveything down, thus in my eyes where Marcus won the job. 18-22... 200 yards and 2td's no picks.... unless Mariota gets hurt.... Bennett will be the backup.... This also goes a long way to me understanding why Chip didn't try harder to talk DT out of leaving for the pros..... Chip knew what he had waiting in the wings....
I noticed that about Mariota's release as well, but the guy is just so accurate and I don't think he made a single bad pass in that game. He was solid. Hopefully his release improves as we move forward.
I don't know what game you guys are watching but I didn't see anything wrong with release or how hard Mariota throws. I was told and read Mariota has a very catchable ball and can throw farther then Bennett. I love the way Mariota throws. I have only seen him in the spring game and 1 1/2 qtr's of the opener but I couldn't be happier with his play. I think it was with the Huff TD or DAT can't remember but I could see it perfectly from the angle where I was sitting. I thought it was one of the best passes I had seen in a few years and with Mariota already passing well I thought to myself we finally have the QB for CK offense. Mariota's passes are on the money almost every time. Even when a couple of the passes were a little off his passes were caught because of how he throws. Bennett was throwing way to hard on a few of those passes last game. I do think it is very unfair to try to even compare them though. Bennett really didn't have as much to work with. I think CK should have left Mariota in the whole first half and have Bennett start the second half with at least a couple starters and taken them out after maybe 1/2 qtr or so. I think both Bennett and Mariota are better runners and passers then D.Thomas. The thing Thomas had was his ability to not throw many interceptions and stay cool under pressure. From what I have seen so far Mariota has those ablilties with also being a more skilled passer/runner. We will have to see how he handles it in the big games coming up later in the year. I'm not sure if Bennett, Mariota or even D.Thomas could win the game at USC. I am a little more encouraged after seeing Mariota play. It's early but I have a feeling we are watching the start of one of the best QB's in the history of Oregon or at least the best CK has had which includes 3 pretty good QB's. I was always disappointed in our WR play with Thomas. I think Mariota might make me change my mind with our receivers. They seem to be catching everything thrown to them Saturday night when Mariota was in. Usually there would be drops all over the place probably partially the way DT threw the ball. I do think Bennett might still transfer but hopefully he waits until next year if he does decide to transfer.
It just seemed like he floats the ball a bit. It's not a bullet. I don't think it will be a big problem in college, but it could prove to be problematic for him in the pros. A good CB should have enough time to pick it off.... but seriously, I'm not complaining. The guy is a star. I think he's going to be very very good for UO.
He both floats and aims his passes. A decent PAC-12 defense would have picked a couple of his passes for sure.
I don't think he aims his passes at all. I thought he lead or passes the ball to the perfect spot. When he needed more power on his passes he did. Considering this was his first start as a redshirt freshman I couldn't be happier. Dixon wasn't this good until his senior year and Masoli and D.Thomas never played this well. Thomas did have games that were close and at a lot tougher opponent. We will see and he might struggle against tougher defenders. I also think your underestimating ASU. I think they are a lot better then we made them look. They play at Neb in a couple weeks and I'm guessing they will play them close. I don't think we should compare Bennett to Mariota this first game but if you had any worries it should only be with Bennett.
I do think Mariota will have more interceptions then D.Thomas. I just think CK is going to change his offense to his players strength. I like Barner and love DAT but they just are not deep enough at RB or as good with as many carries as James. He has a great passer in Mariota and I can see us passing way more then we have in a long time which will probably mean more interceptions.
I think it's Marcus's first game and his zip will increase with having more comfort running the offense. He didn't make mistakes, played smart and got the "FIRST" win under his belt.... I think you'll see this kid grow every single week!
yup... the way he throws with accuracy + touch and makes it look easy is why I compared him to Montana in another thread. Like Bennet he's got plenty of arm for the throws that demand it (deep balls etc), he's just got good feel for throwing shorter catchable passes too by being accurate while taking heat off his fastball. Thats something BB has shown problems with And btw... of the few incompletions he had, at least three were drops. STOMP
I've been very high on this kid since we recruited him and baring injury Mariota will be the greatest DUCK qb we've had and in my opinion will win the Heisman in two years or by graduation.... Ducks will also win a national championship on his watch.... Poise and football IQ matters a ton, and this kid has it!
Maybe. If we lack a good inside running game he will have to pass more. But once he learns when to apply some mustard on the ball (if he can) and changes the path of the ball then he'll be the complete package. I like his game a lot.
I agree about a lack of inside running. We might be able to run some inside but not like we have in the last 2-3 years. Like I posted earlier about Mariota. He does have the arm strength IMO from the few times I saw when he needed to make the hard pass. I'm sure he will have at least one or two games where he struggles a little but what freshman QB's don't at some point. IMO CK should let Mariota at least play the whole first half and I would even suggest the first drive of the 2nd half and then replace him with Bennett if we are up a lot. I would also like to see Bennett with the starters for at least one drive.
haven't you seen MM throw the ball 70+ yards in HS highlights? He's only bigger/stronger now... I don't know how anyone can questioning his arm strength be it Costa or BB, you seem to like the guy who has been passed over STOMP
I said he was floating it. I don't know if I'd say that's about arm strength. I don't think anyone was saying he can't throw far, just noticing the speed at which his throws are getting there.
I heard he can throw it farther and more accurate with more touch(catchable) then Bennett from more then one person. Mariota HS highlight video's is what got me excited about him. It looked like he was the perfect QB for CK's system. I was talking to some friends last year to watch his highlights and they said no need to even if he is good Bennett will win the starting QB. They are now his biggest fan but I still sort of mention it to them each time they say how good he is.
Why do I think that Mariota is going to outright beat Price and Barkley when they come to blows? I mean, seriously, this kid has IT.
