O'Sullivan's path to top built upon doggedness

Shapecity · Aug 17, 2008

SANTA CLARA – See if this sounds familiar: Three quarterbacks vie to be the starter. No one emerges immediately. But in the end, a dark horse named J.T. O'Sullivan charges from the back of the pack and wins the job.

While that seems to be how the 49ers' quarterback race is playing out – O'Sullivan makes his second consecutive exhibition start tonight against Green Bay – it also was the scenario at UC Davis nearly a decade ago.

In the spring of 1999, the Aggies sought a replacement for quarterback Kevin Daft, who had left for the NFL. The candidates included: Bryan Paul, a transfer from Washington; Ken Kearns, Daft's primary backup; and O'Sullivan, a lightly recruited redshirt sophomore from Jesuit High School who had thrown just five mop-up passes the year before. O'Sullivan started the competition as No. 3. Friend and teammate Charley Enos, however, remembers the quarterback's determination not to end up there.

"He would say all the time, 'I'm sick of this. I want to be playing. I want to start. So I'm going to do whatever I can,' " said Enos, one of O'Sullivan's favorite targets at UC Davis.

According to Enos, O'Sullivan was a "good-sized" quarterback as a freshman with a strong arm. When the season ended, O'Sullivan transformed himself, trading bulk for the speed and maneuverability he thought he needed in coach Bob Biggs' system.

The three-way competition was a stalemate early on. But after spring practices, O'Sullivan began to pull away.

"There was something about him, even when he first came here," Biggs said. "There was just an air of confidence. And that's something you look for in a quarterback. Some would say it's arrogance. But it's not arrogance. It's confidence. And his confidence comes from his preparation."

There are several reasons why O'Sullivan has run the 49ers' first-team offense in recent weeks and must be considered the front-runner to start the regular-season opener Sept. 7 against Arizona. He has command of the offense, having played in it last year in Detroit. He has the quick-flick release that's common to offensive coordinator Mike Martz's former protégés. And he is accurate, a trait that Martz has said is paramount in his system.

Then there's O'Sullivan's personality, a hot topic of conversation in recent weeks. His take-charge demeanor – his control of the huddle, lining up his offensive mates – caught coach Mike Nolan's attention this spring. Teammates have noticed it as well.

"There's no doubt he knows what he's doing," guard Tony Wragge said. "I don't know how long he's spent with (this offense). But you can tell he knows it. He's very confident. And that's huge."

That confidence not only won him the job at UC Davis, where he holds the school record with 11,544 total yards, it won him the admiration of teammates.

"He demands respect from everyone else in the huddle," said Onome Ojo, another former Aggies wide receiver. "No one talks when J.T.'s talking, and if they are, they're not talking for long."

In separate interviews, Biggs, Enos and Ojo singled out the 2000 Causeway Classic against Sacramento State, a game that was played in what Biggs described as a monsoon at Hughes Stadium. There was driving rain and a 30-mph wind, and the Aggies' high-powered passing attack literally was bogged down in deep mud.

It was one of O'Sullivan's worst games, statistically, but one he would not let the Aggies lose. Midway through the third quarter, O'Sullivan huddled the offense. "He said, 'We're going to make this play, and we're going to celebrate in the end zone,' " Ojo recalled.

On the ensuing play, O'Sullivan hit Ojo for an 80-yard touchdown. The Aggies won 13-10, preserving their undefeated regular season. "It was like the clouds parted for that one instant," Ojo said.

For Biggs, there is sense that each of O'Sullivan's previous NFL stints – he has appeared on eight rosters – has been derailed by outside influences and that this is O'Sullivan's best opportunity.

O'Sullivan was picked in the sixth round by New Orleans in 2002. Two years later, the Saints traded him to Green Bay. But when Aaron Rodgers – today's first-string counterpart – unexpectedly fell to the Packers in the first round of the 2005 draft, O'Sullivan became expendable.

He was picked up by the Vikings later that year. However, his advocate in Minnesota, head coach Mike Tice, was fired at the end of the season.

"You can get stereotyped very quickly," Biggs said. "After a couple of teams, there's a sense that you're just a journeyman."

O'Sullivan doesn't appreciate the "journeyman" label, but he doesn't want to be known as a victim of circumstances, either.

"To be honest with you, I haven't sat down and thought about it and evaluated each little situation, as far as what happened in each organization," he said. "But … if it didn't work out somewhere, then my attitude was that I just wasn't good enough to make that team. Anything else is an excuse."
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Source: SacBee

Charles · Aug 22, 2008

I'd like to see what Smith can do with a good offensive coordinator again. He played best after he and Norv Turner got used to each other.

That being said, O'Sullivan has played well so far and they are probably not going to compete for a Super Bowl anytime soon. Maybe they can get lucky and strike gold.

bbwtrench · Aug 27, 2008

Can Martz make O'Suv the next big thing? LETS GO NINERS!!!

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O'Sullivan's path to top built upon doggedness

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O'Sullivan's path to top built upon doggedness

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Charles Buster Posey Fan

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