Will Zollers give opponents a deep pass threat?

[winonsports]

Mizzou running the table and going 10-2 means wins over a #3-ranked Texas A&M and a top-ranked Oklahoma team. That alone should be enough to get them in the TOP 12 at season's end.

Especially when you combine it with the inevitable losses from teams from the other conferences

[mdkieffer]

It seemed like the protection for Zollers was good enough the way he navigates the pocket to go through his reads and go downfield. He looked good back there. And he throws a nice ball. Our pass protection hadn’t seemed that great all year, but it makes you wonder if that’s just an advantage Zollers has over Pribula. Maybe Pribula just doesn’t have the footwork and the patience / vision that Zollers has. If that’s the case Zollers has a BRIGHT future.

I wish Zollers had an easier next game to help get his footing, but it’s A&M and that’s life in the SEC. It’s also a great opportunity. Hope he’s able to get it done.

Ok, here's the deal:

-BP was running for his life on virtually every pass play for at least the last three games. I think the pass protection "hadn't seemed that great" is a significant understatement.
-Zollers looked good considering the circumstances (thrown into the action for the first time as a freshman). But, I don't quite understand those who are declaring him to be vastly better than BP, based on one half of playing time. I think he will be good in time, but I would be amazed if he doesn't struggle a lot over the next four games.

There you have it.

Pribula would leave the pocket at the drop of a hat, never stepped up, and often times held the ball too long. It’s hard to block for a guy when you never know where he’s going to be. Also, deep balls tend to be 50/50 plays and you don’t set school records for consecutive completions by throwing 50/50 balls. Simple fly/go patterns really don’t need much time. A lot of QB’s struggle with wanting the receiver to get open BEFORE they throw and with the shrinking definition of open as the level of competition increases. My concern with Zollers is the fact in his mop up playing time, all he was allowed to do was hand off and throw very limited dump passes.

especially when he is going to his right and on the run he cannot throw....usually blooped passes over the receivers head

[mdkieffer]

It seemed like the protection for Zollers was good enough the way he navigates the pocket to go through his reads and go downfield. He looked good back there. And he throws a nice ball. Our pass protection hadn’t seemed that great all year, but it makes you wonder if that’s just an advantage Zollers has over Pribula. Maybe Pribula just doesn’t have the footwork and the patience / vision that Zollers has. If that’s the case Zollers has a BRIGHT future.

I wish Zollers had an easier next game to help get his footing, but it’s A&M and that’s life in the SEC. It’s also a great opportunity. Hope he’s able to get it done.

Ok, here's the deal:

-BP was running for his life on virtually every pass play for at least the last three games. I think the pass protection "hadn't seemed that great" is a significant understatement.
-Zollers looked good considering the circumstances (thrown into the action for the first time as a freshman). But, I don't quite understand those who are declaring him to be vastly better than BP, based on one half of playing time. I think he will be good in time, but I would be amazed if he doesn't struggle a lot over the next four games.

There you have it.

Pribula would leave the pocket at the drop of a hat, never stepped up, and often times held the ball too long. It’s hard to block for a guy when you never know where he’s going to be. Also, deep balls tend to be 50/50 plays and you don’t set school records for consecutive completions by throwing 50/50 balls. Simple fly/go patterns really don’t need much time. A lot of QB’s struggle with wanting the receiver to get open BEFORE they throw and with the shrinking definition of open as the level of competition increases. My concern with Zollers is the fact in his mop up playing time, all he was allowed to do was hand off and throw very limited dump passes.

Pribula has been a failure, TBH. And I had high hopes for him after the KU game in which he stood in there and delivered dimes under pressure into tight coverage. What happened to make him so skittish and scatter-armed since?

we now know why he was a back up at Penn State.

[Armchair QB]

Zollers so far hurt a little by Texas A&M holding and getting away with it. But with 1 half almost over, he looks like a true freshman in his 1st start vs the #3 team and best pass rush in the country. Pretty shaky.