Wow, I expected better grades. I thought JC was at a B-. He was playing smart and had some great throws (yes, I know he missed an open long ball), but he had half a dozen balls dropped. And what was wrong with CW's game plan? You might like swing passes and 4 and long calls, but he moved the ball up the middle because he could and balanced the run with passes.
I, too, am not a fan of the swing pass. The only ones who are fans of the swing passes are the other teams' dbs who get a running start in order to clobber our receivers.
Jimmy might have scrambled away from pressure a bit too often, but at least he showed some escapability and the presence of mind to just throw the ball away when he was outside of the tacklebox. I agree that the grade was a little low for him.
Am i the only one disappointed that Darrin Bragg was only out there for two plays? I love Zibby as much as anyone, but Bragg was moved to a position he didn't like and dropped football. He came back to help out Charlie and the team. I wish he was able to throw a pass before he graduated.
I feel like if Zibby had broke one big it would have been more special. It was still cool to see him play QB. I agree these grades are a little harsh and am a little more optimistic about this team.
I think my views were probably colored by the fact that midway through the second quarter it was still anybody's game. Only after Duke fumbled twice did the game turn our way.
In other words, the game was relatively close. And a relatively close game with 1-9 Duke does not exactly instill confidence.
What a fitting way for Travis Thomas to end his last home game.
And Clausen should have rolled a B- as Milo suggested. He made some nice very passes (especially the one to Parris in the first half which would have been a huge first down...I think it was 3rd and 15, and would have picked up around 20) that were pathetically dropped. That's gotta kill his confidence and rhythm a little, and is reason enough to run the receivers grade to D-.
Hoss: I believe that was 4th and 15, and yes, that was a beautiful pass right on Parris' hands. Even my six-year-old daughter asked how he could have dropped it! You could see, though, that Jimmy was pissed that the pass was dropped.
Luke: The same thing happened with Clemson, though. Duke hung around with Clemson for most of the first half and then completely disintegrated with a minute to go in the first half. And that game was at Clemson, too, with much better game conditions.
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