Anthony Brown will be Oregon's starting quarterback in 2021, and some fans are deeply skeptical.
They've expressed concerns about his accuracy, his stats at Boston college and his potential as a PAC-12 starter.
The doubts are unfounded.
Three things indicate Brown will be a success at Oregon, effective and productive in Joe Moorhead's offense:
1. His statistics at Boston College dramatically improved in every key category.
As a redshirt freshman Brown completed just 51.9% of his passes. As a soph, 55.4%. In his junior year, 59.1%.
In his 23 attempts at Oregon last season the grad transfer connected on 65.2% of his throws.
Similarly, Brown's passer rating and TD/INT ratio climbed at BC every season. His rating jumped from an inadequate 103.5 as a freshman to a robust 154.5 in his junior year. As a freshman Brown tossed 11 TD passes with 9 interceptions; as a junior, 9 TDs, 2 picks.
Last week at the Manning Passing Academy Tyler Shough indicated that he didn't have a good working relationship with Joe Moorhead, a renown tutor of quarterbacks who has cranked out highly productive offenses and great quarterback numbers at every stop.
Brown seems ready to listen and learn, and the growth in his numbers suggest he's extremely teachable.
2. He's experienced and mature.
Brown was 6-2, 196 as a freshman prospect in 2016. Today he's a sixth-year senior with 28 career starts, 6-3, 226.
His supporting cast at Oregon is much better.
At BC, AB had a really good running back in AJ Dillon, a 6-0, 247-pound running back who rushed for 4,382 yards in three seasons with 40 career touchdowns.
Dillon, however, was the only 4-star in the Eagle's starting offense. The offensive line included a pair of two-star players and three three-stars. The receivers were all 3-stars.
At Oregon, Brown is the point guard for an offense full of high-flying talent. All he has to do is be the distributor, and he has the savvy to do that.
Anthony Brown didn't have The Katle-Monster at Boston College. He didn't have Troy Franklin, Devon Williams, Jaylon Redd, Mycah Pittman, Spencer Webb, JJIII, or Travis Dye.
He has a nice gliding running style and good vision. He should thrive in Moorhead's offense, and the numbers will be better than most expect.
Thanks for giving us perspective on the level of talent surrounding Brown at BC. A sixth year senior with all this experienced talent around him at Oregon?
ReplyDeleteI think he will surprise a lot of Oregon fans. Great stuff, thanks. FD
Charles, thanks for being the first to comment at the newly revived DSH. I'm really looking forward to seeing the Oregon/Joe Moorhead offense in 2021 and I believe Brown is a great story.
ReplyDeleteThe OOC games set up nicely for Brown to get confidence. A nice home start against an OK Fesno St.and then on the road to tOSU. That will be a great test before league games. After that a return to beloved Autzen to relax in an expected blowout of Stony Brook. A chance for everyone to gain game experience.
ReplyDeleteI know most people are thinking about the Buckeyes, but to me, the season is all about those 9 games we play in the Pac12.
Those 3 games set up nicely for AB to get ready for this important season.
If we win or lose at tOSU, we still need to take care of business in the Pac12. In 2010, with Darren Thomas starting for the first time, we had a similar OOC schedule. Home vs New Mexico, on the road at Tennessee, and home again against Ptld St. It set up DT for success.
I hope it's the same magic for AB.
That's a great comparison to DT. I think Brown can give them a similar type of game and production.
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