Blake Bell: A Mobile QB

[FaninAma]

This thread is not being started to criticize Landry. I fully expect him to be the top contender for the starting QB job next year but Blake Bell brings something to the program that Bob has rarely had in the past....if ever.....and that is a QB who is pretty mobile.

It will be interesting to see how Wilson will try to use him. I would like to see him get some early playing time as a change of pace for Landry. Sort of like the system that Florida used in their 2006 national title run.

[rawlingsHOH]

First rule of Sooner football... don't let your QB get TOUCHED!

[JLEW1818]

I'm sure Bell will be red shirted

I'm assuming Drew is getting one this year

[Widescreen]

One thing I think I can safely predict... You won't see Blake Bell running around much when he plays at OU. We don't do that.

[Snyder Cyclone]

Maybe we should.

[aurorasooner]

Sam looks plenty "mobile" to me when he runs, but it seems to me that he keeps his eyes down the field until the last possible moment. Landry also seems to be "mobile" and not by any means a club-foot. If I had to guess, I would say that this is a Heupel philosophy as that was the way he played the game, pass 1st/run only as a last resort.
I like the system we have with QBs but absolute hate our running back running play design and brute-force/push straight forward OL philosophy. It's not just this year either, it goes back to when AD was here. If you remember he ran into his share of brick walls and was stuffed at the LOS, it's just that he had the talent to run though some those brick walls.

[soonerlaw]

What is the word about Drew Allen? I've heard he is pretty good and they really didn't want to burn his RS this year because they see alot of potential in him. Do you guys think he is good enough to be the eventual starter or will he be a filler/backup between Landry and Blake Bell.

[Pricetag]

One thing I think I can safely predict... You won't see Blake Bell running around much when he plays at OU. We don't do that.
We did it when Bomar was playing. I've always figured Wilson would like to have a mobile QB. They were part of his offenses at Northwestern.

[swardboy]

Keith Nichol....

[Position Limit]

is there even a designed qb run in the friggin playbook? i know it sucks catching teams by suprise at critical moments, but it might have at least an equal amount of success as throwing to the line of scrimmage on 3rd and long. kevin wilson could have AD as a quarterback and still hand the ball off to chris brown. over and over and over. so does it really matter is some qb on the bench has wheels or not?

[TheUnnamedSooner]

ENA?

[goingoneight]

We had a mobile QB before.

His name is Jason White.

Stoops ain't lucky enough to get four years out of a mobile QB like UT and UF without ACLs, PCLs, MCLs, LCLs and every other L toasted before it's all said and done. Our offense, when execute is plenty effective. Same could be said for the Wishbone or anything else. There's no magic formula or formation that makes up for weak blocking up front.

[Johnny Utah]

Stoops ain't lucky enough to get four years out of a mobile QB like UT and UF without ACLs, PCLs, MCLs, LCLs and every other L toasted before it's all said and done.

Why do you say this, or are you just sayin' (based on recent history)?

[OUAlumni1990]

There's no magic formula or formation that makes up for weak blocking up front.

true dat

[Sam Bradford]

Drew Allen can move just as well as Blake can.

[NormanPride]

Drew actually did better than Landry in the scrimmages. Landry knows the offense better, though, so he got the nod instead of Drew.

[Pigface1]

One thing I think I can safely predict... You won't see Blake Bell running around much when he plays at OU. We don't do that.

True that. Having an extra threat out there just don't make no sense.

[yermom]

i remember Heupel making a few 3rd and 10's with his legs

i also remember Chuck Long talking about opening up the playbook for ENA before we knew JW was going to play in 2004

[IronHorseSooner]

Last year, I believe that they had some QB draws. I remember one specifically against OSU...

My bet is that Landry gets the nod with Allen as the backup, and then Bell redshirts. This seems to be the M.O. with this staff. The battle will be later on after Landry leaves between Allen and Bell. Allen, with as talented as most say he is, just might be in the proverbial bad situation where the other three scholly QBs who were at the school at the same time as him were really good or elite (in the case of Sam).

[Widescreen]

i remember Heupel making a few 3rd and 10's with his legs

i also remember Chuck Long talking about opening up the playbook for ENA before we knew JW was going to play in 2004

There's difference between making something out of nothing and a called QB run. The only QB running play we seem to have (and we don't use it much) is a QB draw up the middle for 4 yards and then slide at the first down marker. Any other time, it's just getting away from the rush.

It's funny when we saw Sam running the "option" given that there was no option where Sam actually keeps the ball.

[goingoneight]

If you can make the throws and stay away from bad decisions, you can compete for the starting QB job under Wilson. The game isn't placed squarely on the QB's shoulders at OU like it is with zac Robinson, Tim Tebow, Colt McCoy, etc. Even when Heupel was QB, he was simply just a bus driver who stayed away from big hits and bad throws. That's the biggest reason Sam
always looked like Superman out there. Sure, he's got talent and skill of his own, but he was never workhorses with guys like Gresham and Co. at his service. That's pretty much how all great QBs make it in the NFL. Ever seen a guy with a terrible surrounding cast win a Super Bowl?

[JLEW1818]

We had a mobile QB before.

His name is Jason White.

Stoops ain't lucky enough to get four years out of a mobile QB like UT and UF without ACLs, PCLs, MCLs, LCLs and every other L toasted before it's all said and done. Our offense, when execute is plenty effective. Same could be said for the Wishbone or anything else. There's no magic formula or formation that makes up for weak blocking up front.

exactly

[humblesooner]

is there even a designed qb run in the friggin playbook? i know it sucks catching teams by suprise at critical moments, but it might have at least an equal amount of success as throwing to the line of scrimmage on 3rd and long. kevin wilson could have AD as a quarterback and still hand the ball off to chris brown. over and over and over. so does it really matter is some qb on the bench has wheels or not?

With our success (lack of) with running backs, why would you subject our QB to running in to a hole that wil never materialize?

[TXBOOMER]

Last year, I believe that they had some QB draws. I remember one specifically against OSU...

My bet is that Landry gets the nod with Allen as the backup, and then Bell redshirts. This seems to be the M.O. with this staff. The battle will be later on after Landry leaves between Allen and Bell. Allen, with as talented as most say he is, just might be in the proverbial bad situation where the other three scholly QBs who were at the school at the same time as him were really good or elite (in the case of Sam).

They will all get playing time if we don't get some OL and TE help.

[zman515]

Why does everyone keep saying he is mobile like he will be a dual threat in college? Didn't he have less than 400 yards rushing last year? Depending on how many games he played, he probably averages 25-35 yards a game. That is not much at all.

[rawlingsHOH]

Why does everyone keep saying he is mobile like he will be a dual threat in college? Didn't he have less than 400 yards rushing last year? Depending on how many games he played, he probably averages 25-35 yards a game. That is not much at all.
Because some people believe he was a D1 prospect as a wide receiver also.

[Sonner magic923]

he runs a 4.75 its not like hes a burner id be shoked if sam and landry both couldnt equal that

[Pricetag]

With our success (lack of) with running backs, why would you subject our QB to running in to a hole that wil never materialize?
I noticed at least one time against Texas that Landry handed off to the back out of the shotgun and then took off the other direction and there was no one there. Will a QB run game cure our offense? Nope. Might it get us a sneaky first down here or there? Quite possibly.

[IronHorseSooner]

They will all get playing time if we don't get some OL and TE help.

Great point. If guys don't step forward here for the remainder of this year, and into the near future, it won't matter if it is Sam, Landry, Drew, Blake, or whoever is back there. Therefore, instead of QB, RB, anywhere on D, or even WR, I am interested in the recruiting and development of OL & TEs. I pray that these guys get an epiphany, or a strong boot in the hind quarter, to get this fixed. Again, Sam or no Sam, we have the best, or at least in the top 3, set of QBs in the land, and some playmakers at RBs. It would be an absolute crying shame to waste all of the talent that this team has, or will have, because the OL & TEs aren't pulling their weight (no pun intended).

[swardboy]

All of which points out that our attention this recruiting season will be aimed at the big hosses out there instead of the glamor positions, which is how it should be prolly....if you can't open holes for 'em and protect 'em, it don't matter who 'em is!!!!

[Johnny Utah]

Great point. If guys don't step forward here for the remainder of this year, and into the near future, it won't matter if it is Sam, Landry, Drew, Blake, or whoever is back there. Therefore, instead of QB, RB, anywhere on D, or even WR, I am interested in the recruiting and development of OL & TEs. I pray that these guys get an epiphany, or a strong boot in the hind quarter, to get this fixed. Again, Sam or no Sam, we have the best, or at least in the top 3, set of QBs in the land, and some playmakers at RBs. It would be an absolute crying shame to waste all of the talent that this team has, or will have, because the OL & TEs aren't pulling their weight (no pun intended).


All of which points out that our attention this recruiting season will be aimed at the big hosses out there instead of the glamor positions, which is how it should be prolly....if you can't open holes for 'em and protect 'em, it don't matter who 'em is!!!!

Both good posts/points ... I'll take my "glamor" in the form of winning a bowl game or (better yet) an MNC game.

[stoopified]

is there even a designed qb run in the friggin playbook? i know it sucks catching teams by suprise at critical moments, but it might have at least an equal amount of success as throwing to the line of scrimmage on 3rd and long. kevin wilson could have AD as a quarterback and still hand the ball off to chris brown. over and over and over. so does it really matter is some qb on the bench has wheels or not?There is no QB run game in the OU playbook other than the QB sneak.Ou has had many mobile QBs but it QB rungame IS NOT part of the OU offense.A couple of years back I talked to Merv Johnson who said that OU recruits QBs to make good decisions with the ball and to be outstanding passers not to be runners.The thinking being that the more you run ,the more hits you take and the likelyhood of injury goes up.

Given the recent history of QB injury I will ask if that mindset is likely to change.I mean Robinson ,McCoy ,Tebow among others are running and have stayed healthier than Sam.

[Position Limit]

There is no QB run game in the OU playbook other than the QB sneak.Ou has had many mobile QBs but it QB rungame IS NOT part of the OU offense.A couple of years back I talked to Merv Johnson who said that OU recruits QBs to make good decisions with the ball and to be outstanding passers not to be runners.The thinking being that the more you run ,the more hits you take and the likelyhood of injury goes up.

Given the recent history of QB injury I will ask if that mindset is likely to change.I mean Robinson ,McCoy ,Tebow among others are running and have stayed healthier than Sam.

i'm not asking for a qb run game. just asking for once in a blue moon pull some kind of qb run. besides fear of getting injured is totally lame. it's a violent sport. stay on the bench if you dont want to get hurt. i would love to sell a put on an ou qb injury for a run play. think of the probability i get based on the number of time the qb runs it by design. it's a layup.

[FaninAma]

With our success (lack of) with running backs, why would you subject our QB to running in to a hole that wil never materialize?

I didn't need to imply that the QB needs to be the leading rusher on the team ala McCoy at Texas last year but a little escapability when he is facing an unimpeded blitzer might have helped Sam this year . Also a little mobility is nice when you are trying to break down pass coverage...especially with defenses that run heavy man to man like Texas does.

BTW, I see the little beyotch one-star ranker hit again. I sure must have made an impression on him/her/it with a previous post.

[FaninAma]

There is no QB run game in the OU playbook other than the QB sneak.Ou has had many mobile QBs but it QB rungame IS NOT part of the OU offense.A couple of years back I talked to Merv Johnson who said that OU recruits QBs to make good decisions with the ball and to be outstanding passers not to be runners.The thinking being that the more you run ,the more hits you take and the likelyhood of injury goes up.

Given the recent history of QB injury I will ask if that mindset is likely to change.I mean Robinson ,McCoy ,Tebow among others are running and have stayed healthier than Sam.

Then we will keep getting a heavy dose of blitzes and unless we have an all-conference player at each position in the OL like last year we will run the risk of getting our QB hurt and being susceptible to attacking defenses like Texas'.

Josh was no speed merchant but he was better than Sam at buying time in the pocket and having pocket awareness.

[C&CDean]

I'd just be happy with a QB who we could line up every once in a while in an option look - and have the defense concerned that he might actually keep the ball. It would certainly add a dimension to our offense that hasn't been there in a while.

In reality though, if our O-line doesn't sack up here pretty soon and start knocking the ever-lovin' **** outta somebody it doesn't matter how fast the QB is. He's gonna get killed.

[cvsooner]

I noticed at least one time against Texas that Landry handed off to the back out of the shotgun and then took off the other direction and there was no one there. Will a QB run game cure our offense? Nope. Might it get us a sneaky first down here or there? Quite possibly.

I saw that play too and was thinking it would be a nice wrinkle to throw in there from time to time, or maybe at least later in that game. I counted no less than three plays on offense that I was wishing/hoping if Landry didn't throw the ball right away, rather than try to work through his progressive reads, he'd just pull it down and run. I think he'd have had pretty good yardage on those.

The way the o-line is struggling I just can't believe the offensive coaches don't see that as a possibility. Maybe they're concerned the linemen will think that would take pressure off them. Or they want Landry to develop his reads quicker. I dunno. If I did, I'd be coaching.

[picasso]

he runs a 4.75 its not like hes a burner id be shoked if sam and landry both couldnt equal that

4.75 is actually pretty good.

[Soonerwake]

Like many of you I watched Bell on TV a while back. From what I saw, I wouldn't label him "dual-threat". More of a guy that can run a little when needed in a high school game.

[sooner94]

Like many of you I watched Bell on TV a while back. From what I saw, I wouldn't label him "dual-threat". More of a guy that can run a little when needed in a high school game.

I agree with you on that. Really good feet but not what I would call a true dual threat guy. Rivals probably saw that he had a few hundred rushing yards and decided to call him a dual threat QB.

On another Blake Bell note, he seems to have some intangibles that not all guys have. Hard to describe exactly what it was but seems like he can make plays when they need to be made.

[FaninAma]

All I know is that QB's who stand like statues looking downfield may as well have a target painted on their jersey when we play against Muschamp's defense.

Naked bootlegs with an immobile QB are the sort of goofy, too.

[rawlingsHOH]

he runs a 4.75 its not like hes a burner id be shoked if sam and landry both couldnt equal that
Rushing yards aren't awarded by 40-times.

[rawlingsHOH]

Naked bootlegs with an immobile QB are the sort of goofy, too.
Are you honestly suggesting Bradford is too immobile to run a boot?

[sooners2win]

Blake may be mobile, but it will be very hard for him to beat out Landry and Drew. He better be ready to sit a while.

[Pricetag]

Naked bootlegs with an immobile QB are the sort of goofy, too.
Didn't an NFL QB (not Randall Cunningham, Ron Mexico, Vince Young type guy, either) run for like a 60-yard TD on a naked bootleg several years back? I always thought we should try one down by the goal line sometime.

[The_Red_Patriot]

This thread sucks.

We have had mobile qb's before.....Jason White, Rhett Bomar, Paul Thompson.

Your crazy to think that Bell will have a shot next year. The job is Laundry's to lose if Bradford doesn't come back.

And besides, even with our past mobile qbs we didn't do that type of offense.

[FaninAma]

Are you honestly suggesting Bradford is too immobile to run a boot?

He can't make anybody miss if he is being rushed
but what I you could also repalce immobile with
injured. It is goofy to roll out an injured QB on
a naked bootleg.

[sooner ngintunr]

I noticed at least one time against Texas that Landry handed off to the back out of the shotgun and then took off the other direction and there was no one there. Will a QB run game cure our offense? Nope. Might it get us a sneaky first down here or there? Quite possibly.

The option worked great in 2000 when it counted.

[FaninAma]

This thread sucks.

We have had mobile qb's before.....Jason White, Rhett Bomar, Paul Thompson.

Your crazy to think that Bell will have a shot next year. The job is Laundry's to lose if Bradford doesn't come back.

And besides, even with our past mobile qbs we didn't do that type of offense.

Your comments are stupid. Jason White was
mobile for all of 1/2 season. Plays were actually
called to utilize Bomar's running skills and he
was also able to survive thanks to his mobility
playing behind an OL that was worse than this
year's line.

I never did understand PT's lack of rushing
success although I do remember Stoops saying
that it was Paul's decision to hand off on the
read-draw play instead of keeping it. Of course
havng a player by the name of Adrian Peterson
in the backfield may have had something to do
with Paul's lack of rushing opportunties.

I threw this topic out to generate some discussion
but if you want to bring it down to a level of
throwing around insults then I'm game.

[rawlingsHOH]

He can't make anybody miss if he is being rushed
but what I you could also repalce immobile with
injured. It is goofy to roll out an injured QB on
a naked bootleg.

The point of the boot is to create a big play in the passing game. Not for the QB to show off footspeed or elusiveness.

It is also away to remove your QB from a suspect offensive line.

Nothing "goofy" about rolling any QB.

[rawlingsHOH]

This thread sucks.

We have had mobile qb's before.....Jason White, Rhett Bomar, Paul Thompson.

Your crazy to think that Bell will have a shot next year. The job is Laundry's to lose if Bradford doesn't come back.

And besides, even with our past mobile qbs we didn't do that type of offense.


Your comments are stupid.
Really?

They look pretty spot on to me. Stoops has made a point of mentioning he wants to limit the QBs exposure in the run game. Use it as a change-up, rather than a staple.

They aren't going to change the offense. They want a throw-first QB. They reeled in Bomar (or tried to), totally changed Thompson, and Nichol didn't like it and left.

[RUSH LIMBAUGH is my clone!]

Blake may be mobile, but it will be very hard for him to beat out Landry and Drew. He better be ready to sit a while.I vote yours a TOP 5 ALL-TIME SOONERFANS AVATAR!

[Pricetag]

I noticed at least one time against Texas that Landry handed off to the back out of the shotgun and then took off the other direction and there was no one there. Will a QB run game cure our offense? Nope. Might it get us a sneaky first down here or there? Quite possibly.
Kudos to Coach Wilson. We got a sneaky first down on the first touchdown drive.

[Sooner Eclipse]

Maybe we should. Because unless you have to its a bad idea.

Take Klot Mccoy this year. Mack has been keeping him from taking off and it has hurt his offense's performance. He learned this lesson after the last 2 years. But he also knows if he is to get through the season undefeated, he needs klot healthy. Now that the BCS is kicking in, he's allowing to take off some. Texas' offense needs this to keep Ds honest because they're not that good otherwise. You will begin to see klot scramble more and more as the year goes on and the importance of each game grows.

[sooner94]

Didn't an NFL QB (not Randall Cunningham, Ron Mexico, Vince Young type guy, either) run for like a 60-yard TD on a naked bootleg several years back? I always thought we should try one down by the goal line sometime.

I think it was Steve Bono with the Chiefs back in the mid-90's. I think it literally took him 10 seconds to run the 60 yards.

[Sooner Eclipse]

I never did understand PT's lack of rushing
success although I do remember Stoops saying
that it was Paul's decision to hand off on the
read-draw play instead of keeping it. Of course
havng a player by the name of Adrian Peterson
in the backfield may have had something to do
with Paul's lack of rushing opportunties.

Paul was like a 60s era musclecar. Goes real fast in a straight line but corners are not really his thing.