Hicks haters -- explain yourself

[Stallion]

he probably converted more 3rd downs last week than he has in his career

SMU is 23rd in Country in 3rd Down conversions-17th in 4th down conversions

Who was that who said Chad Morris would be a much smarter 3rd/4th Down Coach when he had better, more experienced offensive players? So much bitchin' last year about that

[SMUer]

Uh, 9 of 17 against the 2nd worst pass defense in the nation. PLEASE PROVE ME WRONG, BEN!

On a side-note, I’ve figured out why UCONN is so bad...they have about 500 fans in their stadium on Friday night and I’d bet most of their players were just too embarrassed to come out of the locker room tunnel. Everybody knows you can’t win if you don’t have fans...

[SMUer]

Sorry...they are actually the worst pass defense.

We’ve given up the 2nd most pass yards in the nation (thanks Nevada!) but UCONN has played one less game and only given up 106 yards less than us...which they’ll probably give up on the first quarter of their game against Memphis tonight so they are the worst.

[Wild Mustang]

Surprise! Surprise! SMU lost and Hicks threw 2 interceptions Let's don't even talk about the interceptions, how about all the bad throws, missed throws. Hicks was once again back to showing us why he should not be the Starting QB for SMU. The guy is a trainwreck. Anyone supporting Hicks for the past couple of weeks, and you know who you are, it is time to wake up.

Hicks cannot win games for SMU. The guy cannot direct an offense. Once again he forces throws, throws into double and triple coverage, overthrows receivers, underthrows receivers, cannot run an uptempo offense, cannot call a play at the line of scrimmage. With all the talent on the SMU Offense there are no excuses. How many times did Hicks stare down his receivers? How many times did Hicks force a throw to a covered receiver when his second read or maybe his third read were wide open. We have more than enough talent on the field for any QB to look good and Hicks looked terrible! Take what the defense gives you. Hicks looks lost. Yesterday was no surprise. Chad Morris needs to recruit a QB who can run the SMU Offense. Time to stop with the excuses for Hicks. He has had plenty of gametime to show us that he is not the guy.

[redpony]

Chad Morris needs to recruit a QB who can run the SMU Offense. Time to stop with the excuses for Hicks. He has had plenty of gametime to show us that he is not the guy.

HCCM did recruit a good qb but then lost him to memphis. Saw moore play the other night- he could have been SMU's answer to Deshaun Watson. We will not enjoy playing against him in the next few seasons.

[Wild Mustang]

I understand what you are saying about the kid at Memphis, wish SMU could have gotten the kid. Recruiting a QB to run the SMU Offense implies actually signing the recruit and giving him the keys to the SMU Offense.

[MV pony]

We might have had a dual threat QB if CM hadn't played footsie with baylor.

[redpony]

MV- agree. I am sure that had an effect on last year. I hope it also doesn't affect this years class.

[footballdad]

Time to change the thread name......Hicks lovers -- explain yourself.

[dr. rick]

I loved the color commentator last night for the game. Who was he? He was a prior QB and pointed out Hick's mistakes. However, it seems as though most could be corrected via coaching? Missing open receivers.... Happy feet... Roll outs into the teeth of the defense?

[MV pony]

Well, it hasn't been corrected yet.

[sail420s]

Is it just me or does Hicks seem to start every game looking pretty good, then seems to shut off midway through the 2nd quarter. After that, his passes are very erratic. In the second half of the TCU game, if SMU would have had to spike the ball, Hicks may have missed the ground.

[jpe747]

Surprise! Surprise! SMU lost and Hicks threw 2 interceptions Let's don't even talk about the interceptions, how about all the bad throws, missed throws. Hicks was once again back to showing us why he should not be the Starting QB for SMU. The guy is a trainwreck. Anyone supporting Hicks for the past couple of weeks, and you know who you are, it is time to wake up.

Hicks cannot win games for SMU. The guy cannot direct an offense. Once again he forces throws, throws into double and triple coverage, overthrows receivers, underthrows receivers, cannot run an uptempo offense, cannot call a play at the line of scrimmage. With all the talent on the SMU Offense there are no excuses. How many times did Hicks stare down his receivers? How many times did Hicks force a throw to a covered receiver when his second read or maybe his third read were wide open. We have more than enough talent on the field for any QB to look good and Hicks looked terrible! Take what the defense gives you. Hicks looks lost. Yesterday was no surprise. Chad Morris needs to recruit a QB who can run the SMU Offense. Time to stop with the excuses for Hicks. He has had plenty of gametime to show us that he is not the guy.

I must assume you are attacking me because I support Hicks. So, I will state my reasons. First and most important, Hicks is the only qb SMU has that has has shown the ability to move the ball down field. I thought some of the "haters" would be happy because he went 41/58 (71%) and 397 passing yards (IMPROVEMENT). He did this without the pass protection he had against UCONN. He had to rush passes and dodge defensive attackers most all night. His two interceptions came late when the defense (and everyone else in the stadium) knew Hicks would be throwing. As I remember, the first came on a decent pass but outstanding pass defense on Houston's part. The second came from Hicks running for his life and trying to throw to the sidelines - he hung the ball up too long in an area where a defender could race over and intercept. The major problem we had was getting the ball in the end zone and if that continues to be a problem SMU needs to address it including change in personel. However, for the first 5 games Hicks and the rest of the team has been exceptional in the red zone. That has been one of SMU's strong suits. If I'm not mistaken, no one in America has done a better job in the red zone. IMO this problem of getting the ball in the end zone and some missed kicking points (only the 2nd missed field goal this year) and a few bad defensive plays (but not as many as I expected) were the difference in the game.
Anyone who thought SMU would waltz out of Houston without a struggle was dreaming. I ask you Wild Mustang, who would you play and why? What has any of the other qb's done to justify a start over Hicks? Who else has moved the ball anywhere on the field, much less in the red zone this year?

[tristatecoog]

Chad Morris needs to recruit a QB who can run the SMU Offense. Time to stop with the excuses for Hicks. He has had plenty of gametime to show us that he is not the guy.

HCCM did recruit a good qb but then lost him to memphis. Saw moore play the other night- he could have been SMU's answer to Deshaun Watson. We will not enjoy playing against him in the next few seasons.

Didn't Chad recruit Ben Hicks after he arrived on the Hilltop? I thought Ben switched his commitment to SMU from UH the year that Herman and Morris were both hired.

[Wild Mustang]

Who do I want to start at QB? How about anyone other than Ben Hicks? Hicks has been given his chance and unfortunately we know what we have in Hicks.

I honestly do not who I would play at QB. Mainly because we have not seen a lot of Gillens or Peavy on the field. No one really knows what either QB brings to the table. Watching Gillens run the Wildcat almost every play and I think maybe only throw two passes on the year doesn't exactly show me what he can or cannot do. Is that play calling or lack of talent? I do not know. Who really knows what Peavy is capable of? Sad to think that both guys transferred to SMU only to find that neither would be given the keys to run the SMU Offense. Even sadder to see that neither QB could not start over Hicks.

I wish someone would ask Craddock and Morris why they continue to go with Hicks. I haven't heard many rave reviews in post-game press conferences by our coaches of Ben Hicks. The best thing that I have heard the coaches say about Hicks is that he is a competitor and maybe something like we are just happy that he hasn't thrown interceptions (half time interview of an earlier game). Not exactly praise from our coaches for our Starting QB. Time to raise the bar at SMU.