PonyFans.com feature story: POSITION CHANGE

[jtstang]

Per Calvin W.

"Chris did have shoulder problems that took a while to get resolved. He was throwing the ball well in practice during the season but still needed work on his mechanics. His throwing motion, and the fact that at times he looked disinterested in practice, had some offensive coaches a little concerned."

Of course, that is a completely unreliable report because, although the beat writer for SMU, Calvin Watkins works for the Dallas Morning News, which as we all know does not cover SMU.

[Fresh]

I've seen Calvin at lots of events even when stories don't get into the paper. He covers SMU pretty well, I think -- the paper just doesnt' always run his stories.

[dandyfan]

Chris could not throw with a healthy shoulder. His work ethic at the time and "slow to heal" problems only made things worse for him. As far as mobility goes he was 4.7 on his best day. He did however have a great first two steps...after that he was just average at best. He is where he needs to be....where he should have been all along.

[DrewDawg265]

It seems like SMU is on the rise and you got guys crying about a position change. Guys change positions when it is the best thing for the team and Phillips along with Bennet seem to think this will help the team win. Give the young QB's a chance and they will get results. The QB from Dixie has been taking snaps in a completely new system for all of two weeks. If he is making plays in practice now just wait until he learns the system completely. If anyone has played QB they know that running an offense effectively is based on continuity and timing with all eleven players and it starts with the QB. Both Willis and Slater have the ability to lead SMU to a bowl game and make big plays.

[Lotus]

Well said!

[abezontar]

I think the fear many people have though, or at least I have, is that every year we seem to choose to use a QB that is new to the system rather than give a chance to a guy who has been in the system for three years. They wouldn't necessarily have to give him the job, but not to give him a shot when he has the most experience with our offense is troubling. That said, I haven't seen practice, and I don't know how well Willis and the Juco are doing, I would lean toward using Willis (if we aren't giving Phillips a chance) based on the fact that he spent the entirety of last year learning the offense.

[DrewDawg265]

The way I see it is if a guy can come in at QB and within two weeks of practice be close to the guy that has been here for a year or two, by the time the season is starting the new guy will be much better. The fact it is close when the new QB probaly is not theat comfortable tells me that once he gets a full grasp of what is going on, he will be much better.