What? You expected another title?
Today, before the news broke that Californian's are extraordinarily sensitive about their perceived monopoly on North American seismic events, the meme "Dayne Crist" actually bubbled up to one of the most popular topics on Twitter due, presumably, in large part to first speculation of and then confirmation of his appointment as the starting quarterback for the 2011 Notre Dame Fighting Irish Football team.
Head Football Coach Brian Kelly gave a press conference to announce the cancellation of tonight's football practice in order to give his student athletes a bit of time to hide the bodies before the Yahoo Sports investigative team shows up adjust to the start of the actual school year, and while doing so, casually mentioned that he'd picked a starting QB.
“We named a starting quarterback and that will be Dayne Crist,” Kelly announced a earlier this afternoon. “I expect Dayne to be the starter for 13 weeks. We have great confidence in his ability to lead us to a championship."
While it's clear that Kelly was doing his best to temper expectations for his Junior QB, the fact that Kelly picked Crist over incumbent Tommy Rees leads to a few questions. If Crist is expected to start 13 games, was the competition ever really that close, or was this all a figment of Kelly's imagination like Navy's football prowess back when we never lost to them? And if Crist is expected to start 13 games, was Rees ever doing anything in practice to truly threaten Crist's position as the chose one?
As regular readers of HLS may know, we have some concerns with this decision. For one, while we never really believed in the notion of a "signature win" when it was so often used as a gambit in the eternal struggle between good and those who would crucify a head coach no matter what, we do put a fair amount of credence into a QB having "it" when they manage to string together wins against top-25 competition, Southern Cal, and Miami in a single half of a single, tumultuous season. Rees, while potentially not having whatever the hell "it" is, at least has that particular sort of string on his resume. What's Crist got? About the most legendary thing Crist has on his resume is the all-too-brave return to action after actually GOING BLIND while playing in a game. Impressive stuff, sure, but it's still not falling under any columns with the term "winning" associated with it.
Now, some will point out that even with Rees' impressive pelt collection, Crist did account for about 3 more points per game when game action actually mattered. And that's all fine and rational. And perhaps others will observe that Crist running the ball, while frightening, actually manages to serve Notre Dame in ways aside from simply giving slow, un-athletic kids hope that they too could one day lead the Irish to victory. Others like to point out that the defenses Crist faced were better than the ones Rees faced.But it's probably also valid to at least point out that Crist hasn't strung together 5 complete games in college, let alone 13, so let's hope that Kelly's decision was even tougher than he's making it out to be.
By PootND August 23, 2011 - 8:44 pm
I’d appreciate if you’d edit this part: “we do put a fair amount of credence into a QB having “it” when they manage to string together wins against top-25 competition, Southern Cal, and Miami in a single half of a single, tumultuous season”
to say “I” rather than we. I put no stock into that.
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By Matt Q. (DMQ) August 23, 2011 - 8:45 pm
It’s, like, the Royal We, man.
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By PootND August 23, 2011 - 8:48 pm
I just don’t enjoy being associated with that line of idiotic thinking.
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By Matt Q. (DMQ) August 23, 2011 - 8:55 pm
I can relieve you of that problem whenever you want.
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By PootND August 23, 2011 - 9:00 pm
hahahahaha fair enough
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By E-Man August 24, 2011 - 11:53 am
Awkward…
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By trey August 23, 2011 - 9:30 pm
What in the world did you think mq was getting you when he said,’Hey Steve, you should be a regular poster on my ND blog?’
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By The Biscuit August 23, 2011 - 10:11 pm
I subscribe to this as well thanks.
And btw, DMQ, you love to credit Crist with the UM loss even though he was the only reason we were in that game. I’d suggest altering those W-L lines slightly.
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By SDI August 23, 2011 - 10:51 pm
Winning a game despite personally having 4 times as many turnovers as TDs = “It” points.
Losing a game with 4 TDs to 1 turnover because your field goal coverage squad resembles the keystone cops = Loser.
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By TLNDMA August 23, 2011 - 9:11 pm
Did you expect Kelly to say, “Dayne will be our starter until further notice”?
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By Matt Q. (DMQ) August 23, 2011 - 9:16 pm
No. Of course not. I expected him to say Rees won the job, duh.
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By TLNDMA August 23, 2011 - 9:41 pm
no suh?
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By Whiskeyjack August 23, 2011 - 11:27 pm
Loved that last paragraph, Matt. Might have also thrown in that Rees’ interceptions per attempt (0.05) was more than double Crist’s (0.02).
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By Joe Magarac August 24, 2011 - 6:25 am
If Crist is expected to start 13 games, was the competition ever really that close?
1. Kelly said that he expected Crist to start for 13 weeks, not 13 games.
2. What did you expect him to say? That Crist would start for the first week or two, break something, and then Rees would come in? Of course he’s going to say that the starter now will likely continue to start in the future.
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By Brad August 24, 2011 - 6:52 am
I think Crist can be very successful this year. I think people forget that he had some moments that really shined last year during a time when this team was still learning how BK wanted them to play, and BK was still learning what this team was good at.
In the Michigan game, MSU game, and Boston College game, Crist put together multiple, fast-paced high octane scoring drives. And he did that with a non-existent running game, bumbling defense, and a long series of injuries to his starting TE, 2 WRs, and RB, who were all banged up. I felt then (especially during the BC game) that the light was clicking on for Crist as far as ‘getting’ BK’s offense and how to operate the spread. Also, the running game was a bit limited. BK hardly ever had Crist run the read option (which opens up the running game by utilizing double-teams at the POA) because BK didn’t know if he had anyone reliable who could win a game behind him.
With a tougher running game and its PA pass potential for big-armed Crist, a tougher defense, better knowledge of this offense, and the threat of the zone read option game ***, I think we’ll see a much more improved Offense this year. I expect Crist to have a lot of success if he stays healthy, and to push a QB rating of 160, %63, 25 tds, and 10 picks.
*** I think Kelly will run more zone read option with Crist this year. First, BK has confidence in his QB depth chart if Crist gets banged up. Second, from all reports, Crist is running amazing well at practice and with confidence in his knees. Third, from an injury standpoint, the injury he suffered last year isn’t as bad over the long term as far as effects go in stability, and wasn’t nearly as bad as an ACL or PCL tear. Also, it can take up to a year or so to fully recover from an ACL tear, and after two years Crist’s initial knee injury should not really be an issue for him. I don’t expect him to have 500 yards or anything, but 250 and enough to pose a small threat will be good enough.
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By Dave August 24, 2011 - 7:46 am
“[W]e do put a fair amount of credence into a QB having “it” when they manage to string together wins against top-25 competition, Southern Cal.”
I like Tommy and am glad we have him as a back-up, but ND beat USC despite, not because of, Tommy Rees. The “it factor” argument is just silly.
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By The Biscuit August 24, 2011 - 2:19 pm
This
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By canuck75 August 24, 2011 - 7:58 am
I am satisfied. Give Coach some credit that it really was a competition and that it was close. I was surprised last week when one of the AC said that Tommy was more accurate, and his arm strength almost as good as Dayne’s. I thought those comments might have been telling.
Who thought BQ was going to explode the way he did his jr year? If Dayne improves a little in all categories he will be very good.
But I am the typical fan/alum- I want Golson!
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By Brad August 24, 2011 - 8:05 am
One of the things I feel people keep forgetting is that Tommy is only a true sophomore. He still has 3 seasons of football left, and possibly 4 if he was hurt or injured (God forbid). There very well could be a possibility that Crist has a great year and goes pro, and Tommy takes over next year due to his ability to run the offense better, despite his perceived physical ceiling compared to the other QBs. Having somebody like Tommy on the bench who is playing at a high level at this stage in his career is an asset few college football teams ever get to have.
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By MrsCSmith August 24, 2011 - 9:12 am
Uhh…Brad, please tell me that you aren’t implying that Crist deserved the starting position because he has fewer such chances left….not only is it not rational, it certainly isn’t the way anyone should think about college level anything. You get what you work for – and lets hope that’s true in this case.
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By Brad August 24, 2011 - 10:17 am
Absolutely not!
Thats not what I was implying. I was simply stating, for the Rees crowd out there, that the kid is still very young. I have heard a lot of people make arguments to the effect that this sucks cause it means he’s gonna transfer, or never get a fair shot at starting, or get buried on the depth chart by the talented and fast speedsters, etc. I think all that is crap.
My point was that the fact that a really young, 3 star kid got a fair and open shot at the job….and by all accounts, it was close. With a lot of time left in his career, that bodes well for this program and his future.
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By gpatton August 24, 2011 - 8:12 am
The only factor you seem to use in Rees’s favor is stringing together 2 quality wins in a row (USC and Miami). Not sure if you actually watched those games. ND strung together those 2 quality wins, not Rees. In fact, we beat USC despite him – can’t recall whether it was 3 or 4 interceptions, all in ND territory. I’m not down on Rees, but those are giving him most of the credit for the 4-game win streak are significantly discounting the improvements and contributions from other parts of the team (defense and rushing) which had a much larger impact.
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By seeeye August 24, 2011 - 10:35 am
3 INTs
1 Fumble
His game at USC certainly was “IT” you just left off the “SH” prefix.
I like him and I am glad he is there if the team needs him…but right now Coach Kelly has decided that the team has the best chance with Dayne at QB.
I think we have seen that competition and not seniority get people on the field (e.g. Fox/Calabrese, Slaughter/Motta).
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By BH August 24, 2011 - 12:13 pm
Couldn’t agree more on the USC game. Rees went 20-32 for 149 yards with 2 tds and 3 ints against the 109th-ranked pass and 83rd-ranked total defense in the country. Whatever you want to say on Rees versus Crist, giving Rees credit for “winning” the SC game seems overly generous
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By Matt Q. (DMQ) August 24, 2011 - 8:31 pm
Everyone is so quick to just dismiss the notion of team anytime I try to credit Rees with quality wins. It’s all this “they won despite Rees” crap, but football on any level doesn’t really work this way. Every butterfly a lineman crushes in a game has an effect on the outcome of the game, and if any otherwise crush butterfly were to go unharmed because of a different set of circumstances, like, say, a different QB, there’s no telling the outcome. So when I Credit Rees with these wins, I do so while keeping in mind that a team functions as it does much in large part due to the composition of that team. Crist probably is the better QB in a vacuum, but it was Rees who played in such a way as to enable all the other parts of the machine/team to function in such a way as to result in some big wins.
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By The Biscuit August 24, 2011 - 10:33 pm
Agree this is possible. And its part of it. But the team getting better around the QB is also part of it. Not clearly one or the other.
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By St. Louis August 24, 2011 - 9:12 am
You’re dead on.
Rees is just the perfect QB. Barely throws any picks, played defense, ran for over 150 yards a game… man he just does it all and really willed his team to win over 4 teams that were basically playing for the national championship last year.
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By Josh August 24, 2011 - 11:09 am
Best comment so far.
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By terry August 24, 2011 - 9:15 am
I disagree with the choice, but I don’t think Coach Kelly is going to lose any sleep over that, so all is well on that score.
If we don’t see much of Hendrix this year and Crist comes back next year I would look for Hendrix to transfer – I don’t think he has gotten a fair chance to show his stuff. Rees was first off the bench last year (forget Montana) because he enrolled early, so he was the logical starter after Crist went down, but now Hendrix has had a full year to learn the system, and I just don’t see him holding a clipboard on Saturday afternoons for too long.
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By Jeremy August 24, 2011 - 10:22 am
I think this really was a close race because Kelly changed what he is looking for in a QB this year. As he said, because our defense is much better than the start of last year, he just needs a QB to manage the game, run the offense, and not screw up a lot. The fact that this was so close might have a lot more to do with Crist stepping it up and playing well, since, based on what we saw last year, Rees did a good job of managing the game.
Having said that, and as I have said before, I think it comes down to whose weakness is more manageable. Crist throws bounce passes that can kill drives or put us in 3rd and long. Rees throws to the other team – a lot more per attempt than Crist – the ultimate drive killer. When you have two good QBs who know your system and you are looking for a game manager, you go with the one who is less likely to kill you. I think Rees gets his reads and look-offs down better in his career to lower his pick rate and becomes an outstanding QB in this system. But as a true sophomore, his Achilles heel is worse than Crist’s right now.
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By Joe Magarac August 24, 2011 - 1:47 pm
As he said, because our defense is much better than the start of last year, he just needs a QB to manage the game, run the offense, and not screw up a lot.
When did Kelly say that?
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By Jeremy August 24, 2011 - 5:43 pm
“Q. Brian, what does the number one quarterback have to show you that’s going to separate those two?
COACH KELLY: Well, it really is mastering the offensive system. When I say ‘mastering the offensive system,’ there are so many different things we can do within our offense that that quarterback has to be able to be efficient in all the areas. That is getting us in the right play, checking to the right protection, making sure that the right people get their hands on the football.
So it’s more than just arm strength; it’s more than just leadership capabilities. There are so many other factors involved within the structure of our offense that the quarterback must excel at.
I think there’s also now an added dimension in that we feel very confident about the kind of defense that we can play, that taking care of the football now is a premium. We’ve got to take great care of the football.
I know everybody wants to take great care of the football. That’s actually one of those boxes we have to check off with the quarterback. We have to ensure he’s going to be somebody that is not going to turn the football over.
So mastering the offense, all the complexities within, then really being careful with the football.”
—Media Day, August 16th: a poor paraphrase by me, but I think it is the same general point.
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By Joe Magarac August 25, 2011 - 4:37 pm
I read that completely the other way. When he spoke of “mastering the offensive system,” I don’t think he meant managing the game and not screwing up a lot. I think he meant being a master quarterback.
The bit about being confident in the D/taking care of the football doesn’t make much sense to me, but it sounds intelligent. Shades of Diaco there.
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By RYAN August 24, 2011 - 10:32 am
Not surprised that Crist won the starting job.While Rees can manage the game he is not going to win any games for Notre Dame. By the way it was 3 picks and 1 fumble inside notre dame territory during the USC game
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By stewvee August 24, 2011 - 12:49 pm
Rees is scrappy. Not as polished as Crist, but I “like” him more. I feel, despite his tendency to throw picks, he has the propensity to make something happen. Crist looked stiff as a board out there and I kept waiting for him to get hurt. Hope he’s great b/c I want to win and win big. But I can’t help but thinking Golson or even Hendrix for that matter would do a better job.
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By Erik '04 August 24, 2011 - 3:08 pm
I can’t help but think that Crist looked “stiff as a board” because he was both recovering from ACL surgery and learning a new system. When you’re learning a new system, you’re going to be late on your throws/reads, tentative, etc. Rees benefited from the entire offense having already playing 9 games in the new system, combined with a scaled back version of the offense, more running, and better D. I think Kelly tried to make Dayne do too much too early, and it showed on the field. Given another year in the system and some healthier limbs (this knee surgery is a faster recovery time), and I think you will see a much looser, more comfortable Dayne Crist in the pocket, and a more efficient/productive offense than the first 9 games last year.
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By The Biscuit August 24, 2011 - 4:43 pm
I guess we’ll see – you know if Crist bombs (in the bad way) Kelly wont hesitate to give Tommy a shot.
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By BurbankSteve August 24, 2011 - 1:19 pm
If any of you didn’t catch Coach on the Dan Patrick show this morning, the link is here
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By James August 24, 2011 - 1:53 pm
Reese played that USC game like he bet on USC. If thats the “it”, you can keep it. Reese is nothing more than LeVeccio Jr, and he’ll be 3rd on the depth chart by the end of the year.
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By Brad August 24, 2011 - 3:34 pm
I disagree with that James. Thats a little harsh.
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By Brad August 24, 2011 - 3:39 pm
I guess I am not terribly surprised by all the debate on the whole QB situation, since all things Irish get the blood boiling among the fan base (I mean seriously, name another college football fanbase that can have an argument escalate to blows over field turf and jumbotrons?).
But I think something that goes overlooked here is that the QB in Kelly’s system really does not matter that much. I think this is a collective consciousness hang-over from the Weis years, where good and talented QB play meant big points, and bad or inexperienced QB play meant awful.
If you look at Kelly’s offense over the years, the stats his QBs put up (TDs, picks, rating, completion %) are amazingly stable over the years. For that reason, I really don’t think who is put at QB this year, whether Crist, Rees, or even Hendrix or Golson, will make more than a 1-2 game difference in our wins one way, or the other. While they all have different and unique sets of skills which allow for Kelly to run different types of packages and play schemes, in the end, Kelly’s history with QBs shows that it just really doesn’t matter that much. Heck, his second year at Cincy he played like 5 QBs and their stats from week to week really just did not change all that much.
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By The Biscuit August 24, 2011 - 4:45 pm
But those 1-2 games is the difference between 12-0 and 10-2, or 10-2 and 8-4. Big swings!
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By Irishize August 24, 2011 - 4:10 pm
Crist will lose a few games, go down with his yearly leg injury, and never be heard from again. Kelly will see the light, put in Golson, and ND football will go into orbit!
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By Don in LA August 24, 2011 - 5:25 pm
I assume you had a column prepared criticizing the choice had it been Rees?
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By Matt Q. (DMQ) August 24, 2011 - 6:24 pm
Actually, I’d have freaked out. There is no “right” answer to this question until the games are all played.
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By tjak August 24, 2011 - 11:23 pm
Agreed, I hope however that Crist is our Saviour……..haha
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By Scranton Dave August 24, 2011 - 5:29 pm
Matt Q, you cant be serious giving Rees any credit for the USC game. He went out of his way to try to lose that game. They wouldve won the last 4 games with Crist, and likely all of them by more. Now, you have a legit concern as far as Crists health, but if he goes down again I want to see Hendrix or Golson. If winning BCS Bowls is your goal, Tommy Rees and his noodle arm are not going to get it done, Sorry
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By IrishLion10 August 24, 2011 - 7:32 pm
I said it in the shoutbox but I’ll put it here where all the action is, I just find it hard to question anything BK decides with his QBs. Ben Mauk looked better as the year went on in BKs first season in Cincy, and I think Crist started to come around the same way before injury.
The same occured with Pike in BKs second season before injury, and then he exploded and was putting up Heisman/video-game numbers in his second season as a starter, which was BKs third season there.
I think Crist supporters are being way too harsh on Rees, and I think Rees supporters are undervaluing the amount of time it takes to achieve results in terms of the passing game. BK is THE quarterback guru for Crist’s sake! (See what I did there?)
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By Erik '04 August 25, 2011 - 10:57 am
“I think Crist supporters are being way too harsh on Rees, and I think Rees supporters are undervaluing the amount of time it takes to achieve results in terms of the passing game.”
Great summary, IL10. I’m looking forward to seeing this offense in years 2, regardless of who’s behind center.
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By Erik '04 August 25, 2011 - 10:57 am
*year 2… or years 2 and 3.
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