Jimmy Hackett Follow OSU's Urban Meyer

 "Great minds have purposes, little minds have wishes."
– Washington Irving

 U of M AD Jimmy Hackett and Urban Meyer the Genius

No doubt many of you are aware that the top college teams have terrific running quarterbacks who can also pass the ball. And if we think back about the last few Heisman winners such as Jameis Winston, Johnny Manziel and this year’s pick is likely Oregon’s Marcus Mariota. What these quarterbacks have in common is that they are terrific athletes and are exciting when they run with the ball.

Other terrific college quarterbacks were Ohio State’s Troy Smith and Terrelle Pryor. It’s true that they were not three-step drop back quarterbacks, nor did they have terrific careers as quarterbacks in the NFL. So what, if they were not Hall of Fame NFL quarterbacks. However, they were outstanding college quarterbacks who led the Buckeyes to victory, especially over Michigan.

 Just think about last year’s sensational OSU quarterback Braxton Miller. More than likely he would’ve been this year’s Heisman winner, but an injury sidelined him. So what did Coach Meyer do? He inserted freshman J. T. Barrett as his number one quarterback. What did Barrett do this season? Well, he led the Buckeyes and set all kinds of records in the process. As a result, we forgot about Braxton Miller. Then, in the Michigan game, Barrett suffered a severe injury and Coach Meyer inserted sophomore Cardale Jones as the quarterback.  What do these three quarterbacks have in common? They were all recruited by Urban Meyer and can run with the ball.

The last or most recent Hall of Fame (to be), Michigan quarterback is Tom Brady. Yes, Tom Brady is a three-step drop back quarterback. Chad Henne, currently a backup in the NFL, is also a three-step drop back quarterback who played well for Michigan, but could not beat Ohio State. Ryan Mallett was a three-step drop back quarterback, currently an injured backup in the NFL, who transferred to Arkansas when Rich Rod was hired.

The last exciting quarterback Michigan had was Dennard Robinson (beat OSU). Currently, Robinson, with the NFL jaguars, is in his third year and their leading rushing running back. By the way, this year’s Michigan quarterback Devin Gardner was recruited as a wide receiver. And he made a game of the big game, because of his ability to run with the ball.

Maybe the key to Michigan’s football future is not the traditional three-step drop back quarterback? Let’s face it, 3 yards and a cloud of dust is outmoded and done. It seems to me, that for now, a strong athletic fast quarterback that can run the ball is a key, in the college game, because of the improved, and terrific defenses with all the stunts, zones, blitzes and super athletic cornerbacks like Charles Woodson types.

 Jimmy Hackett, are you listening? Go Blue!