Lou’s Confessions: Notre Dame QB Departures Often For The Best
In college football today, if you are the No. 3 quarterback — or even No. 2 in many cases — in your second year, especially at a Power Five school, a transfer is virtually imminent.
Count on this becoming an issue again in 2021 when Brendon Clark, Drew Pyne and Tyler Buchner vie to succeed Ian Book — if he opts not to return.
The No. 3 quarterback today must usually either be a preferred walk-on who could play at a number of Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) schools but wants to be at Notre Dame for reasons beyond football, or someone who excelled there in high school but is now useful, even a starter, at another position.
Nolan Henry (2015-19) is an example of the former, while senior slot receiver Avery Davis or sophomore punter Jay Bramblett are the latter.
Last week it was Davis who caught the crucial 53-yard pass from Book, and then the touchdown three plays later with 22 seconds remaining in regulation, that helped send the classic versus No. 1-ranked Clemson into overtime, and an eventual Irish triumph. Bramblett, who also happened to be an all-state quarterback in Alabama, made a crucial open-field tackle of Clemson star Travis Etienne on the final play of the first half when a 57-yard field goal attempt fell short and into his hands — with a potential touchdown in the making
It’s doubtful in college football we see the likes of a senior such as Joe Montana as the No. 3 option like we did in 1977, before becoming the starter by the fourth game of a national title run.
Yet in nearly 50 years of following the Notre Dame football program, it seemed to me that Phil Jurkovec’s transfer among more than two dozen at the position (we’ll provide an overview later in the week) created the most hand-wringing and angst I had ever seen among Fighting Irish faithful for myriad reasons:
• The former top-100 prospect was the first verbal in the 2018 class before he began his junior year, and became an ardent recruiter for the school even after the 4-8 meltdown in 2016. His passion for Notre Dame was conspicuous.
• He is a true dual-threat signal-caller, passing for 3,969 yards and running for 1,211 during an unbeaten senior season while winning a state title.
• He is a Western Pennsylvania native — which also produced Fighting Irish national title quarterbacks Montana, Tom Clements, Terry Hanratty and Johnny Lujack, plus the likes of other Hall-of-Famers such as Johnny Unitas, Joe Namath, Dan Marino and Jim Kelly.
• He was also an all-state basketball player, just like Clements, Montana, Tony Rice, Kevin McDougal and Everett Golson were before leading Notre Dame to prominence as a quarterback.
And, of course, even though Jurkovec was in the same recruiting class as Trevor Lawrence, Justin Fields and JT Daniels, head coach Brian Kelly boldly stated, “He’s somebody I could put up against any quarterback that I’ve ever seen.”
Added quarterbacks coach Tommy Rees: “As impressive of an athlete as you will find across the country from a height, weight standpoint, ability to make plays with his legs, ability to make all the throws on the field. You don’t see that very often.”
That is natural recruiting hype — but one that always makes me cringe because it becomes pretty much no-win, especially for Notre Dame quarterbacks, from Ron Powlus, who had two Heismans projected for him nationally after one contest, to Jimmy Clausen, described as “the LeBron James of football.”
Rancor inevitably ensues when one is built up so much, yet is a non-factor in competition for the first two years. You can’t have it both ways. You can’t promote the guy as the best in his class, and then not take some accountability for why he isn’t.
Jurkovec also seemed to have it all in high school, but then …
Suddenly, the throwing technique once he arrives looks unorthodox and clunky, playing time is minimal, and his 2019 spring game left Jurkovec immensely frustrated and shaken, both with an inability to utilize his scrambling skills while getting touch-sacked 12 times, plus an inordinate amount of wounded ducks from his release.
Seldom had I ever seen a player more crestfallen — and that was just after a glorified practice.
“A pretty terrible day on my part,” a downcast Jurkovec said after the exhibition scrimmage.
“One’s on advanced calculus, the other one is still getting past algebra right now,” summarized 2017-19 Fighting Irish offensive coordinator Chip Long before that contest on the difference between the more seasoned Book (who arrived much less hyped as a three-star recruit) and the fledgling Jurkovec.
It was not my place to do so, but there was a part of me that wanted to take Jurkovec aside in the crowded media room and remind him that it often takes years of toil or even setbacks to become an “overnight sensation” — be it Montana in the 1970s (2 of 11 for five yards and two interceptions as a junior in the 1976 Blue-Gold Game), Tony Rice (6 of 19 while his team lost 27-9 in the 1988 Blue-Gold Game, the warm-up to a national title), Kevin McDougal in the 1990s (21 career passes his first three season before becoming the school's pass efficiency king), or second-round pick DeShone Kizer in 2015, when as the third-team QB after a tough spring game contemplated whether he should try baseball instead.
For that matter, the same can be said about Book, who was thought of as maybe just the place holder or filler between more celebrated top 100 prospects Brandon Wimbush (signed in 2015) and Jurkovec.
“I’m not worried about Phil. … It’s just the timing and the speed of the game he has to get used to,” Long said.
When Book struggled and ostensibly regressed during a 5-2 start in 2019, the groundswell to give Jurkovec a chance expanded.
“If I felt like playing Phil for five plays, four plays would make us a better football team, I would do it in a second,” Kelly responded. “I’m only interested in how I can help our football team win. This is not about an ego.
“If I thought for a second that Phil Jurkovec would be on the field to help us winning in some fashion, he would be on the field. This is as honest as I can be with you.”
Long and the Irish staff divorced in December, and then Jurkovec left the house in January to star at Boston College.
Sides are taken on who to blame in such fractures and who was "right," but reality is likely somewhere in the middle, with both having their own version of events. Chances are, it is often the best for both parties to part when such unhappiness festers.
It’s working out the best for Jurkovec at Boston College. And for Book, an already productive, prosperous college career was further validated with a one-for-the-books performance last week that has Notre Dame on the playoff doorstep/national title contention for the second time in three years.
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