I have seen a lot of people saying things, "like we have settled with Ben Hicks".. "We put all our eggs in the Bryant basket and ended up with Hicks!"
True- We wanted Bryant and he would have opened up offense to make it the multiple dimension parts of the offense that they used to Make Deshaun Watson so hard to stop. However, this was a very solid pickup and in my opinion the next best option for what "WE" need.
I am sure this is going to be an unpopular opinion for many on here, but getting Ben Hicks is way more than sloppy seconds. Ben Hicks is an upgrade from what we had on campus already, the kid is the all-time leading passer in SMU history. He threw for nearly 3,000 yards in this offense as a D1 starter. He knows this offense inside and out and doesn't even have to learn the terminology. He already knows the reads and the checks, and knows all the protections and how to use them. He and Craddock already have the trust of what they can and cannot do. I know this for 100% because I have heard it from an actual coaches mouth, "we would love to have BEN HICKS on this campus." I have no doubt in my mind that they wanted to get Bryant and I am not going to be one of these people that say, "well he is trash and we didn't want him anyways." Because that would be a false statement, but Hicks is far from an after-thought. He is the perfect guy for you to groom a younger qb under that is coming to this campus (KJ and or Noland) simply because he has a grasp and understanding of this offense that is like having another coach on the field. Who better to teach a young stud for one year than someone who knows exactly what they want and expect. If anything this shortens the learning curve for KJ because in the QB room he can help with all the protections and how to use them to keep you protected C gap to C gap.
He will also help our young linemen because he will check to the right protections and be able to read the shifts of stunts of the defenses and how they will attack this offense. Simply because he has been there done that.
And finally, with the studs we have coming in at wideout, a veteran qb with experience in this offense of knowing where they will be is going to be less of a learning curve for these guys. Him getting up there and working with Nash and Knox already you will see these guys getting ready to go quickly. You will also see him be able to work his timing out well with O'Grady, Jones, and Woods.
His positives far outweigh his negatives so I think in my opinion that we are already way better than we was at any point this last year. With Hicks you will see a vast improvement to the point we should compete for a bowl game next season.
I realize our wideouts struggled this year but part of that was the inability for our qb's to get them the ball when they had space, Hicks will do that. He isn't going to make a difference enough to make us compete for the West or anything but his skill set with the additions of our young players and veterans we should compete for 6 or so wins next year. Which is a vast improvement from year 1 to 2.
Anyways solid pick up all in all. #WPS
True- We wanted Bryant and he would have opened up offense to make it the multiple dimension parts of the offense that they used to Make Deshaun Watson so hard to stop. However, this was a very solid pickup and in my opinion the next best option for what "WE" need.
I am sure this is going to be an unpopular opinion for many on here, but getting Ben Hicks is way more than sloppy seconds. Ben Hicks is an upgrade from what we had on campus already, the kid is the all-time leading passer in SMU history. He threw for nearly 3,000 yards in this offense as a D1 starter. He knows this offense inside and out and doesn't even have to learn the terminology. He already knows the reads and the checks, and knows all the protections and how to use them. He and Craddock already have the trust of what they can and cannot do. I know this for 100% because I have heard it from an actual coaches mouth, "we would love to have BEN HICKS on this campus." I have no doubt in my mind that they wanted to get Bryant and I am not going to be one of these people that say, "well he is trash and we didn't want him anyways." Because that would be a false statement, but Hicks is far from an after-thought. He is the perfect guy for you to groom a younger qb under that is coming to this campus (KJ and or Noland) simply because he has a grasp and understanding of this offense that is like having another coach on the field. Who better to teach a young stud for one year than someone who knows exactly what they want and expect. If anything this shortens the learning curve for KJ because in the QB room he can help with all the protections and how to use them to keep you protected C gap to C gap.
He will also help our young linemen because he will check to the right protections and be able to read the shifts of stunts of the defenses and how they will attack this offense. Simply because he has been there done that.
And finally, with the studs we have coming in at wideout, a veteran qb with experience in this offense of knowing where they will be is going to be less of a learning curve for these guys. Him getting up there and working with Nash and Knox already you will see these guys getting ready to go quickly. You will also see him be able to work his timing out well with O'Grady, Jones, and Woods.
His positives far outweigh his negatives so I think in my opinion that we are already way better than we was at any point this last year. With Hicks you will see a vast improvement to the point we should compete for a bowl game next season.
I realize our wideouts struggled this year but part of that was the inability for our qb's to get them the ball when they had space, Hicks will do that. He isn't going to make a difference enough to make us compete for the West or anything but his skill set with the additions of our young players and veterans we should compete for 6 or so wins next year. Which is a vast improvement from year 1 to 2.
Anyways solid pick up all in all. #WPS
