With the emergence of the playoffs, the hype for the season has never been higher. Week 1, did not disappoint. We had big games out of the top tier quarterbacks, but we also had a couple of Quarterbacks have some big games against top competition, such as J.W. Walsh and Kenny Hill. Let’s take a look at some guys who made an impression, the first game.
Kenny Hill – Texas A&M – Ryan Tannehill, then Jonny Manziel, and now Kenny Hill? It appears that Texas A&M have yet another impressive QB. Kenny Hill lead his team to a dominant win over a good South Carolina team. Hill completed 44 out of 60 passes, totaling 511 yards, and 3 Tds. It may have only been for one game, but last year Kenny Hill had a stat line of 16/22 183 yds, and 1 Td in only 5 games as relief. Kenny Hill showed a lot of potential against a good SEC team. Hill will be tested in a tough conference, but Texas A&M will be relying on him to lead them to the playoffs.
J.W. Walsh – Oklahoma State – If I told you I was impressed by a QB in the Florida State vs Oklahoma State, most would assume it was Jameis Winston. That’s not the case. While Jameis Winston had a good game, J.W. Walsh, was making a name for himself. Walsh completed 15 of his 27 passes, for 203 yards, 1 td, and 1 int. Walsh wasn’t done, he rushed 11 times for 51 yds and 2 Tds. Walsh wasn’t a name that was on everybody’s radar, but with his toughness, and leadership he showed against Florida State, he may start popping up on everybody’s draft boards. Look for Walsh to keep turning heads this season.
Jameis Winston – Florida State – Stats don’t tell the entire story here. Jameis was held in check for most of the night, while still completing 25 of 40 passes for 370 yds, 1 TD, and 2 INTs. His rushing stats are a little misconstrued. His final stat was 5 rushes for 9 yds and a TD, but he had 21 yards lost on the night. The rushing TD he had was by leading the team down field in the 3rd quarter, and ending it with a 28 yd TD run. (His career long). Winston may not have looked his best against Oklahoma State, but when the it mattered, Winston came through for the Seminoles, and proved why he is the consensus #1 QB this year.
Marcus Mariota – Oregon – No one should be surprised that the high powered Oregon offensive leader, had a good day. Mariota looked like his normal self by completing 14 of 20 passes, for 267 yds, 3 Tds, and rushing for 6 times for 43 yards and 1 td. Mariota continued to build his stock as one of the top draft eligible Qbs. Some even have Mariota listed above Winston. The playoffs are a reality for Oregon, as along as Marcus Mariota can continue his strong, impressive play.
Other QBs To Note:
Tommy Armstrong Jr – Nebraska – It’s worth mentioning a Qb that lead his offense to a record setting 784 yards, most for a Big 10 team, and 5th best in team history. Tommy Armstrong had an impressive game, 15/29 271 yds and 2 tds, and topped it off with 7 rushes for 62 yds, and 1 td. It looks like Ameer Abdullah isn’t the only impressive player to watch in the Nebraska backfield.
Cody Kessler – USC- Not much else to say, other than a very productive day with, 25/37 394 yds 4 Tds. He also rushed 8 times for 28 yds and 1td. Looks like USC has found, yet another productive QB to play in their system.
It was a very exciting week 1, with plenty of action. All of these guys impressed week 1, and look poise to keep on impressing. Tomorrow I’ll discuss RBs that impressed from week 1.
