Going Deep: A look at CSU's quarterback competition during Spring Game

For Colorado State Rams football, competition is key at every position. That includes the most important position in American sports; quarterback.

The big question this offseason for Colorado State Rams football fans has been whether Georgia transfer Faton Bauta will be able to supplant Nick Stevens as the starter under center. The Green and Gold Game left fans, coaches and us media types with more questions than answers at the end of it all, which is why we’re going to take an in-depth look at the performance of each quarterback in the Green and Gold game.

Much like the coaches will do once they watch film and accurately track every single play from the game, I too tracked every pass and important play from the Rams quarterbacks. As much as I was already drafting up a controversial article on how Collin Hill should be the Rams next quarterback in 2016, my notes seem to have another winner of the day. So let’s dive into it, starting with your 2015 starter Nick Stevens.

Nick Stevens: 8-20, 90 yards, 1 TD, 2 INTs, 74.3 QB Rating

No other way to put it than Stevens had a rough outing; anyone who’s seen the stats can see that. The game notes told a similar story though they weren’t as harsh. The big story for Stevens has been the usual inconsistent play, which is even more evident when he’s having to split snaps with three other quarterbacks. Even more so than the inconsistency and inability to ever truly get in a groove was that Stevens, again, had turnover issues and the mistakes he made were truly costly.

The two interceptions were both bad decisions and bad throws. The first one happened on the very first drive on a 3rd and 4. Stevens sticks in the pocket a bit too long, hesitates on his first read and then makes a half pump fake as a hand gets in his face and throws a bad interception on a short pass over the middle. The second one was while Stevens was on the run, running to the right side and tried a sideline pass but was extremely short on the throw which got picked off. As much promise as Stevens has shown throwing on the run, he can’t be making those types of errant throws at this stage of his career. In fact, his ball placement seemed a bit off all game and he didn’t look accurate. Stevens could have had at least two more bad turnovers, the first on a play-action that was doomed from the start; the defense was bearing down and Nick never got his feet set or hips squared, regardless, he decided to throw it in no man’s land down the middle of the field. The play ended up as an incomplete pass and no harm was done but these are the type of careless decisions that quarterbacks can’t afford to make. He almost had another interception as he forced a pass to the inside shoulder of the receiver on a comeback pattern and that should have been another pick. Again his ball placement and accuracy didn’t look great, he also got a delay of game penalty on a drive that was getting into promising territory, and was also sacked. Not the mistakes you’d like from your incumbent starter.

Stevens’ game wasn’t all bad either. He showed some poise and completed a good pass early on to Olabisi Johnson for a six yard gain on 3rd and 5. He also had several passes that were just off from being nice positive plays. In particular, he missed a deep right post on a 2nd and 10. He started to get into a groove a bit more in the second and third quarters and started to put together some nice throws, especially to Johnson and John Freismuth. He had a sequence of two consecutive passes first on 2nd and 10 where he led the receiver and put the ball on the correct shoulder (it was dropped). On the very next play on 3rd and 10 had another perfect throw, but the pass was incomplete with a good defensive play being made. This is also part of why Stevens stats look as bad as they did; he had drives stall on plays like the ones we just mentioned and also wasn’t helped by his receivers, who didn’t create consistent separation and didn’t bail him out on catchable passes.

Stevens seemed to settle down in the second half but played only a few drives as Hill took over and got more reps in the 4th quarter. Before being taken out, Stevens lead the offense to his one touchdown drive with a nice throw in which he showed great touch. Sammy Long was the receiver and did a nice job high-pointing the ball, but Stevens put it where only his wideout could catch it and showed pinpoint accuracy and touch. He also had a nice completion in the flats to running back Dalyn Dawkins that went for a 20-yard gain, but again his ball placement was off and the throw was a bit behind. He needs to clean that up.

Faton Bauta: 16-29, 203 yards, 3 TDs, 1 INT, 141.2 QB Rating

Like the rest of the offense, Bauta also struggled to get things going early on. Unlike Stevens, though, his lows weren’t as low and he probably received a bit more help from his teammates, in the form of a few big Dawkins runs and the giant Fresimuth 75-yard catch that allowed for Bauta’s stats to look as good as they do, on what was ultimately a pretty average day.

Once we look further into the notes, there are definitely some promising things that the veteran quarterback showed in his first action with Colorado State. In speaking to Rams veteran offensive linemen Fred Zerbils, he mentioned how both Bauta and Stevens did a good job of changing protections at the line, and also mentioned how Bauta has helped Stevens improve in this area of his game. This was evident, especially as the game wore on. Bauta was calling good protections, limiting the amount of pressure created and also calling the right plays at the line as the run game thrived with him at quarterback. That’s the overlying theme of Bauta’s outing; while he didn’t throw it great or impress with his arm talent, he did show good poise and the offense did seem to operate at it’s best when he was on the field.

Faton is a point guard type quarterback. In this sense, he started the game off with some easy passes out the flats to his running backs. His first drive also stalled on a pass to Dawkins that was catchable on 3rd down and 7. His footwork, ball placement and poise all looked good if not great throughout the game. Almost all his early completions were to the backs and he even converted a nice 3rd and 15 on a check down to Dawkins who had a remarkable run (and an impressive game).

In the second quarter, Bauta put together a nice drive. After three great runs, he made a sweet back shoulder pass to tight end Danny Nwosu on a crossing route to the right. The play was designed to go to right shoulder (the direction the TE was running towards) but there was a defender there and Faton tossed backside pass to open up a lane to the end zone (15-yard completion for the touchdown). Smart play by the veteran quarterback. Bauta then completed the 75-yard bomb to Freismuth, not necessarily a special pass but he made the play, and that’s all that matters.

In the second half, he showed off good footwork, dropped back and delivered a 21-yard throw to the right side, which was accurate and on time. He then barely missed Xavier Williams in the end zone, showing nice touch. Bauta put together another good drive, which included a 15-yard deep post completion on an accurate throw, then made a nice pass towards the sideline for a 4-yard gain, showing off some more accuracy and compact footwork. Then came the touchdown throw in which he zipped in a pass to Marcus Wilson for a 6-yard score near the end of the game.

Bauta was far from perfect, he started off slowly and struggled to complete anything more than a short pass to the backs in the flat. He attempted a 15-yard corner pass that was too low and tried to squeeze in the pass to a tight window. He then sailed two consecutive throws on 2nd and 9 and then 3rd down, both to the same spot down the right sideline on quick outs. The first throw was too high by a foot, not even A.J. Green could have made that catch. Bauta also had an interception as he basically forced a pass on a 10-yard crossing route and got baited by the defender. He also missed Xavier Williams, who had beat his coverage and would have scored an easy touchdown.

Collin Hill: 10-18, 156 yards, 1 TD, 146.7 QB Rating

None of these quarterbacks had higher highs or lower lows than Hill, who looked completely out of place in the first half. By the second half, however, he was looking like a serious contender for the starting job this fall. Regardless of whether some solid second half passes were enough for him to make the coaching staff consider him a legitimate option for the starting position, Hill put on a very interesting showing and has an arm that promises to have a very bright future. He has all that you look for in a potential top end Mountain West starter.

Let’s dive into the specifics of Hill’s game. In the first few drives he had, nothing seemed to go right. Hill fired off two consecutive bad passes in his first series. In his second drive, he didn’t look much better; on a bootleg throw, he looked really awkward moving around mechanically but completed the throw. The very next snap out the shotgun the snap was sailed over his head and fumbled. He soon after fumbled a ball from under center. He also allowed a sack and tried a back corner end zone pass that was overthrown by a good amount. Out of his first three drives, there was only one positive play. As head coach Mike Bobo said after the game, Hill “looked like a freshman out there.”

As the game went on, Hill started to flash some real promise. He had a nice completion toward the left sideline to Williams and then threw a 20-yard post to Williams who dropped the pass. He also made a great sideline throw to Freismuth that generated a pass interference penalty. At this point, he had put together the best drive of the game for the struggling offense, at least based on the quality of the passes and completions he compiled. Hill had a potential big play down the sideline where he had Johnson open and the throw seemed in stride, but for some reason the receiver stopped his route for a second and the pass was incomplete. As the game progressed, his footwork settled down and started to look much better (impressive for a true freshman) and his accuracy was at times excellent. In the fourth quarter, Hill had the best pass of the entire game, a spectacular throw to Freismuth that hit him perfectly in stride on his far shoulder for an almost score (sadly this is where the TE/WR hybrid injured his shoulder). The ball placement and ability to lead the receiver open was excellent on this throw, also a great deep toss, the best of the game.

Hill threw well on the run once he got in rhythm. He showed great zip on a 15-yard out pattern, but the ball placement was off and this lead to his receiver getting lit-up. He still needs to perfect these sort of nuanced skills, but he was at times impressive considering his age.

J.C. Robles: 2-3, 6 yards, 83.5 QB Rating, 23 yards rushing

Getting Robles reps did not seem to be a priority in this game as he was used in two drives and mostly seemed to be used in specialty play packages. In his first drive, Robles actually gained some positive yardage. Mostly on two identical read-option plays where he kept the ball and ran off 10-15 yards at first and then a 25-yard gain. As much fun as it was to see the read-option being run and Robles wheels being unleashed, the big gains were more due to the defense not identifying the play then anything truly special that Robles did.

After the two runs, the young QB had an accurate short pass for a 2-yard gain to the back and then followed it up with a 10-yard pass over the middle shortly thereafter. Both passes looked good, though they were unspectacular. After this drive, Bobo seemed to get in Robles’ face and didn’t seem happy with his second-year player. Robles only had another drive after this which was uneventful and went for a three and out. Given Hill’s success, Robles seems like he’ll be an interesting weapon in special formations, but likely won’t compete for the starting job.

Who had the best traits?

Arm Talent (accuracy, arm strength, zip, ball placement, think of it like a pitchers “stuff” in baseball): Collin Hill

Throwing on the run: Hill and Nick Stevens tie

Poise in the pocket: Faton Bauta

Touch: Bauta and Stevens tie

Running with the football: Robles

Conclusion:

With all that said who will be the starter, and who should be the starter? The answer isn’t simple and I wouldn’t want to be in the coaching staff’s position (though with their salaries I could probably be convinced).

“To sit here and say I have an answer, I don’t,” Bobo said of a starting quarterback after the game. “It’s a big summer for all those guys learning what to do. Ultimately, it’s going to come down to who can take care of the football.

“I would say Nick and Faton are co-No. 1s. That’s how they’ve been practicing all spring as we’ve gone on throughout the spring. And I’d say Collin Hill is third.”

At this point, Bauta looked like the more trustworthy option at quarterback, which isn’t exactly what’s going to get the fan base excited, but it is what the coaches ultimately want. They need someone who can be trusted and who can avoid mistakes and the mistakes Stevens made were just too big and costly to overlook. There’s still a long time for this quarterback situation to be sorted out, but the early returns from spring might just mean the Rams have a new starter in 2016.