With signs pointing to Chubba getting the start this weekend, I can't help but draw comparisons to Taylor Martinez. Chubba is a surprisingly good athlete with severely underrated speed and below average arm. How much will his groin injury detract from the aforementioned speed? We're not sure. But he has wheels. Unlike Taylor, he's got pretty good lateral quickness as well. In our QB room Haarberg is a straight-line bruiser, and Chubba is the shifty, make-a-man-miss-in-a-phone-booth kind of runner. That seems to have been forgotten by a lot of folks who haven't seen him much. Some evidence of this:
Look at him fly at 0:31
Made an OU defender absolutely whiff here:
He averaged 11.0 ypc against Maryland and 7.8 ypc against Michigan in significant playing time in 2022.
The problem is he can't throw out of his shadow. A career 50% passer, mostly in mop-up time (worse than that when he's been called on to start), with a negative TD:INT ratio. Taylor Martinez also never set the world on fire with his arm... but he could hit wide open receivers. Luckily for him, we had guys that could fly - Kyler Reed, Niles Paul (Those two alone accounted for 2/3 of the passing yards in T-Magic's famous Oklahoma State game), Kenny Bell, Jamal Turner, Quincy Enunwa, Jordan Westerkamp. For Chubba... we don't have the experience, but we've still got some burners. In the long run, you can tell Satt wants a multi-option passing offense - lots of reads, lots of decision making from the quarterback. But this roster and this QB room just don't facilitate that.
Big picture: If we can run plays that get our speed in one-on-ones, then all we need is a QB that can hit a few of those throws to open receivers while keeping the defense honest by being a legitimate running threat. Sprinkle in a heavy dose of Johnson to limit the wear and tear on the QB and that's our recipe for 24 points a game (which, realistically is the level the offense has performed at this year without the turnovers). Ground and pound and just hit a few big ones. Burn clock, capitalize on the 3-5 big play opportunities per game, and limit the number of possessions. If we can stick to that plan, no matter how painful it may be, then we will win the game if we just don't turn the ball over. That has been true for every game except (the Cheatagain Stoleverines) this year. If Chubba can channel Martinez's 2011 PSU statline (13-26 143 yds, 0 TD, 0 INT / 18 Att, 56 Yds, 0 TD, 0 Fum / 17-14 Win) then that will be good enough to win Saturday. I think he's got that in him.
Look at him fly at 0:31
Made an OU defender absolutely whiff here:
He averaged 11.0 ypc against Maryland and 7.8 ypc against Michigan in significant playing time in 2022.
The problem is he can't throw out of his shadow. A career 50% passer, mostly in mop-up time (worse than that when he's been called on to start), with a negative TD:INT ratio. Taylor Martinez also never set the world on fire with his arm... but he could hit wide open receivers. Luckily for him, we had guys that could fly - Kyler Reed, Niles Paul (Those two alone accounted for 2/3 of the passing yards in T-Magic's famous Oklahoma State game), Kenny Bell, Jamal Turner, Quincy Enunwa, Jordan Westerkamp. For Chubba... we don't have the experience, but we've still got some burners. In the long run, you can tell Satt wants a multi-option passing offense - lots of reads, lots of decision making from the quarterback. But this roster and this QB room just don't facilitate that.
Big picture: If we can run plays that get our speed in one-on-ones, then all we need is a QB that can hit a few of those throws to open receivers while keeping the defense honest by being a legitimate running threat. Sprinkle in a heavy dose of Johnson to limit the wear and tear on the QB and that's our recipe for 24 points a game (which, realistically is the level the offense has performed at this year without the turnovers). Ground and pound and just hit a few big ones. Burn clock, capitalize on the 3-5 big play opportunities per game, and limit the number of possessions. If we can stick to that plan, no matter how painful it may be, then we will win the game if we just don't turn the ball over. That has been true for every game except (the Cheatagain Stoleverines) this year. If Chubba can channel Martinez's 2011 PSU statline (13-26 143 yds, 0 TD, 0 INT / 18 Att, 56 Yds, 0 TD, 0 Fum / 17-14 Win) then that will be good enough to win Saturday. I think he's got that in him.
