Around the Big Ten: QBs with NFL potential

An amazing fact that began swirling talk radio and various internet sites last week is the absolute dearth of NFL quarterbacks that have emerged from the Big Ten in the past 20-plus years.

Throw out the obvious name, Tom Brady is merely an exception rather than a norm. As a sixth-round pick out of Michigan there were absolutely zero NFL pundits who saw a future Hall of Famer being plucked by the Patriots during Day 2 of the 2000 NFL draft.

But here’s the alarming state of the quarterback position in the Big Ten for the better part of two decades now. The last time a Big Ten signal caller drew a first round pick was Kerry Collins. Kerry Collins was picked by the Carolina Panthers. That was in 1995. That was 20 years ago. Bill Clinton hadn’t even met Monica yet in 1995. Al Gore’s internet was harder to find then than Hillary Clinton’s e-mails are to find now and the third member of Steve and Lori Zeller’s basketball empire was merely 3 years old in 95.

This is interesting today based on the fact that the Big Ten could finally be close to busting down that first-round quarterback wall in a big way in 2015. Three Big Ten signal callers are drawing first-round looks this preseason. Christian Hackenberg at Penn State has been called a first round pick since his freshman season, even as his on-field results have remained uneven into his third season as a Nittany Lion.
Connor Cook has assumed the mantle as the conference’s golden arm, as his name has popped up in mock drafts as the top college signal caller draft eligible this season. Cardale Jones of Ohio State nearly parlayed his bruising stature, cannon arm and three-game performance in the Big Ten title game and college football playoff into a first-round grade last winter.

Interestingly though is a fourth name seems to be drawing scouts eyes by year end – and that’s the one that resides in Bloomington.

Is Nate Sudfeld capable of drawing pro scout eyes and becoming the first Indiana player taken in the first round since Thomas Lewis in 1993?

Sudfeld currently ranks as the No. 5 signal caller on the NFL mock draft site nflmocks.com – ahead of both Jones and current Heisman trophy front runner Trevone Boykin. The site notes his 6-foot-6 size and his placement on the All Big Ten academic team as two things scouts are checking off the “pro” list of Sudfeld’s draft grades. Sudfeld’s completion percentage, surprising agility for his size and arm strength are also attributes drawing scouts’ attention.

While comparing Sudfeld’s game most closely to Baltimore’s Joe Flacco among current NFL quarterbacks, the site still gives pause to calling Sudfeld a first-round pick right now.

“This guy can throw it anywhere on the football field,” said a scout on the site. “That is a good thing and a bad thing. He will overthrow receiver on an easy play horrendously, and then on the next, he throws a perfect 50-yard bomb in the left corner of the end zone.

“In the mental processing part of the game (Sudfeld) can get a little lost. Most in part due to the offense they run, but he does not read defenses consistently enough. To be a starting NFL quarterback, you must be able to read the defense 24/7 and he can’t do that at this point.”

Around the Big Ten this week

The conference gets a crack at a marquee non-conference victory on Saturday as Michigan State hosts playoff runner-up Oregon in East Lansing Saturday. The Ducks suffered a possible blow after quarterback Vernon Adams took a late hit and walked off wobbly late in their season-opening win over Eastern Washington on Saturday (Adams’ expects to play). Sparty rolled in week 1 and has stated all preseason it intends to join Ohio State in the discussion for one of the four spots in the College Football playoff this season. A loss here likely ends that chatter early.

Jim Harbaugh will go for his first win as coach at Michigan as the Wolverines host Oregon State at The Big House. Michigan opens as a 14-point favorite so anything less than a comfortable win probably makes the locals in Ann Arbor a bit uneasy.

The unofficial annual Big Ten-Mid American Conference challenge continues as three matchups between the conferences take place Saturday. Penn State hopes to put its debacle against Temple in the rear view in a home game against Buffalo. Maryland looks to go 2-0 on the year as they host Bowling Green. Wisconsin will look to break through the win column for head coach Paul Chryst against Miami-Ohio.

Also of note, Purdue stays in state as it opens its home slate against Indiana State. Ohio State should fire its schedule maker as it hosts Hawaii rather than making the road trip. Minnesota hits the road to face Colorado State. Iowa will look to claim the coveted Cy-Hawk crown against Iowa State.