Quarterback Changes & Questions Abound Across The Big Ten

Matt Hinton at CBSsports.com penned an interesting column on the regression of Taylor Martinez, Nebraska’s soon-to-be third year starting quarterback and brief gridiron savior. After reaching his zenith with a Thursday night decimation of Kansas State in October 2010, Martinez’s production dropped significantly. Perhaps no moment exemplified Martinez’s late season than a sideline scrape with head coach Bo Pelini during the Cornhuskers’ offensively anemic loss at Texas A&M.

A new year and a new conference did not rejuvenate Martinez to early 2010 levels. He was the Huskers’ No. 2 leading rusher behind returning Rex Burkhead, gaining over 800 yards. But his passing consistency, or lack thereof, allowed opposing defenses to smother the rushing game. No Cornhusker with a double digit number of carries averaged more than 4.8 yards, and the loss of Aaron Green to transfer leaves the ground game conspicuously light.

That translates to a lot of pressure on Martinez in Year 3. Quite the juxtaposition from Martinez’s Heisman buzz almost two years ago, but an exercise in the folly of prematurely applied hyperbole. The Heisman praise heaped on Martinez in October was Denard Robinson’s a month earlier.

Robinson was a one-man wrecking crew through the Wolverines’ hot start, but the toll of tackles mounted and a porous defense derailed Michigan’s season — and Rich Rodriguez’s tenure.

Glimpses of the Robinson that wowed the nation were visible in 2011. His fourth quarter against Notre Dame erased what was an otherwise brutal individual showing. And in that one contest was a microcosm of Robinson’s entire first season under the new regime of head coach Brady Hoke and offensive coordinator Al Borges.

Borges made efforts to integrate the components of the zone-read that made Robinson so dangerous with the West Coast offense he is renowned for running. The result was at times clunky and awkward.

A tour of the conference brings up one quarterback question after another. Ohio State, Illinois and Penn State all return starting quarterback, but each welcomes a new coaching staff. All three programs tabbed head coaches whose staffs should accentuate the positives of their quarterbacks.

OSU’s Braxton Miller is particularly generating excitement in Urban Meyer’s system. Miller was highly touted for his dual threat abilities out of high school, and he got the opportunity to prove why after Joe Bauserman fell flat as the Buckeye’s starter. Miller’s wheels were never in doubt; he exceeded 80 yards rushing six times, and surpassed the century mark three. He also had a respectable 3.3 : 1 touchdown-to-interception ratio (13 scores to four picks).

At a completion percentage of just 54.1, Miller has room for improvement. Still, Meyer’s track record for quarterbacks and Miller’s proven abilities give OSU one of the most stable quarterback situations in the conference.

Nathan Scheelhaase has quietly registered some of the better numbers in the Big Ten, but Tim Beckman’s arrival from Toledo came without a guarantee Scheelhasse would start in 2012. Beckman used two quarterbacks regularly at UT, bucking trends with success. Terrence Owens and Austin Dantin shared snaps to lead a Rocket offense that scored 42.2 points per game.

The old cliche goes that the team with two quarterbacks has no quarterback.

Bill O’Brien came to PSU fresh off coaching an NFL Hall of Famer. Matt McGloin is not Tom Brady. McGloin was named the Nittany Lions’ starter, though, despite finishing a shaky 2011 on a sour note.

Elsewhere there are new starters assuming the starting controls from successful predecessors. The stability Kirk Cousins provided Michigan State fit Mark Dantonio’s tenure to a T. Dan Persa struggled with injuries, but when available was explosive leading the Northwestern offense. Russell Wilson ignited Wisconsin to an explosive level it never had previously.

Andrew Maxwell, Kain Colter and a quarterback yet to be named are the heirs expected to meet lofty standards. Maxwell might have the easiest road of the three. Cousins was adequate but never awe inspiring, especially his senior season when his score-to-turnover ratio was 2.5 : 1. MSU also boasts a stout rushing game and a defense that makes the offense’s job much easier.

UW is similar, returning a Heisman finalist running back in Montee Ball, a second dangerous ball carrier in James White, talent on the receiving corps and a strong defense. Danny O’Brien’s transfer from Maryland seemed to answer the question about Wilson’s departure, but new Badger offensive coordinator Matt Canada told the Big Ten Network the 2010 Freshman All-American O’Brien has not won the position.

"Danny brings some on-the-field experience which is unique to him as compared to the other guys. But the other guys were here through the spring and know the system, the players and Wisconsin."

Colter is firmly the No. 1 QB at Northwestern, and performed well in significant duty last season. Colter appears capable of carrying the recent tradition of quarterback play for the purple-and-white, established under Persa and previously Mike Kafka. Of course, even the established Colter faces question marks — mostly from EA Sports.

Purdue and Minnesota had their returning starters eventual beat out other plays still in the program. Caleb TerBush and MarQueis Gray emerged from quarterback competitions with Robert Marve and Max Shortell. Gray is getting some love, a player well suited to Jerry Kill’s system. He was the Golden Gophers’ leading rusher a season ago, and could settle into the kind of role Chandler Harnish so adeptly flourished in at Northern Illinois.

That leaves Iowa’s James Vandenberg. The Hawkeye was thrust into the limelight in 2009 amid UI’s ill-fated BCS championship chase while Rick Stanzi was injured. He became the full-time starter last year and recorded solid numbers. But can he be a giant killer on the field, like he is off it?

As for Indiana? The Hoosiers’ problems transcend quarterback play.