USF football’s Quinton Flowers is among the best dual-threat quarterbacks in the country. Here are five reasons he will win the Heisman Trophy in 2017.
Over the past three years, Quinton Flowers has developed into one of the most dangerous quarterbacks in the nation. In his sophomore season in 2015, Flowers took over starting duties for the Bulls. He finished the season nine rushing yards away from becoming the first FBS player at a Florida school to eclipse 2,000 passing yards and 1,000 rushing yards in a single year.
Last year, Flowers easily broke that benchmark. While guiding South Florida to an 11-2 record in 2016, the junior threw for 2,800 yards and 24 touchdowns. Flowers ran for another 1,500 yards and 18 scores over the course of the year. It was a complete effort that opens the door to a potential Heisman campaign in 2017.
Flowers will have to adjust to a new coaching staff after Willie Taggart left for the Oregon job. But the third-year starter will have a familiar cast to work with on the field. If he continues to develop as he has over the past two years, the Bulls could have more than just the American Athletic Conference title in their sights this year.
With South Florida a favorite to win the American Athletic Conference title in 2017, their dual-threat star at quarterback could receive major Heisman hype all throughout the season. Here are five reasons why Quinton Flowers will ride that hype all the way to a Heisman Trophy in 2017.
5. Flowers will throw to a veteran group of familiar receivers
When Willie Taggart left for Oregon, he left behind a veteran roster behind for the new coaching staff. There should be little tapering off from last season, and the group could develop even further. Many of the players on the offense have worked together for two or more years now, heightening a sense of familiarity and camaraderie that is essential to any championship effort.
A big reason for confidence in Flowers’ ability to continue progressing as a passer is the fact that he gets to work with a familiar group of receivers. The one big loss from the 2016 roster, Rodney Adams, is mitigated by the return to the starting lineup of junior receiver Chris Barr. Barr started 12 games in the slot as a true freshman in 2015, but lost his job to Adams in 2016.
As a junior, he could burst out for a big season with Flowers targeting him regularly. So too could returning starters Marquez Valdes-Scanting and Tyre McCants, who are poised to break out with increased targets this year.
Flowers is familiar with all of these players, which will be a real boon for his overall numbers. He knows where best to throw to each player to target him open, and Flowers should adjust with little trouble to the running aspects of new coordinator Sterlin Gilbert’s offensive philosophy.
4. Flowers could notch some huge rushing numbers this season
Just as Quinton Flowers should progress as a passer, he will also shoulder more of the rushing load in 2017. Marlon Mack, South Florida’s three-year starter at running back, has moved on to the NFL. While seniors D’Ernest Johnson and Darius Tice will also see more carries, Flowers will probably carry the ball two to three more times per game.
That would equate to around 25 to 30 more carries over the course of the year, so Flowers would project to get around 225 carries this year. Last year, Flowers racked up 1,530 rushing yards on 198 carries. Let’s assume for the sake of argument that the senior doesn’t quite reach the same 7.7 yards per carry he did last year. At a reasonably increased workload, Flowers would only have to average 6.7 yards per carry to break 1,500.
He should hover around the seven-yard range and threaten to get 1600 or more yards. Last year Flowers also rushed for 18 touchdowns. It is entirely reasonable to assume he gets a few more scores on the ground this year. The 20-touchdown mark is entirely attainable.
It adds up the possibility of joining NIU’s Jordan Lynch as the only 3,000/1,500 dual-threat quarterback in FBS history. Lynch finished third in the Heisman voting in 2013 a year after NIU went to a BCS bowl. In 2012, Lynch set his historic benchmark but finished just seventh in Heisman voting. Flowers could blow away that mark during a New Year’s Six run for the Bulls.
3. Flowers could post even better efficiency numbers in 2017
Quinton Flowers nearly broke the 3,000/1,500 club last year. The quarterback threw for 2,800 yards and completed 62.5 percent of his passes. Flowers boosted his completion percentage by over three and a half percent and threw for over 500 more yards over the course of the year than he did as a sophomore in 2015.
Flowers could easily continue that line of progression this season and finish the year with a 65-plus percent completion rate and at least 3300 passing yards. Given his familiar group of receivers, the senior will need only to continue what he is doing to prosper in the coming year.
Related Story: South Florida Football: Two-deep 2017 depth chart projection
Of course, there is no guarantee of that happening. The one big wrinkle in the mix is new offensive coordinator Sterlin Gilbert. In three years as an offensive coordinator at the FBS level, Gilbert has worked at three different schools. His first gig, at Bowling Green in 2014, went sour when starting quarterback Matt Johnson was injured. In one year at Tulsa he helped Dane Evans progress as a starter. And then there was last year at Texas.
Gilbert helped create one of the nation’s best rushing attacks in the country last year in Austin. He also was not able to really generate any consistent passing game with the Longhorns. Charlie Strong has confidence in the coordinator, though, and brought him along to Tampa. It could simply be that Gilbert has had bad luck with quarterbacks and merely needed a talent like Flowers.
4. Flowers will try to sell his pro potential to NFL teams in his final year
Over the past five years, one out of every six players selected in the NFL Draft hailed from a Group of Five school. (This mark considers the Big East as effectively a Group of Five school in the last year of the BCS in 2013, despite the league’s automatic-qualifying status that year.) Even though recruiting at the college level is an inexact science, the cream almost always rises to the top by the time a player leaves college.
Quinton Flowers has certainly shown consistent development over his time at South Florida. As someone with the skill set and demonstrated track record of success, Flowers will have extra incentive to showcase his skills and put up big numbers as a senior. The next stop could be the NFL if he continues to build big stats in 2017.
At 6-foot and 210 pounds, Flowers is not the biggest quarterback that will be available. He lacks the prototypical size of big-name prospects like Josh Allen, Sam Darnold, and Josh Rosen. But similarly-sized players like Russell Wilson have showcased an ability to thrive at quarterback in the NFL. One of the 32 teams will almost certainly be willing to spend a pick on this dynamic quarterback after his 2017 campaign.
1. USF will post a perfect record to keep Flowers in the spotlight
One of the biggest keys to any Heisman campaign is being a high-profile skill player at a ranked school. South Florida enters 2017 ranked 19th in the preseason AP Top 25 and 21st in the Coaches Poll. They already start out on the right foot to keep Quinton Flowers in the national spotlight all year long.
The schedule lines up for the Bulls to stay undefeated throughout the entire season. Flowers should rack up one huge performance after another against overmatched competition. Their one Power Five opponent on the schedule, Illinois, was stingy against the pass last year — but mainly because teams knew they could rush at will.
One way or another, Flowers is going to post big numbers in victory after critical victory. As the Bulls continue winning, they will vault up the polls as well. While the College Football Playoff selection committee is not beholden to any other ranking, they are likely going to continue placing South Florida at the top of the Group of Five pecking order as long as they don’t stumble.
Next: USF Football: Game-by-game predictions for 2017
As the quarterback of the top mid-major in the country, Flowers will definitely be in the running for the Heisman. But he might very well also be the only undefeated quarterback in the country this season, and that could prove the spark that propels him from finalist to Heisman winner in 2017.