Thursday, May 24, 2007

The Beau Sweeney Dilemma


by NSC

Over the past week Beau Sweeney has been one of the more discussed topics in the Bulldog world of football. Some of us feel like Beau Sweeney is a talent that Fresno State let get away while others feel that Sweeney never showed any interest in Fresno State in the first place so why go after him. There have been various posts that have covered the Beau Sweeney dilemma and I feel like I want to throw my two cents in on the subject.

Sweeney is an outstanding high school QB. He has many of the tools that a college football team would most certainly be able to utilize. Sweeney throws the middle 15-20 yard route just about as good as any high school QB I have ever seen (Aside J.J. Jelmini, his arm was unreal). Sweeney is fast, can break outside on a run if he needs to and knows how to use both his vision and his speed to find his way out of trouble. However, Sweeney is not a wonder kid by any stretch of the imagination. Sweeney plays on a team that features the run first. Matt Jelmini ran for over 2,000 yards this past season which takes a huge amount of pressure off of Sweeney when he is playing QB. In the only game this past season where Jelmini was not a factor (against Clovis East in the championship) Sweeney looked flustered on almost every single play. When opposing teams put pressure on Sweeney he does not seem to know whether to throw the ball or to sit back and wait. While Sweeney is a talent at the QB position he is just like every other young kid on the field and must learn quite a bit more before he will be proficient at the college football level.

With respect to recruiting Sweeney I believe there is much more going on behind the scenes than many of us know. Of course I do not know this for a fact but I am willing to bet Hill thought long and hard about recruiting Sweeney. On one hand you are going to try and attract a local kid which makes many of us in Fresno happy. At the same time a local kid would help involve the communities of both Fresno and Clovis that much more because they would feel a close connection with the QB on the field. But you have to consider the other side of the coin when talking about recruiting Sweeney. As many of us know Hill and Jim Sweeney do not share the same views on how to run a football team. Sweeney loved the offensive side of the ball and often threw the ball downfield more times than many of us could count in a game. Hill is the anti-Sweeney as he leads with the run. If Sweeney steps in at QB and Hill decides to run the ball more often than he throws what kind of criticism would that open Hill up to with respect to the media and the Sweeney family? While this may not be a good reason for leaving Sweeney off of the recruiting list it may be one of the reasons that Hill decided not to go after Sweeney.

What many of us have to realize is coaches recruit QB’s that tend to fit their program. Maybe Hill did not feel Sweeney fit the Fresno State program. Maybe Hill did not think Sweeney was the right fit for the Bulldog football team. Whatever the reasons the important thing we as Fresno State fans have to accept is that Sweeney will not be playing at Fresno State. From all accounts (including Sweeney’s father Kevin) Beau has no interest in playing for Fresno State anyway. As a Bulldog fan I would have loved to see Beau Sweeney in this program but if he does not want to be here then I have no desire to have him out there on Bulldog field. I would rather we recruit players such as Jerry Davis or Byron Campbell (I believe that is his name) because they have much more desire to play for the hometown Bulldogs. Sweeney will be a good college QB I am sure of that. But do remember there are plenty of good high school QB’s out there and just because we lost Sweeney does not mean we lost out on every solid QB in the valley. If you want to see how good Davis from Edison is when compared to Sweeney check out the Clovis West-Edison game this season. You will see that we may just get that outstanding QB prospect we need to turn the program around and his name won’t be Sweeney.

23 comments:

Anonymous said...

Well, I respect your comments, but they do sound a little like "sour grapes," although I'm sure they are meant to be Bulldog supportive, instead.

How many offers has Davis so far received, and how many had Sweeney accrued before signing?

I'm not a coach, but winning games is what coaches want. If other big name schools' coaches saw something speical in Sweeney, there probably is something special there. Others sure believe him to be a winner!

I just wish Pat Hill would have given it a stronger effort.

Or do you disagree?

Steve Burnes

Anonymous said...

There is a reason Pat didn't offer, and if you take a look back to the Norton situation yo will see why. Friends and family from the Norton camp were trying to pressure Hill into playing him, and if you go their way then you lose all control. Outside pressure to play Sweeney, JUST because of his name, would have been tremendous. It's actually a good thing he won't be a Dog.

I'm very glad Hill didn't go after Beau because it would have just spelled trouble, and that's the last thing you want after the year we had last year. Besides, I have seen Sweeney play many times and let me just say that I'm absolutely stunned that he garnered the offers he did.

----------------

Also as a side note, Pete Carrol said that Travis Brown is the best linebacker prospect he has EVER seen at his age. And there is a good chance that he will be a Bulldog.

Anonymous said...

Travis Brown is a stud, and he told me FS is his No. 1 school right now, and he has an offer from Arizona

Anonymous said...

Why are we talking about Travis Brown? I thought this was about the Beau Sweeney thang?

MB said...

Travis Brown came up cause people are looking forward to a player that may end up in a Bulldog uniform whereas Sweeney is all but gone.

Anonymous said...

Well said. Plus the Sweeney situation is pretty cut and dry...not much more to say about it. He won't be here and it will be good for the continuity of the program.

Anonymous said...

Why do you think it "will be good for the continuity of the program" that BS won't attend Fresno State? Is Sweeney a poor QB in your mind? Is Coach Hill's staff unable to coach him? I'm not getting your point.

Steve Burnes

BarkBoard.com said...

Steve, imagine if Hill chose to grayshirt Sweeney but not grayshirt another QB from the 08 class...or just imagine if Sweeney was in place of Norton last season, if fans thought the outcry for Sean was bad, just imagine if Jim was leading the charge for Hill to replace his starting qb with his grandson...

Cal is a great situation for Beau, no reason to cry about...it is probably best for both Beau and Fresno State...he still can play for a Bulldog (Tedford) yet be in his own place without having to play in the shadow of his father

Anonymous said...

Beau is not a poor QB in my mind at all. I think he is good, but not great. A 3 star if you will.

The reason I think it will be good for the continuity of the program is that it will avoid the controversy and conspiracy theories fans would create if he didn't play. The team doesn't need all of that crap flying around while they try to do their jobs on and off the field.

Also, did you see where Pat just offered Dominique Blackman?

nsc said...

Steve MDG hit it on the head. It isnt that Sweeney is a bad QB because he most certainly isn't. The problem is the family background and all that Hill would face if he feels Sweeney is not the right man for the job. I am glad he is going to Cal. It's a great situation for Sweeney and allows us to look for another valley guy such as Davis or Campbell. We will be fine I am sure of that.

Anonymous said...

Again, I ask, is Davis--or Blackman-- better than Sweeney? Is Sweeney uncoachable due to his name? Since when did Hill ever listen to the public outcry?

If the answer is Sweeney isn't the right QB for our team, we are going to get a better one, then OK. It's just that I'm not hearing that. Then I read on the Barkboard a poster who said he heard Dad on ESPN saying BS wanted Fresno State first, but Hill wouldn't give him a look (may I add I have read several posters saying young Sweeney wasn't interested in Fresno State at all).

I guess I'm a bit confused when a Sweeney doesn't get a look even though he wants Fresno State; other schools--BCS powerhouses included--offer him in his junior year; and we are told that avoiding controversey is a key decision point in not offering BS.

I do get your points, NSC and MDG. But please take a small multiple choice test to illuminate mine: this makes our program look a) robust and fearless, b) weak and scared, c) none of the above.

Steve Burnes

ps- I am not a Beau Sweeney fan; I've never seen him play. I just want the best for Fresno State.

BarkBoard.com said...

If Fresno State had offered in Feb, then Sweeney would have verbaled...okay but in Feb Sweeney was an unknown borderline IA QB per se...his 2006 season is not what got him his numerous offers...his grandpa pulling some strings got him his first offers and his early hype, Beau just backed it up with great performances at Berkeley and Stanford.

IMO, FS should have offered him just as a formality, ala Cal and ASU, but I see Hill's position, is Sweeney better than Matt Faulkner? FS signed a 25 kids this past Feb and really doesn't need a qb in 08. But if the 'Dogs sign one, why not sign a big-time guy, like Blackman, if not there is still plenty of depth for the next two years.

Sweeney could turn out to be a 3-4 star kid because of his offers and a solid senior year. Or his stock could drop if he has a subpar senior year. Cal is still recruiting more quarterbacks. The Bears have not stopped with Beau and in fact have offers to Matt Scott and to 4 star Andrew Luck, among others.

I still think Jerry Davis is the best QB in the Valley. Sweeney is good but to back up NSC's stance, the program might be better off without him. Unless Sweeney came in and dominated from the set go, the backlash for not playing him could be unbearable if the 'Dogs were not winning.

On the other hand, if Hill is confident in his QBs, no one would care who is behind center as long as the team is winning...

the key is winning, as long as the program wins, no one will look back and say, FS should have recruited Sweeney harder....

Anonymous said...

Thanks.

SB

nsc said...

Steve the way you worry about the Dogs is admirable, and I completely see where you are coming from. I just dont feel Sweeney is the best for our program. I honestly feel Faulkner from his films is just as talented as Sweeney, and may have an even better upside.

So don't worry we will have a good QB in the system, let's just hope we add another good recruit to the list because we already have one coming this fall.

Anonymous said...

where is jelmini on the recruit? no grandfather stadium namesake,no dad coached by father at fsu. he has legitimate stats and no hype around him. 8-9 in the box to stop him and still the qb could not send a message downfield. also, he went from 6' to 6' 2" in less than 6 months and 180 lbs to 200 lbs. its either there are fudging for ksS shortcomings or taking.... either way, it is not honest or as cw puts it character counts.

Anonymous said...

Jelmini is a solide hs rb but FS has former cw rb Kyle Duffy on the roster...Duffy was just as good as Jelmini but didn't do any damage this spring in his limited time...

Rojas before Duffy was another tough undersized cw rb but no where to be found on the college recruiting trail

Anonymous said...

just like undersized a.j. pickens, chino, ca., 808 yds 12tds 2.6 gpa.,
offer by fs. Local players don't fit PH's profile, 6'5" qb's, 6' rb's with stats or grades. Did christensen ever play? who's undersized in thinking.

Anonymous said...

just FYI...

Pickens is being recruting as a DB, he is one of the top lockdown corners in the state and he has his dad's hands but is faster...

his dad is former Freno State WR and 49er 8th round pick, Dwight Pickens...

Anonymous said...

just FYI,
wow!, but already knew that, which is why it was posted, think about it.

Anonymous said...

anonymous said...

season opener...
cal vs. tennesee
fsu vs sac state?? whos that??

big time football right there
goodluck 4-8 bulldogs. WE LOVE YOU!

Anonymous said...

I agree with you very much...

Sweeney made a better long term decision. Especially with Fresno States down program right now.

I'm excited to see Beau's season next year. I think that kid can do great thins

SF State Gators said...

For me it's all about where he ended up- i wouldn't have complained if he'd gone anywhere but the team that i view as Fresno State's arch enemy #1. I wouldn't have been super upset if he'd gone to Oregon or USC or Stanford. But to see him follow tedford and Ludwig and all of the former bulldogs, as a legacy, into the hands of the team that for me is the most heated, despised rival... well, that just makes it feel pretty rough.

Marion Gold said...

what the hell is wrong with you people? why do you spend so much time ranting on about high-school kids? it's time to grow up!