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Could Montana's Brady Gustafson Be the Next Carson Wentz?
By Brent Sobleski, NFL Analyst, Bleacher Report, June 17, 2016
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/2646228-could-montanas-brady-gustafson-be-the-next-carson-wentz
Stop me if you've heard this before: A previously overlooked FCS quarterback with prototypical size and top-notch arm talent has the potential to be a top pick in next year's NFL draft.
A year ago, this discussion centered on North Dakota State's Carson Wentz. The same conversation will occur this year with the Montana Grizzlies' Brady Gustafson.
There are similarities, but these two quarterbacks aren't one and the same. It's important to understand this, because they'll inevitably be linked throughout the next draft cycle.
The Philadelphia Eagles traded a massive amount of picks and players to acquire the second overall pick in the 2016 NFL draft and select Wentz, so placing the same level of expectations upon Gustafson is simply unfair.
Gustafson is a physically talented prospect with traits NFL scouts look for at every level. He's 6'7" and 230-plus pounds with an effortless throwing motion. He's a pocket passer by trade, but he's also athletic enough to maneuver around the pocket. These types of tools automatically get quarterbacks noticed.
"He's a very smart guy," Montana head coach and offensive play-caller Bob Stitt said in a phone interview with Bleacher Report. "He’s got the physical tools, and he's quicker and faster than people realize. He can also run a little bit and cover some ground. He puts his foot in the ground and moves around the pocket well. He can make all of the throws, too."
These physical tools must be balanced between the young man's obvious upside and his overall lack of experience.
Much like Wentz, collegiate programs overlooked Gustafson during the recruiting process. The Billings, Montana, native wasn't heavily pursued before signing with the University of Montana. During his first three years in the program, Gustafson remained buried on the depth chart. Everything changed when Stitt arrived.
"When I first got the job and the staff met with the quarterbacks to explain how we were going to do things and offensive concepts, I knew before he ever took a snap that Brady would be our guy," the coach said. "It just clicked for him mentally. I believe that’s his strongest suit: how fast he processes information."
Gustafson's primary obstacle throughout the scouting process will stem from his limited opportunities.
As a junior, Wentz started all 16 games and led the Bison to the program's fourth straight national championship. In his first year as a starter, the North Dakota native rewrote the program's record book by setting new single-season records in pass attempts, completions and yards. He also broke the school's total-offense-per-game mark.
Concerns eventually arose when Wentz suffered a broken wrist in 2015. Thus, he only started 23 career games. The entire scouting process slowed due to the injury. As a result, Wentz's status as a top prospect seemed to come out of nowhere even though he entered last season as a highly intriguing and well-known prospect among scouts.
Gustafson's injury came a year earlier in the development process, and he didn't experience as much success as Wentz during his junior campaign. The lanky signal-caller suffered a broken leg in last season's September 19 game against the Liberty Flames, which stunted his learning curve, but not to the extent some might believe.
"It didn’t help his statistics, but he continued to prepare every week," Stitt said. "He saw things from the sidelines the other quarterbacks who were actually playing didn’t. When he did come back against Eastern Washington, we scored 51 points by the third quarter, so I took him out of the game. We could have scored 80 points if we left our starters in that day.
"He continued to grow mentally throughout the season, but he didn’t get as many reps or statistics as some might have liked. We did score 57 and 54 in the last two weeks with him."
During Gustafson's last two regular-season starts against the Eastern Washington Eagles and Montana State Bobcats, he completed 58.9 percent of his passes for 619 yards, five touchdowns and one interception. He finished the season with a 57.6 completion percentage, 1,984 passing yards, 12 touchdowns and nine interceptions.
With that in mind, Gustafson could start every game as a senior and still have less than 20 career starts if the Grizzlies don't qualify for the playoffs. Of course, the team made the postseason last year and should have raised expectations, particularly with the talented senior signal-caller.
Ironically, the Montana quarterback's best game came against North Dakota State.
In last year's season opener on national television, Gustafson made his first start. He rose to the occasion against the reigning national champions with 434 passing yards, three touchdowns and a game-winning drive in the final minute. Montana defeated North Dakota State, 38-35.
"We didn't know much about Brady at all," Bison defensive coordinator Matt Entz said. "We just saw his size. I remember going into that first game, and we were just trying to watch him during pregame. Was he a threat to run? How mobile was he in the pocket? How strong of an arm did he have? All of those question marks were there.
"Unfortunately, we learned the hard way he’s a talented quarterback. I think he fits really well in what they do, and he’s been really well-coached. He understands the offense. Just from following them, they struggled when he wasn't behind center. He must make the offense go and be cerebral enough to understand the tempo and play-calling."
One pass stood out during the final drive. On 4th-and-10 from the 44-yard line with 27 seconds remaining and down by four points, Gustafson delivered a big-time throw scouts and coaches will consistently refer to when evaluating him.
See the article for the rest of the story
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/2646228-could-montanas-brady-gustafson-be-the-next-carson-wentz
By Brent Sobleski, NFL Analyst, Bleacher Report, June 17, 2016
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/2646228-could-montanas-brady-gustafson-be-the-next-carson-wentz
Stop me if you've heard this before: A previously overlooked FCS quarterback with prototypical size and top-notch arm talent has the potential to be a top pick in next year's NFL draft.
A year ago, this discussion centered on North Dakota State's Carson Wentz. The same conversation will occur this year with the Montana Grizzlies' Brady Gustafson.
There are similarities, but these two quarterbacks aren't one and the same. It's important to understand this, because they'll inevitably be linked throughout the next draft cycle.
The Philadelphia Eagles traded a massive amount of picks and players to acquire the second overall pick in the 2016 NFL draft and select Wentz, so placing the same level of expectations upon Gustafson is simply unfair.
Gustafson is a physically talented prospect with traits NFL scouts look for at every level. He's 6'7" and 230-plus pounds with an effortless throwing motion. He's a pocket passer by trade, but he's also athletic enough to maneuver around the pocket. These types of tools automatically get quarterbacks noticed.
"He's a very smart guy," Montana head coach and offensive play-caller Bob Stitt said in a phone interview with Bleacher Report. "He’s got the physical tools, and he's quicker and faster than people realize. He can also run a little bit and cover some ground. He puts his foot in the ground and moves around the pocket well. He can make all of the throws, too."
These physical tools must be balanced between the young man's obvious upside and his overall lack of experience.
Much like Wentz, collegiate programs overlooked Gustafson during the recruiting process. The Billings, Montana, native wasn't heavily pursued before signing with the University of Montana. During his first three years in the program, Gustafson remained buried on the depth chart. Everything changed when Stitt arrived.
"When I first got the job and the staff met with the quarterbacks to explain how we were going to do things and offensive concepts, I knew before he ever took a snap that Brady would be our guy," the coach said. "It just clicked for him mentally. I believe that’s his strongest suit: how fast he processes information."
Gustafson's primary obstacle throughout the scouting process will stem from his limited opportunities.
As a junior, Wentz started all 16 games and led the Bison to the program's fourth straight national championship. In his first year as a starter, the North Dakota native rewrote the program's record book by setting new single-season records in pass attempts, completions and yards. He also broke the school's total-offense-per-game mark.
Concerns eventually arose when Wentz suffered a broken wrist in 2015. Thus, he only started 23 career games. The entire scouting process slowed due to the injury. As a result, Wentz's status as a top prospect seemed to come out of nowhere even though he entered last season as a highly intriguing and well-known prospect among scouts.
Gustafson's injury came a year earlier in the development process, and he didn't experience as much success as Wentz during his junior campaign. The lanky signal-caller suffered a broken leg in last season's September 19 game against the Liberty Flames, which stunted his learning curve, but not to the extent some might believe.
"It didn’t help his statistics, but he continued to prepare every week," Stitt said. "He saw things from the sidelines the other quarterbacks who were actually playing didn’t. When he did come back against Eastern Washington, we scored 51 points by the third quarter, so I took him out of the game. We could have scored 80 points if we left our starters in that day.
"He continued to grow mentally throughout the season, but he didn’t get as many reps or statistics as some might have liked. We did score 57 and 54 in the last two weeks with him."
During Gustafson's last two regular-season starts against the Eastern Washington Eagles and Montana State Bobcats, he completed 58.9 percent of his passes for 619 yards, five touchdowns and one interception. He finished the season with a 57.6 completion percentage, 1,984 passing yards, 12 touchdowns and nine interceptions.
With that in mind, Gustafson could start every game as a senior and still have less than 20 career starts if the Grizzlies don't qualify for the playoffs. Of course, the team made the postseason last year and should have raised expectations, particularly with the talented senior signal-caller.
Ironically, the Montana quarterback's best game came against North Dakota State.
In last year's season opener on national television, Gustafson made his first start. He rose to the occasion against the reigning national champions with 434 passing yards, three touchdowns and a game-winning drive in the final minute. Montana defeated North Dakota State, 38-35.
"We didn't know much about Brady at all," Bison defensive coordinator Matt Entz said. "We just saw his size. I remember going into that first game, and we were just trying to watch him during pregame. Was he a threat to run? How mobile was he in the pocket? How strong of an arm did he have? All of those question marks were there.
"Unfortunately, we learned the hard way he’s a talented quarterback. I think he fits really well in what they do, and he’s been really well-coached. He understands the offense. Just from following them, they struggled when he wasn't behind center. He must make the offense go and be cerebral enough to understand the tempo and play-calling."
One pass stood out during the final drive. On 4th-and-10 from the 44-yard line with 27 seconds remaining and down by four points, Gustafson delivered a big-time throw scouts and coaches will consistently refer to when evaluating him.
See the article for the rest of the story
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/2646228-could-montanas-brady-gustafson-be-the-next-carson-wentz
