Too much blame and to much credit are attributed to the QB position there is no other team sport where you have to be good in 3 phases offense defense and special teams until this staff does a better job of developing players to be successful we are going to be were we are at and it would be especially helpful if the defense would stop someone consistently and create a few turnovers also stop a team on 3rd down in key spots and take some pressure off of the offense and also need a kicker who can consistently make field goals
Not saying he will be one of the problems if SIU is not having a good year. But if I’m Coach Hill, I’m sitting under 500 for my career, had a bad 2022, why not look to one of my dual threat quarterbacks? They are both good size kids. Simmons more down hill runner, Lindauer more in space. Both throw it well. Not saying either one is the answers, but if we hovering along around 500 again, why not give one of these kids a chance. I’ve seen multiple running backs and wide receivers get opportunities to touch the ball.
Too much blame and to much credit are attributed to the QB position there is no other team sport where you have to be good in 3 phases offense defense and special teams until this staff does a better job of developing players to be successful we are going to be were we are at and it would be especially helpful if the defense would stop someone consistently and create a few turnovers also stop a team on 3rd down in key spots and take some pressure off of the offense and also need a kicker who can consistently make field goals
I can't think of another team sport where one guy is so important to team success. No doubt a bad D or bad O line can doom a team. So can a QB that makes bad decisions, throws picks, is dreaming about Quatros pizza in the huddle, etc.
Our schedule is just as tough, if not more so, than last year. Our D must be sound and we must have a running game. If not, it will be another disappointing year.
@valleyfb I don't think you're way off on this. Nick likes his pocket passers.
I will bow to the ole' adage that Nick has forgotten more about the position of qb than I will ever know. However, I will vehemently argue that Nick is infinitely more comfortable with a pocket passing qb and not a dual threat qb. Afterall, Nick was a pocket passer. He likes his qb's tucked nicely behind the ol. I wish Nick would move the pocket a little more to get away from the rush.
Nic Baker does appear to help himself greatly by recognizing pass rushes / blitzes and changes the blocking. That Karie Lyles couldn't figure that out even if the other team wrote it down in triplicate and handed it to him.
I'm not sayin' -- I'm just sayin'!
If we have a solid O-line, we’ll have a good running game. If we can’t run block, Baker will be slinging it all over the field.
how has this worked out for us the last couple of years?
If SIU isn’t good this year, I’d be surprised if Baker was one of the top 5 reasons why. Baker is very underrated here. He’s won SIU big games in spite of O-Line struggles and injuries to his weapons and a lack of run game.
He's overrated IMO. We've had better QBs leave. He has games where he's very good. Other times he's just off. His size is a real issue. Rarely do we pass into the middle. Also not especially mobile, although he surprised me a couple of times last year. Fact is, teams like UNI, NDSU, SDSU, and Mo State have been better at that position the last few years. Much better.
@salukiworld here is your case in point. Yeah it looks like Austin Reed was a miss, but who else. I assume you are going to say Stone Labanowitz? We could go back and forth on him, but a push at best. As for the other teams you mentioned who have been "much better" at the position, I just don't think the stats bear that out. So I put together some data for the last three years of all the teams you mentioned. So we aren't talking purely in terms of how someone "feels". There were certainly some years where one QB may have had a year above and beyond, but for the most part Baker is right there with everyone of them, if not better.
I obviously don't think Baker is the top QB in in the league, but you and others on here certainly short change him. My top 3 would be Theo Day, M. Gronowski, and Baker. Cam Miller has such an awesome running game, he doesn't have to throw much. I think if you put him on any other team, he's a middle of the road QB.
In the end, it's definitely a team sport...Baker can only do so much. We have to be better at the line of scrimmage (both sides of the ball) if we want to get back to the playoffs. Baker under center can certainly get us there.
| Season | Team | QB | QB Rating | Comp | Att | Comp % | TDs | INTs | Rush Yds | Rush TDs | Team Record |
|
2020
|
UNI | W. McElvain | 106.45 | 72 | 141 | 51.06% | 1 | 2 | 134 | 2 | 3-4 |
| SDSU | M. Gronowski | 150.5 | 108 | 188 | 57.45% | 15 | 3 | 577 | 7 | 8-2 | |
| NDSU | Zeb Noland | 116.1 | 51 | 100 | 51.00% | 5 | 6 | 19 | 1 | 7-3 | |
| Mo St. | Multiple | 103.18 | 155 | 284 | 54.58% | 5 | 10 | 111 | 1 | 5-5 | |
| SIU | N. Baker | 142.44 | 50 | 74 | 67.57% | 3 | 4 | 52 | 1 | 6-4 | |
|
2021
|
UNI | Theo Day | 137.81 | 155 | 276 | 56.16% | 16 | 11 | 251 | 0 | 6-6 |
| SDSU | C. Oladokun | 149.8 | 238 | 382 | 62.30% | 25 | 7 | 166 | 2 | ||
| NDSU | Cam Miller | 174 | 103 | 152 | 67.76% | 14 | 3 | 280 | 4 | 14-1 | |
| Mo St. | J. Shelley | 142.69 | 235 | 400 | 58.75% | 22 | 9 | 442 | 10 | 8-4 | |
| SIU | N. Baker | 143.69 | 265 | 420 | 63.10% | 27 | 11 | 268 | 1 | 8-5 | |
|
2022
|
UNI | Theo Day | 169.03 | 210 | 323 | 65.02% | 26 | 6 | 223 | 4 | 6-5 |
| SDSU | M. Gronowski | 156.5 | 232 | 356 | 65.17% | 26 | 5 | 408 | 12 | 14-1 | |
| NDSU | Cam Miller | 147.7 | 160 | 243 | 65.84% | 13 | 5 | 561 | 15 | 12-3 | |
| Mo St. | J. Shelley | 141.74 | 204 | 334 | 61.08% | 18 | 6 | 162 | 4 | 5-6 | |
| SIU | N. Baker | 150.43 | 239 | 347 | 68.88% | 20 | 7 | 278 | 3 | 5-6 |
If we have a solid O-line, we’ll have a good running game. If we can’t run block, Baker will be slinging it all over the field.
how has this worked out for us the last couple of years?
If SIU isn’t good this year, I’d be surprised if Baker was one of the top 5 reasons why. Baker is very underrated here. He’s won SIU big games in spite of O-Line struggles and injuries to his weapons and a lack of run game.
He's overrated IMO. We've had better QBs leave. He has games where he's very good. Other times he's just off. His size is a real issue. Rarely do we pass into the middle. Also not especially mobile, although he surprised me a couple of times last year. Fact is, teams like UNI, NDSU, SDSU, and Mo State have been better at that position the last few years. Much better.
@salukiworld here is your case in point. Yeah it looks like Austin Reed was a miss, but who else. I assume you are going to say Stone Labanowitz? We could go back and forth on him, but a push at best. As for the other teams you mentioned who have been "much better" at the position, I just don't think the stats bear that out. So I put together some data for the last three years of all the teams you mentioned. So we aren't talking purely in terms of how someone "feels". There were certainly some years where one QB may have had a year above and beyond, but for the most part Baker is right there with everyone of them, if not better.
I obviously don't think Baker is the top QB in in the league, but you and others on here certainly short change him. My top 3 would be Theo Day, M. Gronowski, and Baker. Cam Miller has such an awesome running game, he doesn't have to throw much. I think if you put him on any other team, he's a middle of the road QB.
Baker's stats are inflated due to the lack of a running game. Sometimes he's good, but sometimes he's just not. Doesn't seem to have good accuracy on those long throws. I'd put him behind Schuster, Grownowski, and Day this year. Hopefully I'm wrong and this is his best year. Hill hasn't really given the others a chance IMO.
You pick the NDSU's most recent QB who hasn't lit the world on fire, but if you check the last few years, you have MVFC QBs like Trey Lance (NFL), Easton Stick (NFL), Tommy Schuster, Jason Shelley, Theo Day, and Gronowski. The Redturds also had a very good QB the year they made the Nat'l Champ. game.
Newbie poster and follower of SIU Football since I went to school there right at the tail-end of us being really good... One thing guaranteed about CFB is players come and go... Regardless of how we feel about Baker (shoulder shrug) this will be his last season under center for the dawgs, for better or worse it's one more year... Should we start thinking bigger picture? I.e. when is the right time to have the discussion about Coach Hill's ceiling and managing our own expectations? With the evidence we have at hand and the direction SIU Athletics seems to be okay with I'm just wondering what we should really be expecting every season.
Newbie poster and follower of SIU Football since I went to school there right at the tail-end of us being really good... One thing guaranteed about CFB is players come and go... Regardless of how we feel about Baker (shoulder shrug) this will be his last season under center for the dawgs, for better or worse it's one more year... Should we start thinking bigger picture? I.e. when is the right time to have the discussion about Coach Hill's ceiling and managing our own expectations? With the evidence we have at hand and the direction SIU Athletics seems to be okay with I'm just wondering what we should really be expecting every season.
I love Nick - he's a Saluki and loves the Salukis and nobody wants to win more, but his recruiting and coaching needs to improve. Really getting close to the point of seen-enough-not-getting-it-done.
No Avante or Javon, or Bush, etc. Hope some of those FBS pickups are really good and we surprise some people.
I already like the content Luke Martin is putting out on Twitter. He should be a good follow as football gets going.
https://twitter.com/_lukepmartin/status/1685398919222611968?s=61
We need some new faces to step up big this year or it could be another below .500 season. OL/DL has to get much better as a unit. Need consistency from RB room. A healthy Elliot and Strong will be crucial. Baker will be the starter but with Lindauer healthy there should be opportunities for him to play. He’s a dual threat that played in two games as a redshirt freshman for the Cincinnati Bearcats.
Expect a big year from D. Cox at WR and I think our strength could be in our DBs and LBs.
I already like the content Luke Martin is putting out on Twitter. He should be a good follow as football gets going.
https://twitter.com/_lukepmartin/status/1685398919222611968?s=61
I agree. Like everyone else, I loved what Mike brought to the program and the honesty he that made sure to bring. But I also like now getting a fresh, new perspective on the program.
Newbie poster and follower of SIU Football since I went to school there right at the tail-end of us being really good... One thing guaranteed about CFB is players come and go... Regardless of how we feel about Baker (shoulder shrug) this will be his last season under center for the dawgs, for better or worse it's one more year... Should we start thinking bigger picture? I.e. when is the right time to have the discussion about Coach Hill's ceiling and managing our own expectations? With the evidence we have at hand and the direction SIU Athletics seems to be okay with I'm just wondering what we should really be expecting every season.
I love Nick - he's a Saluki and loves the Salukis and nobody wants to win more, but his recruiting and coaching needs to improve. Really getting close to the point of seen-enough-not-getting-it-done.
No Avante or Javon, or Bush, etc. Hope some of those FBS pickups are really good and we surprise some people.
Thanks! Love Nick too and want nothing more than SIU (and him) to succeed! I just wanted to gauge the groups thoughts on what we should really expect from SIU Football and SIU sports in general (for a different thread). My fears are that the administration has taken the safe route and have become complacent with mid-table results but I'm probably just romanticizing the 2003-2009 hyper competitiveness and just need to take it in/appreciate it when we do beat expectations. 😌
Unreal. One month before the first game of the season.
Here’s to him going winless and getting canned after one season at Northwestern.
. Not only one month before the season, but one day before fall practice begins. What is Nick supposed to do now? The NCAA, and/or Northwestern, should have already canceled their season. No reason other programs should be draw into the shatpool that is Northwestern.Unreal. One month before the first game of the season.
Here’s to him going winless and getting canned after one season at Northwestern.
I'm not sayin' -- I'm just sayin'!
