John O'Korn is Returning for the 2017 Season

Submitted by Wood_Chuckson on

According to Maize n Brew (but really according to a source that will go unnamed but sorta rhymes with Fart Biter) O'Korn is coming back to compete for the starting spot under center. For obvious reasons, most pundits are projecting Speight to lead the team again in 2017 but I'm really hoping the open QB competiton is just that and will sort itself out.

 

http://www.maizenbrew.com/2017/1/2/14145084/michigan-john-okorn-will-return-2017-season-brandon-peters-dylan-mccaffrey-wilton-speight-wolverines?utm_campaign=evanpetzold&utm_content=chorus&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter

 

 

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jp33

January 2nd, 2017 at 11:29 AM ^

He was in Chuck and Duck mode the whole last drive and was majorly inaccurate all year.  Never hit a deep ball in stride minus the Wisconsin game.  Was usually high and behind receivers.  Anyone's ball game next year.  Would love to see Peters!

 

Joined: 04/02/2012

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lhglrkwg

January 2nd, 2017 at 12:31 PM ^

John O'Korn was the fan favorite all year and people were just convinced he'd do better. Lo and behold he played the Indiana game and that crowd was like "um................Peters is the answer! Pe-ters! Pe-ters!"

Maybe Harbaugh is smart and the best QB is the one who was starting all year. Hmmm...

Joined: 07/03/2008

MGoPoints: 88063

trueblueintexas

January 2nd, 2017 at 9:50 PM ^

One of the many things I love about Harbaugh as a coach is that he is going to go with the QB who can 1) get Michigan into the right play, 2) decide on the correct throw, 3) make the throw. Based on that, I think all of the QB's will be on even ground until they prove otherwise starting in spring ball. Speight had a good year, but there were enough moments throughout the season you could see Harbaugh very frustrated by Speight's ability to deliver on part 3. If that had not been the case, I would say it's Speight's job to lose. Not now, it's a fully open competition.

Joined: 11/10/2008

MGoPoints: 36820

RainbowSprings

January 2nd, 2017 at 11:53 AM ^

I was one of the Speight-for-QB hopefuls last year, and I think Wilton did okay, at least until the Iowa game. But we need Harbaugh's "iron sharpens iron" QB competition for next season. JOK's a better QB than shown in the Indiana game. Happy that he has the fortitude to give it another chance. May the best combatant win the battle.

Joined: 11/09/2010

MGoPoints: 13438

alum96

January 2nd, 2017 at 12:01 PM ^

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

  1. 60.2% completion,  2743 yds, 6.9 ypa, 25/12, 3 losses
  2. 53.8% completion, 2195 yds, 6.3 ypa, 17/12, 4 losses
  3. 61.6%, 2538 yds, 7.7, 18/7, 3 losses
  4. 61.9%, 2427 yds, 7.5, 14/10, 3 losses
  5. 63.9%, 2509 yds, 8.5, 17/7, 4 losses
  6. 58.3%, 1911 yds, 7.2, 21/10, 3 losses

Your "elite era UM QBs" in their first years as full time starters above.

#1 had the best WR in school history and the best RB in the past 25 years as a first year starter to bail him out.  A better OL..  He had 3 losses including a wild affair in a bowl.

#2 had a similar combo of backs as this year's crew with Askew and Perry, and only Marquise Walker as an impact WR.   4 losses boo.

#3 "can't connect on long balls" despite the 2nd best YPA on the list.  Was it his explosive WRs with all that YAC?  He had a possession WR as #1 and #2 nowhere near what he was the prior year.  With a plodding RB.

#4 turned into the best QB of all time.   With Tai Streets tearing it up, and ATrain.

#5 this guy had most likely the best RB in UM history in Ty Wheatley in his hey day - and a bunch of decent WRs - one named Derrick Alexander and one named Mercury Hayes; neither of which boomed that particular year.  He had the best combo of stats to my raw eye.  But the most losses.  Loser!

#6 had Jon Vaughn with one of the better single rushing seasons in UM history at 1300+ yds and 6.3 yds a carry - that is a Dalvin Cook like YPC.  Oh and Ricky Powers threw in 700 yds.  He had some dude named Desmond as his primary WR.  What a set of skill players surround him - yet 3 losses and meh stats.

How our memories tend to romanticize the past.  Of these 6, you'd be hard pressed to argue he didn't have the 5th or 6th worst cast of skill players in terms of explosiveness.  Only the TE maybe he had the best.   All these guys lost a number of games as first year starters.  Tied for least INTs, 2nd best YPA, 3rd best completion %.  I doubt one of the best OL.

I have no idea what Speight's ceiling is.  I usually have found QBs other than Henne didn't reach it in year 1.  If he didn't IMPROVE one iota his stats would hold up with almost any QB in history of the program for a single season.  And maybe he improved 5-10% year over year?

Joined: 04/28/2012

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HarbaughorBust

January 2nd, 2017 at 1:15 PM ^

Speight doesn't have the Mechanics, Arm Strength or anticipation most of the guys on that list had.  He also doesn't have the athleticism to make up for not having those traits.   If he's the best QB next year, get ready to lose a game we aren't supposed to and NEVER win a game against a program on equal footing.

You can get stats to make any argument you want to.

How about you take away the stats against cupcakes and put the stats against quality opponents and see what the numbers look like. 

I'm confident we are a play off team if Freshman John Navarree is QB'n this team.  All we needed was average qb play in our biggest games and we win the Big Ten. 

Joined: 11/30/2014

MGoPoints: 1807

alum96

January 2nd, 2017 at 1:44 PM ^

You sound like the drunk guys on liveblog or game thread.

Freshman John Navarre?  He who went 51.7% completion rate for 583 yds?  With almost all of that vs Bowling Green and Rice?  Yep.

How about the first year he started? How did he do vs the "big boys"?  Looking at his last 2 games of the year vs Wisconsin and OSU here are the stat lines:

  • 11 of 24 (45.8%) for 58 yds, 1 TD, 1 INT.
  • 21 of 47 (44.7%) for 206 yds, 2 TD, 4 INT

Yep! Would have won vs OSU and FSU with that. 

By the way Wisconsin was 5-7 that year; OSU 7-5.  OSU was in Ann Arbor. 

Keep moving the goal posts!

 

Joined: 04/28/2012

MGoPoints: 82725

UMForLife

January 2nd, 2017 at 12:03 PM ^

I really hope JOK improves significantly next year. If he read the defense better and stay in the pocket a little bit longer, he can beat out Speight. But, it is going to be very hard to beat out a guy with a year of experience at M. If JOK can do that, I am sure we are going to see a special talent.

Joined: 11/04/2013

MGoPoints: 63392

BassDude138

January 2nd, 2017 at 12:09 PM ^

It is actually comical how many people want to bench Speight, who hasn't yet reached his potential in just one year as a starting QB, and bring in a different first year starter. People must not remember that last year was Rudock's first year at Michigan, but he had already played a ton of football in the B1G. Even though Speight didn't win in the bigget games this year, the experience of being there and going through it is invaluable. The hope, and I don't think it is far fetched, is that Speight can build upon this past season, slow down the game even more and better diagnose what is happening on the field, then take a huge step forward in 2017 with a few more dynamic playmakers at his disposal.

Joined: 03/01/2016

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trueblueintexas

January 2nd, 2017 at 10:10 PM ^

I think the real question is how much more can Speight develop. One of the factors is that Speight took a prep year after high school and has already redshirted. He already has two years working the Harbaugh playbook. Mental and maturity development are probably not the big issues. Those were probably his biggest assets, so probably not a huge step change in those areas. His biggest issue all season was simply making very bad throws on relatively easy passes. I can think of two off the top of my head from the Orange Bowl. The missed TD pass to Darboh in the middle of a zone and a pass to Hill in the flat which probably would have been a TD. They showed Harbaugh's response to both and you could tell he was very frustrated with Speight. I'm not sure you see a big improvement in that problem area either because the plays are there, he just didn't make them.

Joined: 11/10/2008

MGoPoints: 36820

BassDude138

January 2nd, 2017 at 12:09 PM ^

It is actually comical how many people want to bench Speight, who hasn't yet reached his potential in just one year as a starting QB, and bring in a different first year starter. People must not remember that last year was Rudock's first year at Michigan, but he had already played a ton of football in the B1G. Even though Speight didn't win in the bigget games this year, the experience of being there and going through it is invaluable. The hope, and I don't think it is far fetched, is that Speight can build upon this past season, slow down the game even more and better diagnose what is happening on the field, then take a huge step forward in 2017 with a few more dynamic playmakers at his disposal.

Joined: 03/01/2016

MGoPoints: 3977

ak47

January 2nd, 2017 at 12:25 PM ^

This probably isn't a great sign for Peters chances.  If he had moved into 2nd on the depth chart O'Korn wouldn't be coming back.

Joined: 05/05/2011

MGoPoints: 33614

gobluedore

January 2nd, 2017 at 12:27 PM ^

I'm not in the practices or the meeting room, but with Speight at 80% and still getting the nod over O'Korn, it seems like a mountain to climb for him to be the starter next year. Just my take from watching Speight struggle with the injury and he still get any time on the field except Indiana.



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CoverZero

January 2nd, 2017 at 1:08 PM ^

I see a ton of positives in Wilton Speight:

Tough as nails.  Forgets bad plays quickly and is resiliant.

Excellent pocket awareness (needed with this shitty OL) and deceptive mobility.

Big, huge guy who is strong.

Strong arm. Throws great deep ball when he is healthy.

Throws pretty well on the run when the play breaks down.

Works through his progressions well.

Intelligent and hard worker.

Teammates seem to like him and respect him as a leader. 

Takes responsibility for his own play and has his teammates back.

Things to work on:

General overall accuracy.  He is a 60% passer which is not bad, but he has a tendancy to get his feet not set and miss open guys.  A lot of that has to do with the shitty OL that he is behind and no running game to be respected by defenses.  These things can make him shell shocked at times. That said, he needs to get to 65% comp rate and put more balls right on the numbers giving the WRs the ability to get YAC.

Timing with WRs could be better on certain routes.

Needs work on certain throws in terms of accuracy.

Not going to win any speed contests.

It is my hope that Wilton is just reaching is potential now and will grow in to a great QB.

Peters should be #2 next season, but given a fair shot at winning the #1 job. 

Peters has amazing potential which is untapped.

Not a big fan of O'Korn's game.  Great kid, but his game is shoddy and innacurate.  His best attribute is his mobility.  That said, I am glad he is coming back and hope that he proves me wrong.

 

Joined: 08/30/2014

MGoPoints: 14571

I dumped the Dope

January 2nd, 2017 at 11:10 PM ^

which can happen in a football game, he seemed like a guy who lost something.

Granted Rudock got rocked quite a bit, to the point where he couldn't play at times.  But when he did get up he seemed like the same guy.

Jury is out on Okorn imo.  I am glad to have him in case Speight got actually hurt, mainly because he at least has other game experience.

Not sure what the future OL is going to be like but I hope its positive-up from here (run and pass).  That will benefit any QB.

Joined: 09/22/2013

MGoPoints: 2342

Glennsta

January 3rd, 2017 at 8:26 AM ^

Don't you think that players who are being coached well will tend to improve the longer they are with the program?

I'm assuming that the 2017 version of Speight will be better than the 2016 version.  Obviously, others who stay (O'Korn. Peters etc) will improve too but don't presume that what you saw this year is what you will always see from him.  In fact, the tendency to get rattled by pressure is what you would expect from a kid who has been starting for only a year.  He will improve

Joined: 01/28/2011

MGoPoints: 4889

MGoStrength

January 2nd, 2017 at 1:06 PM ^

I'd be very surprised if Speight isn't our QB next year.  O'Korn is older and has more experience.  If he didn't win the job last year I can't imagine what's changed that will allow him to win it next year.  It's reasonable to assume Speight will continue to improve as this was his first year starting.  

 

The more likely players to dethrown Speight are Peters next year and McCaffrey in another year after that.  But, I still think we have Speight for 2 years (McCaffrey RS), Peters for 2 years, then McCaffrey for 2 years.

Joined: 07/29/2010

MGoPoints: 20002

Michifornia

January 2nd, 2017 at 1:11 PM ^

Wish Shane the best! Stuck with the program, got his degree and was classy throughout. I hope he can find someplace he can show that raw talent. Michigan Man for sure.

GO BLUE!

Joined: 10/03/2013

MGoPoints: 13813

Schmozerine

January 2nd, 2017 at 1:25 PM ^

Whatever gives us more competition at the QB position is a welcome addition. We are going to need lights out play by whoever it is to overcome the lack of experience of the line and wideouts.



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Joined: 09/12/2011

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Kevin13

January 2nd, 2017 at 2:50 PM ^

He knows he's getting the best coaching he can get and a UM degree is huge. He's not that far out of it and Speight wasn't so great that he's a lock to hold onto the job. I still think Peters has a great chance to start next year

Joined: 01/26/2016

MGoPoints: 16039

Jamezz23

January 2nd, 2017 at 4:51 PM ^

It's speights job to lose ultimately, but it would be nice to see Peter's take the second string or maybe even dethrone speight. The Orange bowl made me lose confidence in speight for next year

Joined: 04/21/2011

MGoPoints: 1836

Maynard

January 2nd, 2017 at 10:05 PM ^

A lot of the same people on here who predicted USC would destroy PSU tonight and that we would destroy FSU are ones who thought JOK would be the starter this year. 

Speight will be the starter next year. Peters and JOK will battle for number 2. Peters will win that battle. JOK will be number 3. Peters will start the following year or battle with McCaffrey.

Too much Speight hate. Better get used to him because he will be your quarterback in 2017.

Joined: 02/19/2016

MGoPoints: 9888

Blue Ballin'

January 3rd, 2017 at 1:25 AM ^

Just hoping for a QB who plays at a high level...not just 65% of the time (figure plucked from thin air), but at more like 90% (up near Jesus numbers)...in other words, consistently. Hope he's smart and makes good decisions, has a good attitude, got a strong arm, good touch, can move around comfortably in the pocket, can spot open receivers, and can throw the corner fade, for god's sake. If he exists, his name is not important, as long as he's on our roster and not someone else's for a change.  

Joined: 03/08/2016

MGoPoints: 956

Blue Ballin'

January 3rd, 2017 at 1:25 AM ^

Just hoping for a QB who plays at a high level...not just 65% of the time (figure plucked from thin air), but at more like 90% (up near Jesus numbers)...in other words, consistently. Hope he's smart and makes good decisions, has a good attitude, got a strong arm, good touch, can move around comfortably in the pocket, can spot open receivers, and can throw the corner fade, for god's sake. If he exists, his name is not important, as long as he's on our roster and not someone else's for a change.  

Joined: 03/08/2016

MGoPoints: 956