Once upon a time (back when I was part of Team Cupcake), I said that in the wake of Al Groh's negligent handling of the quarterback position, we'd need to shift into the mode of "throwing numbers against the wall to see what sticks." Mike London has done exactly that, recruiting Mike Rocco, Michael Strauss, Jake McGee, and Miles Gooch in 2010, David Watford in 2011, Greyson Lambert and Matt Johns in 2012, accepting the transfer of Phillip Sims, and recruiting Corwin Cutler and Brendan Marshall in 2013. You already know that I'm high on Lambert, hold out hope for Sims, see Johns as a darkhorse in the race, and am really high on Cutler. So what does Marshall add to the mix? Well, for one, he's tall. 6-5, to be exact. He's got great touch on the short-to-intermediate throws. He also helped us secure his Good Counsel teammates - Andre Levrone and Kirk Garner - so there's that. And as the first commitment in the 2013 class, he opened the floodgates for us. But beyond all that, this 3-star prospect doesn't bring anything really remarkable to the table. But you know what? Neither did Matt Schaub, and he ended up being one of our best quarterbacks ever. We've now got six scholarships tied up at the QB position, which is a lot... probably two too many. Marshall isn't the kind of talent that will grab you and capture your imagination, but he might be a number that sticks to the wall as we sort the roster out.
UVA Projection: I realize I just damned Marshall with faint praise, but being completely honest, I don't think he'll ever be more than a backup and potential transfer victim at UVA. He doesn't have any special skills or abilities, and he's got some mechanical issues that need to be ironed out. I just don't see much upside in his game, and I think he's facing a serious uphill climb. In terms of pure potential, I'd rank him 6th out of the six QBs we'll have on the roster in 2013. I hate to utter the word "clipboard"... but there it was.
(Again, I'd love to be proven dead wrong and eat a healthy plate of crow on some of these less-positive Meet the Recruit pieces, but I'm here to share my honest opinion on these guys.)
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