Dear Matt Grothe,

[BullDoug]

I've heard Gregory's arm is better than CD or PJ.  And if what Sheriff says is true then maybe Gregory is the man but we haven't really seen Hill either.  BTW, cut PJ some slack.  His WR's aren't actually the "Good Hands" people either and Miami prolly has the fastest team USF has ever played.  That alone would take a quarter to get used to.

[Unintelligibull]

Someone referred to the overrated Chris Leak.

All I can say is Alabama 31; UF 3

Matt will get his chance and he'll shine.

[flipflop4900]

Well well, I love it when someone gets on here and says crap like I hear this or I heard this....all a bunch of BS for any one to get on here and say both Gregory and Hill are way better than Grothe then they really dont know what is going on, on the inside to even make a statement like that!!  CH is not even a QB anymore doesnt go to QB meetings or work out at all with the QB's Wants to stay at WR only as asked by him!!!   Now who did you hear that CH and GG are better than Matt???    Thats what I thought.  Guys just let PJ do his thing and play QB Matt knows he will get his shot and is working hard to achieve his goal and he WILL! But as of write now Matts only comp. is PJ come spring I promise you that ,and SMAZZA we are at USF for the long haul unless Matt does not get the shot he is deserved!!!  sorry guys I had to vent!!! Matt is a redshirt this year and it is not worth giving that up this late!!! thanks to all the G BACKERS!!   G= Grothe

[The Sheriff]

Flip... from someone who played with them and someone who watches them... I wasn't trying to be a **** about it... hey... I want your boy to start... when I played, I didn't really think to highly of PJ... AND still think if Ronnie was in the right offense, he would have been the man at USF. This is from someone that worked with the QB's all summer and he spoke to me at a game recently. I didn't bring it up two weeks ago... I took it as heresay... but then... another individual that plays his part on the team reinterated those thoughts of the other individual without being prodded. Hey... things happen over the Spring and Summer... they said Grothe biggest shortcomings are his strength and size... half of that can be corrected in the offseason. Things will play out... bullieve me... I want him to do well... but like any die hard fan, I want someone who will have the poise and confidence to lead us against the UF's, FSU's, and the UM's of the world. If it's Gregory or CHill... fine. If it is Matt, great. I, like many others, want wins when they wear the green and gold. We have no preference... I try not to throw info out that I don't have a follow up source to confirm. I got burned a while back when Elgin Hicks told me a certain big name recruit was money to come to USF... he ended up at FSU and I looked like an idiot. Good luck with your son... we all want him to do well... but it can be frustrating when people jump PJ after a disappointing performance vs UM. Hell... FSU QB's looked human against UM. They have a tough defense... PJ has grown by leaps and bounds in the previous year. He will be ready by Pitt.

[Cubanbull]

agreed with you Sheriff

UM's defense has been tough vs qb's this year and made Weatherford 24 passes 7 completions 67 yds 0tds 1 int look pjust as bad as PJ. Our WRs have not helped by fumbling balls away.

[The Sheriff]

We dropped a ball to open the game... Courtney threw a nice deep ball that we didn't lay out for... we are closing the gap on our fellow Big Three schools. It is only a matter of time... we will split that series with UF... money!

[KeysBull]

If CH is really not going to qb meetings anymore, that is big news.  I really had hopes he would develop into a brad smith, reggie mcneal type qb.

[mulheap]

for real.  I did not know this.  I thought he was going to be the next great qb.  I don't know, but it seems like a waste to me.  To put such a highly touted recruit in a role like that.  A reciever, even a great one, can't have nearly the impact a qb can (especially when he's dropped every ball thrown to him).  Maybe Leavitt told him he wasn't going to start at qb ahead of Pat, so Hill requested to be a reciever.

[GarySJ]

Did you see the interview with him as he left the field? He blamed himself for the loss. In fact, he put the entire loss on his shoulders. That is not something a coward does. He didn't throw with fear, he just threw poorly too often and Miami capitalized.

He's a good leader, if not a stellar QB. We need to give him our full support on that alone.

I agree.

[GarySJ]

In fact, I want to elaborate on what MikeG said. I know that Julmiste-bashing is in vogue, but let's take a step back for a moment.

Despite the result against Miami, I think Pat Julmiste is really showing signs of maturing as a quarterback. There was one play in the Louisville game that I thought was a turning point in his QB career.

USF is up 14-0, but it's still early. It is 3rd down and 5 at the UofL 30. USF needs to pick up a first down, or risk a long field goal attempt. It's a passing play. Julmiste gets flushed out of the pocket, scrambles to his right, sees an opening, and... DOESN'T run for the first down. He could have easily gained five yards with his feet, but instead he took an extra fraction of a second, and threw a strike to a well-covered Amarri Jackson for 18 yards and a first down. Two plays later, Jackson ran for a touchdown, and USF was up 21-0.

I thought that play showed a real maturation in Julmiste as a QB. For once he DIDN'T look to run first, run second, run third and then maybe throw. He eschewed the scramble and made a tough throw in a clutch situation. That took confidence and guts.

Now, against Miami... well, we didn't see so much of that, but Miami's defense makes a lot of QBs look tentative. Julmiste did have one good play, though: when he pump-faked Meriweather out of his shoes. That was great.  

Anyway, Julmiste isn't going to face any more defenses like Miami's this season, perhaps not even in a bowl game. The question is, can he make plays against Big East defenses, just like he did against Louisville? I think he can. I'm seeing signs of maturation in him, a confidence that I hadn't seen previously.

It all starts with Pittsburgh. With two weeks to prepare, I think we will see the confident Julmiste again: a capable leader who makes plays. And that's all this USF football team needs right now.