2009 Cornhusker QB Prospectus....

As promised, PYB has delivered--offering up its 2009 NU quarterback position preview. Things look rosy in the long-term, but one injury has depleted experienced depth entirely and one more would make for a chaotic season at The House That Solich Built. Let's get started:

Zac Lee, 6'2", 215 lbs., Junior: We've heard it a million times....rocket arm, NFL bloodlines, confidence bordering on cockiness/swagger (wake me, I'm sleeping). Nobody knows how the kid will react until he straps it up in Blacksburg September 19. Sure, he'll rack up the stats vs. the Sun Belt Conference opponents. But for a first-year QB to win on the road against a great defensive and special-teams unit like the Hokies, Lee will have to be mentally tougher than I've ever seen out of a QB with two career starts. I'd say the win-loss percentage here is 30-70. Hopefully, I'm wrong.

A big question mark for PYB is if this guy is such a stud, why was he just JUCO material out of high school? Focusing on baseball, says huskers.com...... so maybe we have the next John Elway on our hands here. A couple more positives:

1. Zac Taylor and Joe Ganz were good caretakers but far from great QBs, so maybe Lee won't have to do all that much if NU can run the ball and find a WR or two to make a play.

2. Lee will be wearing jersey number 5, so any time one can share the same number as Cornhusker legends Shevin Wiggins and Marlon Lucky, it's a good start.

Kody Spano, 6'2", 215 lbs., R-Freshman: Blew his ACL.....again....a couple weeks ago. This was NU's only experienced backup QB, but seriously, did anyone expect him to start a game in Lincoln. He was an emergency insurance policy for Lee, in case he went down before Cody Green could learn the playbook.....or just in case he was too stupid to ever do it....Second torn ACL should earn him a grad assistant title and an early jump on a high-school coaching career.

Cody Green, 6'4", 220 lbs., Freshman: This kid looks, sounds and acts like the real deal. He's even gotten some good publicity from the coaching staff this week. Hopefully, this won't be a jinx, but that fact that he's risen to second on the depth chart has to be a big positive sign. But be patient, Silver-Tab clad Husker fans, Green has a long way to go to become the next Frankie London. His throwing motion is a tad strange, so let's just hope that doesn't hinder his mission in becoming the first Cody Green. If Lee or NU tanks hard, a late-season start isn't out of the realm of possibility.

LaTravis Washington, 6'3", 225 lbs., Junior: Truly a mystery. We wondered for two full seasons why he didn't get more reps at LB, when the ones who were playing the majority of the snaps looked like Mike Petko with arthritis as they tried to cover the likes of Jeremy Crabtree, Joaquin Iglesias and Jeremy Maclin on crossing patterns. Was he too dumb to learn the defense? Too soft? Too lazy?

If any of those were the case, one would not suspect that the coaches would move him to QB. Throwing motion looks good and he seems happy with the switch, so who the hell knows. Maybe they're just trying to appease him for the fact that they got him to leave Florida but can't get him on the field for whatever reason so it was "Hey kid, if you get to touch the ball every day in practice and mop up vs. the Sun Belt, this should keep you happy enough so that you and Fabian will send a couple more Florida recruits our way in the future..." PYB would like to see him play a bit to see what he can do. Hopefully, he and Marcus Mendoza don't sit on the sideline and rot away the next two years.

Taylor Martinez, 6'1", 185 lbs., Freshman: Anyone wondering why Martinez may have left California to come to wintry Nebraska has never been to his hometown of Corona. That being said, I don't know why he came...given the fact that he's already buried on the depth chart....unless he knows he will eventually be switching positions or hoodwinked NU coaches into a scholarship and isn't worth a shit and figured how bad can it be to come to Lincoln, get a free degree and bang all the hottest chicks on campus? Maybe he'll prove me wrong.

Ron Kellogg Jr., 6'1", 215 lbs., Freshman: This one has UNO in 2010 written all over it. Maybe he's got a jumper like his dad and can suit up for Doc.

Joe Broekemeier, 6'4", 215 lbs., Freshman: Let me get this straight....the guy can't see the field for the disaster that is Mike Anderson's baseball team, so he's going to throw his hat into the ring for sixth-string QB under Bo Pinelli? Truly odd, unless he also wants to upgrade the level of snatch he pulls. Granted, I don't follow Nebraska HS football that closely, but if a kid is truly Division I-A QB material and grew up 28 miles from my hometown....I'd have heard of something good that he's done. That's my rating system, and I'm sticking to it. Spano had better be careful, or his head grad assistant job in 2011 could be in jeopardy.

Addendum courtesy of The Donger....

Jimmie Ebke (Lincoln East) 6'1, 195--- Couldn't cut it with the fighting Jackrabbits, so he headed south to lead the NU Scout team for his remaining 3 years. Played basketball & soccer in HS, and it was nearly impossible to tell if he played each sport any differently from the other. A good physical specimen for an undersized white guy from Lincoln. LOCK to be "Scout Team POY" in 2011. Alleged move to safety will not prevent him from this prestigious award.

Next up, review the NU 'stable' of WRs......who'd have thought we'd ever be begging for two white starters back? Not in a million years, until you see the group that's been assembled for 2009.....Stay tuned....