OTB Reader Reactions To Artur Sitkowski Starting At Quarterback For Rutgers

On TheBanks may not always feel interactive, so know we do enjoy reading the comments posted by many of our readers. After Aaron’s post of Five Takeaways on true freshman Artur Sitkowski starting at quarterback for Rutgers Football, forty-nine comments and growing have populated the feedback section.

Much like we did during the summer polls, let’s give some props to our readers who have made some additional thought-provoking points:

First up I wanted to highlight Sardanicas who got the first comment in and has “lost all objectivity.” I like Chatman, too, and there actually seems to be an optimistic future at the QB spot at RU for the first time in a long time. Johnny Funtimes in New Brunswick added that he “trust[s] the coaches” but also that “you still have to make the freshman go and earn it.” Excellent points and it seems that Art has earned it. At this point you have to trust the coaches who are at practice every day when the rest of us have real jobs or are at least part-time students.

Most scrutinized: SailingEngineerSF got the most reaction from a very simple point when they wrote, “Even though Art is starting, everyone is gonna get some playing time depending on situation.”

jerseyhalofansince82 made the primary counterpoint much like my best case scenario in the quarterback preview as costigan_56 noted Art could be a phenom from the “very first snap.” If Sitkowski is the best QB on the roster or at least the highest potential without too much risk, we can all be happy if no other quarterback needs to see the field in 2018. Of course that seems rather unrealistic as rarely does a single QB go wire to wire and if Rutgers is ahead in a game and Art gets injured, Gio would be a logical choice to steadily calm the team down for the rest of the contest. Of course if Rutgers is down big, the 5th year senior captain may not be the best choice to lead RU back ...

ign1 took the Lewis perspective on this about how it’s silly to play Johnathan at all until he can show some passing skills. DeacNJ, RUinChiTown, and beowulf7 added worthwhile discussion on the nuances of both sides of that debate. I have to agree that just throwing JLew in there for QB options seems like wasted snaps that Sitkowski could be using to gain experience. If Lewis truly can be dangerous enough in both facets for opposing coaches to plan around, that is worthwhile on game week and helps ease him into a bigger role in the future if needed.

hydecablecar got the second most reaction (sense a theme with San Francisco being controversial?) The point was that fans love hype, but prove to be rather pessimistic in the heat of battle, especially when misery loves company. RUNYLI followed some back and forth by offering the theory of relativity to the mix. My take is that yes, fans may switch bandwagons but at the end of the day, they want to see upside to have hope. More importantly Knights fans understand that ground and pound against Big Ten elite is worthless so deep passing is required which may come with some growing pains.

HowRU, costigan_56, and RUNYLI gave solid bullet point analysis as well. Some of the best ones from their analyses include:

1. Ash needs to take the training wheels off and this move is a sign of that.
2. Fans can feel more confident in the backup plan if Sitkowksi struggles badly or is injured.
3. The McNulty offense seems to fit Sitkowski’s skills more than Gio or JLew
4. McNulty sticking around for a while will be the biggest help of all.

Having a revolving door at OC has been terrible, but on the flip side that may have allowed the right guy to return at the right time. Just two years of the same offense and let’s see where the RU offense ends up.

Thanks for all the participation. The best way to build a program is generate buzz and support the team in the stands. Moving forward, keep the dialogue going and expect more with the rest of the two-deep expected to be announced today. Just a few more days until kickoff!