Quarterback Offer Breakdown: Taisun Phommachanh

Mar 2, 2018

Taisun Phommachanh is an idealistically framed dual threat quarterback from Avon, Connecticut. The Old Farms School signal caller threw an impressive 24 touchdowns vs only one interception last year. Phommachanh amassed 633 yards rushing adding 17 more touchdowns with his feet. Miami has not offered Phommachanh but rival FSU has and I've been getting requests to look at his tape. My opinion, you still offer Phommachanh based on his ability and his improvement. Kid is good. The number one rated recruit in the state of Connecticut is the subject of our breakdown.

Taisun Phommachanh

Footwork/Rhythm: Phommachanh has good footwork and shows nice ability to work his way back up into the pocket. He also stays tall after the release and is in line on most throws. Noted a couple instances where he is unbalanced and falling away from his target. Need him to drive through on deep balls and not lock up the lower half or fall back away from his target. I like his rhythm. Ball is relatively out on time within the framework of his offense.

Accuracy/Arm Strength/Mechanics: 24 touchdowns vs one interception should be proof positive of his accuracy. Very good ball placement allowing his receivers several run after the catch opportunities. Fits the ball in very tight spaces on seem throws and has 100% confidence in his arm to do so. Phommachanh has a very live arm. I chart his vertical throws with little to no drop off. Throws within 20 yards of him are on ropes. Phommachanh is very capable in a vertical passing system and his offensive coordinator calls all 9 concepts pretty regularly.

Phommachanh has a quick release and is a short rotational C thrower. The relationship he has between quickness of release and power are in my opinion superb. He does not sacrifice power for the sake of being quick. Phommachanh would be classified overall as a very good arm talent.

Mobility: Love his ability to factor in QB power run concepts. Big frame and is not afraid to get his jersey dirty. Vertically once he gets going he is a formidable runner. Do not see the same lateral burst or top end speed as Michael Johnson Jr per say but Phommachanh still has good running ability. Phommachanh is good outside the pocket and eludes pressure while maintaining his eyes down field.

Roman Rank: I had the pleasure of watching Phommachanh at paradise camp last year and I instantly gravitated to his ability. He had an exceptionally live arm and I just noticed how much rotation he put on his ball. Ultimately I felt every quarterback that day was a little erratic but truth be told those camps are not really ideal for quarterbacks in terms of rhythmic relation. I understood the lack of offer at the time but fast forward a year and Phommachanh has improved.

Jarren Williams was similar in the fact that from junior to senior year you saw a big jump in ability. Any concerns I had with accuracy where resolved this year as Phommachanh finished his junior campaign as a 70% passer. Roman Rank 4 stars

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gcane44

Mar 2, 2018

I've never seen someone so passionate about the power of a non-commitable offer.

calinative umstudent

Mar 2, 2018

CFLCane said:
Just pretend we offered Taisun. It's just as good as a fake offer. Problem solved.

okay then why not just offer him a real offer and then recruit MJjr and tell him that if he commit we will drop Taisun?
Thats the safe route is it not?
problem solved right? shouldn't that be the best option available for us?

Either way you look at it, it makes more sense to Offer a top prospect than to not.

calinative umstudent

Mar 2, 2018

gcane44 said:
I've never seen someone so passionate about the power of a non-commitable offer.

is a non commitable offer any different than a commitable offer that you are willing to push the guy out at a later date?
isn't that what we are doing with Diamante Howard and maybe even Brieon Fuller

calinative umstudent

Mar 2, 2018

Brooklyndee said:
Be responsible about the things you say though. #1 maybe its fair to call his comp joke level. However to not put that same qualification over every recruit at qb weve offered this year is not being real.#2 his comp is stronger than everyone weve seen except possibly wise. That being said doesnt mean im saying its good over all. His comp is like playing against belin & coral shores etc year round maybe is the way its looked at. Hes been a starter at qb for his prep school since his 8th grade year.

bruh you said he got offers from img and like groman...is he going to be transfering to Img or something or what?

Roman Marciante

Mar 2, 2018

calinative umstudent said:
Thanks. to state it simply imo:

Mertz is the best Qb on our board in terms of actual Quarterbacking ability and technique. His got mobility, but at best we are hoping for aaron rodgers at Cal, who was aweome.

Johnson jr is definitely the best QB in terms of athleticism and big play ability. but the worst technique though they are correctable, but it will take a little time....and if Perry or Weldon win the starting job, it might actually be in our best interest to get someone with high ceiling but will take time before he's ready..kinda buys us time so he wont transfer. At best we are hoping for Lamar Jackson...who won a heisman.

Taisun is kinda the blend of the two. Better passer/technique than Johnson for sure imo but not as good motion and not quite as accurate as Mertz. And He's definitely a much better runner than Mertz, but obviousy isn't as athletic as Johnson jr. not really sure who he'd be at best...maybe like Marcus Mariota or something.

And I wrestled with the "who do you take question" And I will let you in on my thinking. I think MJJ has something unique that we don't have in the qb room. Taisun is **** good. But strictly staying on Taisun in comparison I feel Perry has the better arm. Williams has better mechanics and all three sit in that same range in terms of dual threat ability. They all certainly can make plays with their feet.

So I am like tying to get in Jon Richt's head and ask why are we flying 3000 miles across the country on a consistent basis if Taisun wanted the offer and the better qb right now. And simply I find myself gravitating towards this. If and when we get MJJ to reign in mechanically and understand rhythm fundamentals, watch out. The kid is dangerous.

CFLCane

Mar 2, 2018

calinative umstudent said:
okay then why not just offer him a real offer and then recruit MJjr and tell him that if he commit we will drop Taisun?
Thats the safe route is it not?
problem solved right? shouldn't that be the best option available for us?

Either way you look at it, it makes more sense to Offer a top prospect than to not.

At what point are you going to realize the staff doesn't regard Taisun as one of their top 5 QB targets as of March 2nd. If he wants the UM offer bad enough he'll be down here for spring ball again and earn it. It's that simple.

jkaz1

Mar 2, 2018

Really excellent write-ups about the QB recruits and QBs on the roster.

Very well done.

Roman Marciante said:
And I wrestled with the "who do you take question" And I will let you in on my thinking. I think MJJ has something unique that we don't have in the qb room. Taisun is **** good. But strictly staying on Taisun in comparison I feel Perry has the better arm. Williams has better mechanics and all three sit in that same range in terms of dual threat ability. They all certainly can make plays with their feet.

So I am like tying to get in Jon Richt's head and ask why are we flying 3000 miles across the country on a consistent basis if Taisun wanted the offer and the better qb right now. And simply I find myself gravitating towards this. If and when we get MJJ to reign in mechanically and understand rhythm fundamentals, watch out. The kid is dangerous.

Brooklyndee

Mar 2, 2018

calinative umstudent said:
is a non commitable offer any different than a commitable offer that you are willing to push the guy out at a later date?
isn't that what we are doing with Diamante Howard and maybe even Brieon Fuller

We better not do that with diamante...

Brooklyndee

Mar 2, 2018

calinative umstudent said:
bruh you said he got offers from img and like groman...is he going to be transfering to Img or something or what?

And he does. Never once did i say hes accepting them. For his take his family is very loyal people. They have a long relationship with avon & have already promised his lil brother (who also threw at paradise last year)the starting spot the second tai leaves. Besides that the competition is better than its gave credit for.

Brooklyndee

Mar 2, 2018

Roman Marciante said:
And I wrestled with the "who do you take question" And I will let you in on my thinking. I think MJJ has something unique that we don't have in the qb room. Taisun is **** good. But strictly staying on Taisun in comparison I feel Perry has the better arm. Williams has better mechanics and all three sit in that same range in terms of dual threat ability. They all certainly can make plays with their feet.

So I am like tying to get in Jon Richt's head and ask why are we flying 3000 miles across the country on a consistent basis if Taisun wanted the offer and the better qb right now. And simply I find myself gravitating towards this. If and when we get MJJ to reign in mechanically and understand rhythm fundamentals, watch out. The kid is dangerous.

If & when is not the given u make it seem to be... hence buddy from ah a few years ago and his ohio state saga. Which as much as i hate urban liar youd be playing yourself if you didnt admit these type of qbs hes money for. 100% hes the better athlete. Its gonna take a **** of a lot for him to be the better qb though. At a certain point you gotta look at it from the stance of who does what better to bring in play ALL our skill position players...

C
Combo

Mar 2, 2018

Roman Marciante said:
Ok as we keep diving into these QB offers maybe I can interject this clarity from the head coach. Thanks for the contribution BTW

Richt has been candid in interviews saying he wasn't going strictly after Dual Threat quarterbacks. His only prerequisite was that QB was "mobile." Not necessarily the flash but I think the days of Groot are long gone. So in the case of Graham Mertz vs Michael Johnson Jr lets put them in the ring vs one another and hash this out.

The pro style Mertz is Zone read capable. What I mean by that he can carry out the zone read, keep it, and pick up a first down or two with his feet. Where he gets exceptional praise from me is his ability to create plays outside the pocket and hit deep down field strikes. He essentially looks for the long ball once out of rhythm. There is not a single RPO that we ran with Malik Rosier last year that Graham Mertz can't handle. Is he as fast as Rosier? No. Is he sedimentary. No. But Mertz could run IZ/bubbles all day and still have enough mobility to keep defenses in check if he ran.

The Dual Threat Johnson Jr is Zone Read Home Run Threat. That kid can carry out the zone read, keep it, and score. That is where his ability is a cut above everyone to date in the series. The trade off? He looks to run at times after only looking for one read. He doesn't have the refined passing trait that Mertz does.

So the skill sets are different and unique but as long as the mobility aspect is there Richt will offer. The "R" in RPO does in fact mean Run but it doesn't require a running QB. Doug Pederson and the Philadelphia offense essentially won a Superbowl with reliance on RPO's and had Nick Foles as the QB.

Great analysis. Mobility is great, but accuracy and seeing the field are more important. For that reason, I'd prefer Taisun or Mertz. We have so many weapons at WR that IMO the priority is having a guy that can get the ball to them.

That said, I wouldn't complain about any of the three being discussed.

Roman Marciante

Mar 2, 2018

Brooklyndee said:
If & when is not the given u make it seem to be... hence buddy from ah a few years ago and his ohio state saga. Which as much as i hate urban liar youd be playing yourself if you didnt admit these type of qbs hes money for. 100% hes the better athlete. Its gonna take a **** of a lot for him to be the better qb though. At a certain point you gotta look at it from the stance of who does what better to bring in play ALL our skill position players...

You are right Brooklyn. Gibson BTW was always slotted by me to play wide receiver at the next level. I was pretty vocal about that from the jump. In the terms of MJJ he is the better athlete than all compiled so far this cycle. Will that equivocate to being a great qb? No. Is it a given? No. That is why I put that "if" in there.

Ultimately though he has time on his side. I do not really think any QB we are on the radar for this cycle is going to be called upon to run the offense next year. Lot of talent in the room ahead of him. Which needed to happen and has been missing at the U for FAR to long. Ultimately I see the capability of MJJ to reign in whereas someone like Gibson was better suited elsewhere.

I really looked at MJJ from the perspective of "can it be coached?" When I seen him one and run, the footwork inconsistencies, the post balance etc....good QB coach, understanding the offense can manage and mold that. Ultimately I feel this kid is a QB at the next level. You see the flashes when he is in sync as a passer and that running ability cant be ignored.

I would literally yell at the screen saying MJJ look at the read. It is open in the flat. Don't drop the ball and run!........and 60 yards to the house later. I think to myself "what the **** do I know?" So I don't want to sell him short.

Lastly and I am glad we are having this discussion. I ultimately watched Rosier two years ago at the spring completely LOST in this system. He was an athlete/ baseball player pretending to play QB. I ultimately felt Richt was on PCP when he named him the backup. But it was mainly because the rhythmic perimeters that Richt requires to operate under and Rosier under center work was abysmal. He was not seeing the field at all. Rosier was late on balls, indecisive you name it.

But to Rosier's credit here and Richt's, he took a baseball player who doesn't have nearly the defined QB skills and made it work. The remainder or the Rosier discussion can be held at another time. But the parallel I tried to draw here is that if Richt can get Rosier reigned in over the course of two years, I see him doing similar work with MJJ given the chance. And I will be very clear and definitive in saying MJJ has way more upside than Rosier.

A
ajone228

Mar 2, 2018

Roman you a Goat!!

Roman Marciante

Mar 2, 2018

ajone228 said:
Roman you a Goat!!

Nah man. Just a huge fan like the rest of us. Thank though

calinative umstudent

Mar 2, 2018

Brooklyndee said:
And he does. Never once did i say hes accepting them. For his take his family is very loyal people. They have a long relationship with avon & have already promised his lil brother (who also threw at paradise last year)the starting spot the second tai leaves. Besides that the competition is better than its gave credit for.

I think him going to IMG would have done well for him.

calinative umstudent

Mar 2, 2018

CFLCane said:
At what point are you going to realize the staff doesn't regard Taisun as one of their top 5 QB targets as of March 2nd. If he wants the UM offer bad enough he'll be down here for spring ball again and earn it. It's that simple.

If we know for a fact the staff will NOT at any point offer Taisun 1 thatll be a bad decision , and 2, we better start sending out some more offers to people that the staff does think they will view as a take. Look MJJR is elite athletically. But there is no way in **** he has the highest ceiling of any qb this cycle. we need to send out offers to guys we think have a higher ceiling sooner than later. Personally i think Taisun is one of those players.

Roman likes Mertz, and I understand why. But ultimately he's committed, and I don't think he fits the identity of what we want our QB to be all that well. and imo the chances we flip a qb committed in B1G country are less than us getting MJJr. I wouldn't say its a waste of an offer or anything, I like that we offered him - because hes a top player! and you never know what will stick. (and becuase you have yet to understand this , this has been my exact point this entire time)

The other 3 qbs we have offered (not including mJjr), one is simply not good and committed to Rutgers - Zamar Wise we can basically stop counting this as an offer from now on.. That brings it down to 2 - Spencer Rattler and Sam Howell. And Spencer Rattler doesn't even ******* follow Jon Richt on twitter and is committed to Oklahoma....so thats no shot at all. That leaves literally just Sam Howell who id assume Roman does his next breakdown on. Howell somehow ran for 1600 yards last season, though he doesn't look good athletically imo. Id say he's just not as good as Tai in all phases which means he's a worse passer than Mertz, and definitely a worse runner than MJJR.

Like I've been saying We have 2 offers to uncommitted prospects.. we need to ******* send out more offers and stop putting every egg we have in a qb 3kmiles away with a father on staff.

CFLCane

Mar 2, 2018

It also helps having a guy like Mjjr to simulate playing mobile

calinative umstudent said:
If we know for a fact the staff will NOT at any point offer Taisun 1 thatll be a bad decision , and 2, we better start sending out some more offers to people that the staff does think they will view as a take. Look MJJR is elite athletically. But there is no way in **** he has the highest ceiling of any qb this cycle. we need to send out offers to guys we think have a higher ceiling sooner than later. Personally i think Taisun is one of those players.

Roman likes Mertz, and I understand why. But ultimately he's committed, and I don't think he fits the identity of what we want our QB to be all that well. and imo the chances we flip a qb committed in B1G country are less than us getting MJJr. I wouldn't say its a waste of an offer or anything, I like that we offered him - because hes a top player! and you never know what will stick. (and becuase you have yet to understand this , this has been my exact point this entire time)

The other 3 qbs we have offered (not including mJjr), one is simply not good and committed to Rutgers - Zamar Wise we can basically stop counting this as an offer from now on.. That brings it down to 2 - Spencer Rattler and Sam Howell. And Spencer Rattler doesn't even ******* follow Jon Richt on twitter and is committed to Oklahoma....so thats no shot at all. That leaves literally just Sam Howell who id assume Roman does his next breakdown on. Howell somehow ran for 1600 yards last season, though he doesn't look good athletically imo. Id say he's just not as good as Tai in all phases which means he's a worse passer than Mertz, and definitely a worse runner than MJJR.

Like I've been saying We have 2 offers to uncommitted prospects.. we need to ******* send out more offers and stop putting every egg we have in a qb 3kmiles away with a father on staff.

I watched the tape again.

Pro's

*does hit some nice seam routes

* does appear to have good vision while running and avoiding sacks...albeit the DLines are a joke and the linebackers couldn't pursue a wounded sloth.

Cons

*Least athletic out of Weldon, Perry, Williams, MJJR.

*Watch the tape again but from the defensive perspective. COMPETITION IS AWFUL. Looks like junior high ball. Hard to even consider this tape as evidence tbh. Half these teams have 5+ white guys playing D. And this is coming from a white guy lol. You've got safeties that look like their wearing their dads shoulderpads. It's laughable.

*Locks onto nearly every receiver, most completions are just jacory harris lobs over the terrible safeties.

*looks elusive on tape vs those defenses but runs a 4.95 40yd and 4.7 shuttle. Again, tape is deceiving.

* i keep hearing how good his arm is but it sure isn't in this tape...has some good zip on the intermediates but he hangs the ball up there ALOT. product of the competition.

So far the only teams that have offered in P5 are desperate for QBs. With the exception of Ped state who i know nothing about because they're kid diddlers.

Poor mans brandon wimbush or dwayne lawson.

Roman Marciante

Mar 3, 2018

CFLCane said:
It also helps having a guy like Mjjr to simulate playing mobile

I watched the tape again.

Pro's

*does hit some nice seam routes

* does appear to have good vision while running and avoiding sacks...albeit the DLines are a joke and the linebackers couldn't pursue a wounded sloth.

Cons

*Least athletic out of Weldon, Perry, Williams, MJJR.

*Watch the tape again but from the defensive perspective. COMPETITION IS AWFUL. Looks like junior high ball. Hard to even consider this tape as evidence tbh. Half these teams have 5+ white guys playing D. And this is coming from a white guy lol. You've got safeties that look like their wearing their dads shoulderpads. It's laughable.

*Locks onto nearly every receiver, most completions are just jacory harris lobs over the terrible safeties.

*looks elusive on tape vs those defenses but runs a 4.95 40yd and 4.7 shuttle. Again, tape is deceiving.

* i keep hearing how good his arm is but it sure isn't in this tape...has some good zip on the intermediates but he hangs the ball up there ALOT. product of the competition.

So far the only teams that have offered in P5 are desperate for QBs. With the exception of Ped state who i know nothing about because they're kid diddlers.

Poor mans brandon wimbush or dwayne lawson.

To clarify the arm. I noted later on in the thread to ghost being a little confused by it. Inside 20 yards he has some really good straight line projectory. Nice pop on routes. What confused me was not seeing that traditional deep ball distance to match.

Like you i saw a couple deep balls left high and a Little short. In those cases he is falling back in the pocket or not really gathering to get the ball down field essentially leaving him locked and basically flat footed.

His arm was very good live when I watched it as well. Great arms for further classification is Eason/ Lawrence territory. (He isn't that level)

Overall though I'm comfortable saying he's a good arm talent. Hopefully you see the extra level that I hold in high regards.

The Franchise

Mar 3, 2018

Tai is a dual threat QB to the same extent Jameis Winston was. He can pick up some yards here and there, but he's not a runner.

As long as the guy has a serviceable arm, the 3 biggest things I look for in a QB: accuracy; clutch play; and leadership. Arm strength is often what people fall in love with, and it's usually tremendously overrated.

Tai looks like he has the accuracy, but I don't know enough about him to know if he's clutch or is a great leader.

The Franchise

Mar 3, 2018

calinative umstudent said:
yes a non commitable offer IS better than a no offer. It puts exact conditions on what would make you a take and the timing of when the commitment can be accepted. And it keeps up the recruitment on him. Why is this so complicated. Literally all you have to say is we are offering you, but before we accept a commitment from you, we want to see you live at Paradise Camp. That buys you 3 ******* months, and if MJJr hasn't committed by then its time to **** or get off the pot with a dude 3k miles away whos dad is on the local P5 staff. We shouldn't be waiting until the fall to see what MJjr is doing.

You should try to remove that "non commitable offer" **** from your vocabulary, as it makes you look like a rube. It's total fiction. It doesn't exist. There is either an offer, or there isn't one.

If you can't accept it, then it's not an offer. "Non commitable offer" was a term made up by dummies, and all it means is "we're interested in you, but we're not offering yet."

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Quarterback Offer Breakdown: Taisun Phommachanh

Quarterback Offer Breakdown: Taisun Phommachanh

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