CJ Bailey needs to come home

**** that last paragraph hits it. When you’re right you’re right. I haven’t advocated for Mensah either but he would be a great choice
It's a fake narrative.

Plenty of people talked about Mensah when he entered the Portal. Here is a 19-page thread I started myself when he entered the Portal, and here is another article I wrote about him.

We aren't talking about him now because he's unlikely to enter the Portal again.

 
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I get the Cal kid is talented.. but I’ve just never been a fan of left handed QBs.

Bailey is cool.. but I think there are better options
 
If Mendoza gets picked first round, that means he's getting picked over almost every other quarterback in the country.

That's not because he's a game manager. There are a ton of game managers in college. It's because he has the physical tools to compete at the highest levels of football.

There's a reason 88% of the starting QBs in the NFL are first rounders. It takes that level of talent to even have a chance.



Fernando Mendoza

73% (9.9 YPA), 1,202 yards, 16 TDs, 1 INT
5-0 record

Cade Klubnick

60% (6.7 YPA), 996 yards, 6 TDs, 4 INTs
1-3 record

Mendoza is getting hype because he's got the tools and he's producing. Klubnick is less talented and less productive. I don't understand the example.



How many QBs in the nation have the arm talent to do this?





Ohio State and Notre Dame chose to pay those guys millions. They already had loaded teams. Howard and Leonard put them over the top. And after the championship, both guys got drafted. To win in the playoffs, you need an NFL QB.



We talk about local transfers at every position because those kids are more likely to come home. That's the nature of the Portal.

The myth is that we're the only ones talking about these guys. National media is higher on them than this board. Here are a couple quick examples:







Mensah already signed a huge deal with Duke and is draft-eligible after this season. When he entered the Portal, there were a ton of posts about him. I made two threads about him. He signed real quick and then we moved on.

We should be trying to get first rounders at every position. The three quarterbacks I circled last year were Mateer, Mendoza and Beck. All three will get drafted somewhere, and all have the chance to get drafted high. I hope the QB we bring in 2026 has that kind of upside.

"If Mendoza gets picked first round, that means he's getting picked over almost every other quarterback in the country."

QB's get drafted in the 1st round all the time, that doesn't mean they're going to be good NFL starters. Tua was the 5th pick in the draft, Jalen Hurts was a 2nd rounder, Mac Jones was a 1st rounder, Brock Purdy was Mr. Irrelevant; that pretty much sums up how QB drafting goes in the league. It doesn't speak to a QB's ability based on what round they get drafted in, it speaks to how desperate the GM was.

JJ McCarthy was a 1st round pick & he's terrible. The only reason he got picked in the 1st round, was because he played on a really good team that won alot & the Vikings GM convinced himself that he had more ability than he actually has, so he picked him at 10. JJ McCarthy is not the 10th best player in that draft class. He was over drafted.

I mentioned Cade Klubnik because you said if Mendoza was from Austin TX, I would be begging for him to come here, my point was if he was from Austin TX he would be judged much more harshly because the bar wouldn't be as low, because QB from TX have much higher expectations to be good due to the fact they produce much higher quality on an annual basis. If Mendoza was from TX, he'd be the 7th best QB from their state, but because he's from Miami, he's at the top of the food chain.

How many QB's on the National level can make that throw? I can name about 20 before I get to Mendoza. That's a nice throw, but its pretty routine for most QB's. Again, low bar.

Howard & Leonard did not put Oh ST & ND over the top; they were low risk game managers whose job was to not turn the ball over & don't get in the way of their loaded rosters, that's it. They're preseason QB's at best, neither one will ever be NFL starters, unless 2 guys ahead of them get injured.

"We talk about local transfers at every position because those kids are more likely to come home. That's the nature of the Portal."

Really? Like who? Aside from Xavier Lucas, what local guys did we have transfer here?

We've had a total of 7 South FL guys transfer to Miami in 4 recruiting classes & all but 1 one of them were extremely mediocre.

Who are the locals that are coming back home & doing well at Miami?
 
QB's get drafted in the 1st round all the time, that doesn't mean they're going to be good NFL starters.
This is where we have a disconnect. I'm not comparing Mendoza to Josh Allen and Mahomes or anyone else already in the NFL.

I'm comparing him to the 99% of college quarterbacks who aren't talented enough to even get that chance.
 
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This is where we have a disconnect. I'm not comparing Mendoza to Josh Allen and Mahomes or anyone else already in the NFL.

I'm comparing him to the 99% of college quarterbacks who aren't talented enough to even get a chance.
This.
 
@DMoney I haven’t watched Mendoza since the Cal game, but what does Mendoza do at an above average level to warrant a first round pick? He has no super skill. Average arm, average athleticism.
I think throws like this have NFL people excited:

 
Mendoza is going to be a first round pick of the NFL. That is the highest level. As for dinking and dunking, he averages 10 yards per attempt.

South Florida has nothing to do with it. He gets more hype from national guys than he gets on here. If he was from Austin, Texas, we'd be begging for him.

I think you're placing too much of an emphasis on stats and not enough on tools and ability. Those G5 Johnny College guys without physical ability get exposed in the playoffs against real defenses.

The case for Bailey is simple: 6'6, strong arm, fast, accurate, started as a true freshman, good character, two years of eligibility. He's already made real strength and technique gains in college. I see an upward trajectory. But him behind our offensive line and he'll put up monster numbers like Mendoza is doing at Indiana.


Bailey has made some of the worst decisions this season at the Qb position Mario will never take a Qb like that
 
The South FL QB that yall should be campaigning for is Austin Simmons.

When healthy, his upside is much higher than Bailey's IMO.

Very small sample size obviously, but if you wanna remove stats & just make it a tangibles/pure ability discussion, he's got all the tools, plus the mentality necessary to be more than just a game manager.

Cant believe we didn’t recruit him more aggressively. Maybe the home schooling and grade skipping gave us pause. But how do UF and Ole Miss get first shot at a kid from who is from Dade and Pahokee?
 
The South FL QB that yall should be campaigning for is Austin Simmons.

When healthy, his upside is much higher than Bailey's IMO.

Very small sample size obviously, but if you wanna remove stats & just make it a tangibles/pure ability discussion, he's got all the tools, plus the mentality necessary to be more than just a game manager.
I like Austin Simmons. Maybe it’s the physical resemblance but he has some Tua traits that can be accentuated by an Alabama-style offense and big OL.

Ole Miss might have more QB movement than expected before the season. Trinidad Chambliss has another year of eligibility.
 
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Cant believe we didn’t recruit him more aggressively. Maybe the home schooling and grade skipping gave us pause. But how do UF and Ole Miss get first shot at a kid from who is from Dade and Pahokee?
Early years for Mario vs Ole Miss having proof of getting QBs to league.
 
This qb class is even more wide open than last year. Last year Cam and Shedour had broken out at this point as the top 2 by the draft experts. Dart didn’t get traction til after the season.

I suspect by the end of the year 3 could be first round picks- Moore, Beck and Mendoza in that order. With Moore going #1. Moore is a scouts dream given how accurate he is and the ability to make off platform throws. Beck gets to play 9 straight ACC games. By the end of it he’ll start getting compared positively to Jared Goff. Mendozas season will come down to the Oregon and Penn State games.
 
The good thing is that the elite NIL teams mostly have QB's who will return or freshman they promised the job:
Texas- Arch Manning
Oregon-Dante Moore
Alabama- Russell
Ohio State- Sayin
Michigan-Underwood
Auburn- Jackson or Duece Knight
UF- Lagway or whoever lane brings with him
Penn State- who cares
FSU-who cares


Very little competition for QB's on the open market maybe just Oklahoma and USC?
 
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