[D. C. Bear]

That was a very civil post!  Thank you.
The problem with the statistical comparisons is that they only can capture a portion of what a quarterback is asked to do and the material/opportunity he has to do it.

A large measure of Stanford's success as a team this year has been due to Luck's ability to read and recognize defenses and call plays at the line.  Quite often he will call a running play at exactly the right time for the good of the team that actually works out to be to the detriment of his stats.  How do you measure playcalling in a statistical line?  Do you give Luck credit for a lot of the yards earned by our running backs? 

Luck is the first college quarterback in living memory who controls the game so effectively with his playcalling.  How do you measure that?  The answer is:  you can't.  Which is why statistical comparisons can only go so far.

Statistics do only go so far, but RGIII isn't short on "intangibles," either. A very large measure of Baylor's success is based on RGIII's ability to read defenses, too. Unfortunately, he couldn't read ours in a game, because it was ranked 109th in the nation in scoring! Stanford's scoring defense was 23rd, and we'd trade our senior kicker for that. OK, we'd trade our senior kicker for a couple of In-n-Our Burgers, but that's another story.

I'd give Griffin credit for a lot of Baylor's rushing stats, too. Not just the 600-plus he got by running himself, but also a significant chunk of other back's yards. He's not just making a pre-snap read. On a lot of plays, he's making post-snap reads, too. Helping to determine who carries the ball, or if it is a pass play. Briles' offense is not a call-the-play-and-hope-it-works proposition. When University of Houston's Kevin Kolb, Briles' other starting college QB, started to interview with NFL teams, his draft stock shot up like a rocket, and he's an NFL starter today. Teams realized how complex Briles' offense is and how good the QB who ran it was required to be at making reads. Call is a wash, and RGIII wins on points.

Luck is a great quarterback. I loved what he did against the "the University of South Central." His calm demeanor in leading that comeback was beautiful to watch. At the same time, watching RGIII and crew take apart the fifth-ranked Oklahoma Sooners on that final drive was simply Elway-esque: No time outs, 51 seconds. 80 yards to go. A first down would force overtime. After a four-yard gain by Ganaway, Bob Stoops called time out. Then, a 22-yard run by RGIII, out-of-bounds stopping the clock. An eight-yard run by Griffin, out of bounds stopping the clock. A 12-yard pass for a first down, and, then, the play. Moving to his left to avoid the rush, RGIII threw a 34-yard strike to the opposite side corner of the endzone hitting a secondary receiver who had flat-out dropped a sure touchdown pass earlier in the game. Game over. Highest-ranked opponent Baylor's had beaten since a third-ranked the University of South Central in 1985.

Again, Luck is a great college quarterback. While I am biased, I think RGIII is a greater college quarterback this year. If the uniforms were reversed, I am sure you'd feel the same way.

[D. C. Bear]

That was a very civil post!  Thank you.
The problem with the statistical comparisons is that they only can capture a portion of what a quarterback is asked to do and the material/opportunity he has to do it.

A large measure of Stanford's success as a team this year has been due to Luck's ability to read and recognize defenses and call plays at the line.  Quite often he will call a running play at exactly the right time for the good of the team that actually works out to be to the detriment of his stats.  How do you measure playcalling in a statistical line?  Do you give Luck credit for a lot of the yards earned by our running backs? 

Luck is the first college quarterback in living memory who controls the game so effectively with his playcalling.  How do you measure that?  The answer is:  you can't.  Which is why statistical comparisons can only go so far.

Statistics do only go so far, but RGIII isn't short on "intangibles," either. A very large measure of Baylor's success is based on RGIII's ability to read defenses, too. Unfortunately, he couldn't read ours in a game, because it was ranked 109th in the nation in scoring! Stanford's scoring defense was 23rd, and we'd trade our senior kicker for that. OK, we'd trade our senior kicker for a couple of In-n-Our Burgers, but that's another story.

I'd give Griffin credit for a lot of Baylor's rushing stats, too. Not just the 600-plus he got by running himself, but also a significant chunk of other back's yards. He's not just making a pre-snap read. On a lot of plays, he's making post-snap reads, too. Helping to determine who carries the ball, or if it is a pass play. Briles' offense is not a call-the-play-and-hope-it-works proposition. When University of Houston's Kevin Kolb, Briles' other starting college QB, started to interview with NFL teams, his draft stock shot up like a rocket, and he's an NFL starter today. Teams realized how complex Briles' offense is and how good the QB who ran it was required to be at making reads. Call is a wash, and RGIII wins on points.

Luck is a great quarterback. I loved what he did against the "the University of South Central." His calm demeanor in leading that comeback was beautiful to watch. At the same time, watching RGIII and crew take apart the fifth-ranked Oklahoma Sooners on that final drive was simply Elway-esque: No time outs, 51 seconds. 80 yards to go. A first down would force overtime. After a four-yard gain by Ganaway, Bob Stoops called time out. Then, a 22-yard run by RGIII, out-of-bounds stopping the clock. An eight-yard run by Griffin, out of bounds stopping the clock. A 12-yard pass for a first down, and, then, the play. Moving to his left to avoid the rush, RGIII threw a 34-yard strike to the opposite side corner of the endzone hitting a secondary receiver who had flat-out dropped a sure touchdown pass earlier in the game. Game over. Highest-ranked opponent Baylor's had beaten since a third-ranked the University of South Central in 1985.

Again, Luck is a great college quarterback. While I am biased, I think RGIII is a greater college quarterback this year. If the uniforms were reversed, I am sure you'd feel the same way.