[washingtonismoney]

Taking this thread to a new tangent, I wonder how aggressive a PR operation N.D. has. Reading much of the pre-game coverage, I was struck how frequently certain angles -- nearly identically phrased and told -- recurred. To oversimplify: 

1) Ian Book is a great guy!
2) Brandon Wimbush is a moron!

(More specifically, they all cite an anecdote where Book, in high school, in the middle of a tight game, asks a teacher about his score on a math test, which they say suggests that he was just that cool a customer. Wimbush, on the other hand, was apparently good at memorizing the first drive or first half but unable to adjust in the heat of game play. A lot of articles specifically pointed to his game against Michigan. Neither of these anecdotes are sourced but the frequency with which they occur strongly suggests someone is feeding a highly favorable line. 

I personally find the Book line to be harmless hagiography of the type that's common in sports coverage. The Wimbush anecdote, is worse than offensive -- it's a mistake. Wimbush was an effective QB over the totality of the 2017, rushing for 830 yards and piloting an offense that went for well over 6 yards per play and finishing #21 in points per drive. It's hard to believe this defect was tolerable in 2017 but somehow a killer now. It's also a bit offensive to be trashing your unpaid player in the press, if indeed that's what they're doing, particularly in a way that -- to me at least -- rings of longstanding stereotypes about black quarterbacks. 

Anyway, all this aside Book is basically an unknown. He's not thrown too many passes and it seems like a brobdingnagian portion of his production was due to Wake's inability to deal with screens: I saw one stat saying he went 9-9 for 125 yards against Wake. Somehow this was presented as a positive regarding Book. One imagines it'll be more difficult to deliver the ball downfield and that's where Book's mettle will truly be tested. Left unexplored in the leaks regarding Wimbush's competence, and the critical question: if Wimbush was so unable to adjust to defenses, and if that were such a handicap, why wasn't Book able to beat him sooner?)

[washingtonismoney]

Taking this thread to a new tangent, I wonder how aggressive a PR operation N.D. has. Reading much of the pre-game coverage, I was struck how frequently certain angles -- nearly identically phrased and told -- recurred. To oversimplify: 

1) Ian Book is a great guy!
2) Brandon Wimbush is a moron!

(More specifically, they all cite an anecdote where Book, in high school, in the middle of a tight game, asks a teacher about his score on a math test, which they say suggests that he was just that cool a customer. Wimbush, on the other hand, was apparently good at memorizing the first drive or first half but unable to adjust in the heat of game play. A lot of articles specifically pointed to his game against Michigan. Neither of these anecdotes are sourced but the frequency with which they occur strongly suggests someone is feeding a highly favorable line. 

I personally find the Book line to be harmless hagiography of the type that's common in sports coverage. The Wimbush anecdote, is worse than offensive -- it's a mistake. Wimbush was an effective QB over the totality of the 2017, rushing for 830 yards and piloting an offense that went for well over 6 yards per play and finishing #21 in points per drive. It's hard to believe this defect was tolerable in 2017 but somehow a killer now. It's also a bit offensive to be trashing your unpaid player in the press, if indeed that's what they're doing, particularly in a way that -- to me at least -- rings of longstanding stereotypes about black quarterbacks. 

Anyway, all this aside Book is basically an unknown. He's not thrown too many passes and it seems like a brobdingnagian portion of his production was due to Wake's inability to deal with screens: I saw one stat saying he went 9-9 for 125 yards against Wake. Somehow this was presented as a positive regarding Book. One imagines it'll be more difficult to deliver the ball downfield and that's where Book's mettle will truly be tested. Left unexplored in the leaks regarding Wimbush's competence, and the critical question: if Wimbush was so unable to adjust to defenses, and if that were such a handicap, why wasn't Book able to beat him sooner?)