Since we've been talking so much about the 2014 QB battles, I thought I would refresh everyone about what Mark Leal looked like as a senior coming out of high school. He had offers from WVU, Oregon, Kansas, Rutgers and Pittsburg, among others...
I'm going to discount Mark's performance vs UCLA because I think he was unprepared. Logan had been the guy for every game the last 3 years, Mark knew that. Although I think he should have been more prepared, I don't think that game was indicative of what Mark will be like as a quarterback.
In my opinion, Mark looks similar to Andrew Ford as a high school quarterback, as both run a similar offense with all work coming out of the shotgun and both are above average pro-style passers.
Leal stands out in a few ways. First of all, out of all the competing QBs, he has the best rhythm. Meaning that he gets the ball out on time and fluidly from his 3-step and 5-step drops. This sounds like a simple thing, but we havn't had a VT quarteback do this well since Randall. Mark gets the ball out on time, and puts it to a spot out in front of his receiver on slants and post routes where only one guy can get it. He is also a better runner than Ford. I would describe his running style as "slippery" - he won't run through you, and he won't juke you out of your socks, but he has some wiggle about him.
My final $0.02...Mark is just as accurate as Andrew Ford and with a stronger arm. Mark is a better runner, and throws more consistently with good rhythm on his drops. Mark has a very compact, quick release on his intermediate stuff...but he winds up a little bit more on deep balls. They are both equally accurate and with very good footwork. Andrew looks like he throws better on the run. Both have very good touch.
What do you all think?
Comments
...you're not French.
Sorry, just got confused there for a second. In all seriousness, my thought process has always been let's see what happens during spring ball and practices. If Leal plays well enough, he deserves to start, and will. If another QB that we have plays better, then I think they should start. The positive here is that we have plenty of good candidates, and I think that includes Leal. So long as having all these good options translates to wins come the fall, I'm happy.
Exactly.
Those players that give us the best chance of winning the most games this year will be on the field. There are fans who are lobbying that Ford (or Durkin/McMillian) should start since they will be around after this season. There are just too many ways for attrition to affect a team.
Just get the best players on the field right now.
A big question I have is development though. How much has he developed being a back up? How much will the new QBs have developed by the time August rolls around? Being pegged a back up for 3 years, how much has Leal gone through the motions rather than bust his ass to grow as a player vs the high school guys coming in knowing they have a chance to play come fall and working like there is no tomorrow. Just some thoughts.
Not to mention the level of coaching he received for 3 years.
You are right that Mark Leal was unprepared to face UCLA. Logan rarely got hurt until that game. Mark had no reason to expect to be on the field. But, as someone who had been a backup for three years, he should have taken the opportunity to showcase his talents against a top UCLA team. Frank Beamer is right going with Mark at the top of the depth chart, but I have a feeling that it will be an open competition and the best QB will start the first game for the hokies.
That was actually the first game of LT3's career that he didn't start and finish I believe. Sort of like Flacco.
My question for Leal is - who picked out the music for your highlight film????
Way better than any rap I've ever heard put on a highlight video. Very Sam Spence-esque.
I'm still trying to figure out what music it is. My android can't figure it out (which is a first) but it sounds Herb Alpert like.
I'm not going to pretend to know if he was under-prepared or just became a deer in the headlights against UCLA but hopefully he uses it to it's full "learning experience" potential and shows up from here on out.
As excited as I am for our new recruits, I also like seeing a guy that's put in the work for years show us what he can do. Also, I'd like to not hear people calling for him (whoever he is) to be benched as soon as he loses a coin toss.
That's good.
The best man will win the job out of the five guys who will be competing.
You know, in my 47 years as a Hokie football fan I don't recall ever being able to say that.
man, now i'm craving a five guys burger... thanks a lot
Thanks for posting this. I hadn't started really following recruiting when Leal was coming in, so this is really my first extended look at him, apart from live scrimmages. Something I'm noticing (which I really hope Lefty's been working on) is that he holds the ball too low in the pocket and especially when scrambling, that leads to a slightly elongated windup. Also, he has a tendency to not really drive off his back foot, especially on longer throws. That causes the ball to hang in the air just a little bit, which is mucho no bueno if throwing a deep post with a safety coming over the top. As you said, he has a very good feel for reaching the top of his drop and then-BOOM-the ball's out of there. If he can show in the spring that he's got a true mastery of the playbook, can take care of the ball (make good decisions) and has polished some things up mechanically, there's no reason at all he shouldn't earn the top spot come August.
In my opinion, compared to Ford, Leal has a much better arm and can throw a pretty deep ball when given time. However, I don't think he has good movement in the pocket, cannot throw on the run, and has an extremely extended wind-up. He also doesn't look very comfortable throwing short routes (much like LT3 and D. McNabb).
VT has no run-away winner at QB. Each has strengths and weaknesses. We'll see how spring goes, but I really like Ford's ability to move and throw accurately (hit the correct shoulder). Will Freshman Ford be better than Senior Leal? I don't know, but I do think HS Ford was better than HS Leal.
Maybe Leal wasn't as ready as he should have been...maybe. But he couldn't have been dealt a worse hand. VT's basic running game was short-handed without Edmunds and the game plan was devised to minimize the lack of between the tackles running game and maximize what strengths were available. Leal's weaknesses and relative strengths were not part of that plan and it put him in the worst possible position. Then throw on top of that the fact that VT got behind 21-10 in the 3rd qtr and the Defense was playing short-handed as well -- which meant the offense, i.e. Leal, had generate points and generate them quickly.
Leal was (metaphor alert...) a fish out of water with a target squarely on his chest.
When I look at his HS film, what I mostly see is the same thing I see when I see footage out the incoming QBs:
1) How good a good high school QB can look against lesser competition.
2) How bad a good high school QB can look against much better competition
I just don't see how any of the incoming frosh will be able to win the starting job 6 or 7 months from now, let alone be ready to play against Ohio State, et al.
Ford has the benefit of being there now so he isnt waiting to win it 6-7 months from now. He is already working on winning it behind the scenes.
Ohio State actually doesn't have a great defense....They were 45th nationally....109th against the pass, but 7th against the run.
Its actually their offense that is their strength...they were 7th in the nation.
Not sure which is more impressive; Mark's great HS film, or the music paired with it! Thx so much for sharing. It's nice to have comparative film to view of the diff QB candidates during their HS days.
All - that wasn't a post suggesting Leal should start, just a comparison of what he looked like as a senior in high school compared to our incoming freshman at the same stage. Another thing to keep in mind when comparing film is that that Leal is from South Florida, meaning he's playing with and against elite athletes all over the field.
I said this before...but I think whoever wins the QB battle this spring will be a reflection of what direction Loefller wants to go as a coordination with the pieces he has available to him.
I'm still not exactly sure who Loeffler is: He has has a demonstrated history of traditional inside / outside zone stuff (Temple) as well as veer / read stuff (VT). My current thought, and this is not rocket science, is that he wants to run the ball and will coordinate an offense to do so. If he has the big, workhourse, 1-cut, zone back, as well as a big, athletic offensive line...we'll see more of the pro-style zone running game with Leal / Ford. If he has a QB that can run, we'll see the veer stuff with Durkin / McMillian. I'm still not sure how Motley fits just yet, but I do think he will suprise people....If he was as much of a lock to change positions like many on this board suggest I think he would have done so already like Bucky.
With that, I think the winner of the QB battle will be dictated just as or more on the ability of the running backs and the offensive line than on the QB!!
Looks like he would make a great tight end.
I think Leal took the soundtrack from the 80's show, CHiPS for his highlight video...
I know some of it is from the 70s and 80s NFL films.