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Message: [QUOTE="leftytg, post: 3508960, member: 2651"] Devito is Exhibit A for why it is important to stack talent in the QB room and develop that talent. Devito was an awesome recruit. He was on essentially an all star team in high school and crushed the camp circuit. His physical tools were impressive and easy to see. However, the QB position contains elements that are very hard to scout. The position is incredibly cerebral and relies on quick information processing and decision making. Sometimes supremely talented guys in the physical sense of throwing the ball lack talent in the processing and decision making (note: this is NOT the same as intelligence or work ethic, in the same way that someone's arm strength isn't the same as dedication in the weight room.) Since the mental side is hard to discern through scouting high school - particularly when the school is a powerhouse with athletic advantages across the board over most schools - it is important to have a steady stream of talent, because some guys will inevitably wash out. Syracuse has been a disaster as recruiting the QB position since landing Devito. To exacerbate that, Dino's decision to hire his daughter's father-in-law as QB coach - a guy who had never coached at the college level and had no proven track record of QB development - proved to be a disaster. It hurt recruiting and it hurt development, and as a result, Syracuse has one of, if not the, worst QB rooms in P5 football. That QB is the most important position in sports makes the ceiling of the team very low. With a better managed QB room, Devito gets pushed (not annointed). If he doesn't improve, there is someone else ready to take over. If nobody in the room is ready, you bring in a grad transfer. With the way power programs stack QB talent, and the way QB's don't like waiting around if they aren't starting within 2 or 3 years, Syracuse should/could be a place talented QB's who lose position battles at power schools look to transfer. For whatever reason, Syracuse has seemed wary of upsetting Devito rather than doing what it takes to upgrade the overall talent in the room. It's a shame, since I do think top to bottom, the talent and athleticism in the program has improved remarkably under Dino. But I think he has absolutely botched the QB position, which is why there isn't any kind of sustained success. [/QUOTE]

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