Texas A&M Football: Evaluating the quarterback performances in Week 2
Jake Hubenak – The positives
Cool as can be
What I absolutely love about Hubenak is composure. He trotted out onto the field and sat in the pocket like it was just another day at the office. Even when the pocket collapsed he didn’t lose his mechanics. He either tried to escape or just took the sack, which is something most quarterbacks don’t learn until they’re pros. As much as you would like for him not to be sacked, sometimes it’s better just to lose six yards than to force a throw and it gets picked off.
The leadership he brings to the table is something that can’t be measured. His age and experience provides stability that Mond or even Starkel can’t. A positive that doesn’t need to go unknowticed.
Solid passer
Another thing that is great about Hubenak is that he’s a refined passer, at least compared to Mond. Throwing the ball is how he’s had success, not running. Therefore, if Sumlin will call the right plays, he can utilize Hubenak’s arm like he should. The senior’s ball placement isn’t too bad! Like any quarterback, he’s going to need a little bit of time, but he understands the routes better than Mond and doesn’t need the same kind of time that the freshman does.
Brains
Perhaps something that might be my favorite thing about No. 10 is he pre-snap play. There were a few times during the game where he changed the play at the line of scrimmage based off of what the defense gave him. There are some NFL signal callers who still have trouble with this. I’m not saying that Hubenak is already an NFL star, but this skill is usually something that players have a hard time understanding. Hopefully, he could change from what was going to be a negative play into a positive one.
Competitor
I think something is pushing Hubenak that’s going to elevate his play. Surely, there’s a chip on his shoulder. The guy lost one game his senior year of high school and had an outstanding high school career. He walked on at Oklahoma State and didn’t get the playing time he thought he deserved. So, he became a Buccaneer and transferred to Blinn College. He and teammate Damion Ratley later transferred to A&M where Hubenak has been fighting for playing time ever since.
He could quite possibly play out his senior year as the starting quarterback for Texas A&M, a title that he’s been chasing for a while. I doubt he’s going to let a hot-shot freshman just waltz in and steal the show. Nothing elevates performance more than competition and I think this may help Hubenak work harder and fix his mistakes that would typically happen.