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The Mystique of J.W. Walsh

I am bipolar when it comes to J.W., and I'm probably not in the minority when it comes to #4 running the offense.

Tom Pennington

The Florida State game is behind us, but let me say; Bravo, coaches, bravo. I, along with 99% of the rest of Oklahoma State fans, have never been happier with a loss in my 19 years as an avid Cowboys fan.

With that being said, there is a big question mark hanging over the offense.

It's no secret that I have stood behind J.W. Walsh since the Texas game two years ago.  We know his arm is nothing special but that's not going to change, so we need to get over that. Strictly numbers speaking, 15/27 with 203 yards passing and 1 TD and 1 INT is not that bad. However, there were multiple times that J.W. was simply inaccurate. Whether that be missing receivers high, low, or short, he seemed to do all of those.

I sat on my back patio watching the game and my pops made a good point. He said, "I guess I just don't see what J.W. brings to the table." And I might agree with him. Other than him being a mobile quarterback and a "gamer," what makes him the best option at quarterback? His arm doesn't bring much to the table and his inability to stretch the field vertically is the biggest knock that I have on him.

We all want to think that Daxx Garman or Mason Rudolph is the better option, and that is human nature. We WANT the backup to be the best player to touch turf. The fact that neither saw the field on Saturday makes me think that Gundy hasn't been entirely truthful with the progression of the quarterbacks throughout fall camp.

But what about the positive things? Well, for starters, that 28 yard TD run was magical. And J.W. can lead this team. I have no doubt about that. J.W. has an incredible work ethic, and I don't think there's been enough said about that. The short TD run he had to bring it back within six in the fourth quarter was pure determination. He wanted that touchdown. He WANTED to beat the number one team in the country, and with a couple plays going differently, he would have done it. I'm not sure that we would have a shot to beat FSU with any other QB at the command.

I just need "Good J.W." to go out and throttle MSU, UTSA and Tech to assure me that he is our best option.