Why Can't This Guy Crack the Lineup?

February 9, 2011 2:33 PM

Johnny Mac - Trick Shot Quarterback — University of Connecticut quarterback Johnny McEntee and his "trick shot" passing abilities. [4:50 SLYT]

McEntee is a redshirt junior at UConn. Despite his accuracy, for some reason he has yet to play a down in a college game. No doubt there is a lot more that goes into being a successful quarterback than tossing a football into a garbage can from a catwalk.

posted by netbros (51 comments total)

Man, I hope that wasn't a real Domino's delivery person or else McEntee is a prick. Pizza delivery people work shit hours for low pay, they don't deserve having someone knock the sign off their car's roof.

That said, he sure can throw with pinpoint accuracy.
posted by Kattullus at 2:43 PM on February 9, 2011 [1 favorite]

I don't know anything about high level QB's, from my perspective that is the most amazing thing I've ever seen. How many other players could do what he did? Is that kind of accuracy common?
posted by Keith Talent at 2:44 PM on February 9, 2011

Why Can't This Guy Crack the Lineup?

To paraphrase Bruce Lee: Water bottles don't hit back.
posted by 2bucksplus at 2:45 PM on February 9, 2011 [2 favorites]

Good recruiting video for the NFL scouts nonetheless.
posted by Nanukthedog at 2:47 PM on February 9, 2011

... or NBA should that new pointy ball rule provision go through next year...
posted by Nanukthedog at 2:48 PM on February 9, 2011

I'm not saying this isn't all real. I am, however, saying that I have seen a million obnoxious supposed viral adverts that had people doing stuff like this, all faked.

So man, in fact, that if you're going to do something like this, you should take extra effort to make it utterly clear that it would be impossible to fake this.
posted by Astro Zombie at 2:48 PM on February 9, 2011

Me: stoked.

Pizza dude: hosed.

they should be wearing helmets
posted by spikeleemajortomdickandharryconnickjrmints at 2:48 PM on February 9, 2011

That is genuinely amazing - seriously cool! I'd like to see him, naked, standing in the shower - throwing footballs out of the locker room into a bucket. Yessiree - that would be a good trick shot...
posted by helmutdog at 2:48 PM on February 9, 2011 [1 favorite]

so many, rather.
posted by Astro Zombie at 2:48 PM on February 9, 2011

Yeah, there's a lot more to being a quarterback than how accurate your throws are. That part is important, but there's also reading the defense, mobility in and out of the pocket, hitting targets on the run, checking down multiple receivers, playcalling, etc etc.

Plus, who knows how many takes each of those throws took?
posted by kmz at 2:49 PM on February 9, 2011

I'm not saying this isn't all real. I am, however, saying that I have seen a million obnoxious supposed viral adverts that had people doing stuff like this, all faked.


I'll go ahead and say it isn't all real. That last shot, for example, isn't real. I'm positive of that.
posted by norm at 2:49 PM on February 9, 2011

Same concept, but by a pro...
posted by fore at 2:55 PM on February 9, 2011 [1 favorite]

That last shot, for example, isn't real. I'm positive of that.

A basketball court is 94 feet long. 94 feet = ~31 yards. Add another 15 yards for the angle and distance up the rows of seats, and you have a 45 yard toss.

Give me a few dozen tries, and I could make that throw.
posted by clearly at 3:00 PM on February 9, 2011

Stop cutting between throws and you've got something.
posted by ODiV at 3:05 PM on February 9, 2011 [1 favorite]

I bet you I could throw this football over that mountain there.
posted by Astro Zombie at 3:06 PM on February 9, 2011 [3 favorites]

I've been watching skate videos for a lot of years now, and yeah...i think there were multiple attempts per shot.
posted by rhizome at 3:07 PM on February 9, 2011

The depressing thing is that this guy was what, 14 when the DC Shoes amazing basketball shots video came out? I'm old.
posted by The World Famous at 3:07 PM on February 9, 2011 [1 favorite]

what a talented dickhead
posted by mhjb at 3:10 PM on February 9, 2011 [1 favorite]

The depressing thing is that this guy was what, 14 when the DC Shoes amazing basketball shots video yt came out?

He was three years old when the Jordan/Byrd commercial came out.
posted by spikeleemajortomdickandharryconnickjrmints at 3:14 PM on February 9, 2011 [1 favorite]

Honestly, I enjoyed the Olivet ping pong shots more: 1 2. Also, the parody with university faculty and administration.
posted by kmz at 3:16 PM on February 9, 2011 [6 favorites]

Curly Neal was unavailable for comment.
posted by boo_radley at 3:24 PM on February 9, 2011

Kyle Singler did this also.
posted by Danf at 3:27 PM on February 9, 2011

Not as good as this from the 6 Nations last week (the through-the-legs pass at 25 seconds).
posted by afx237vi at 3:42 PM on February 9, 2011

How many other players could do what he did? Is that kind of accuracy common?

I watch a LOT of football and nothing in this video strikes me as particularly unrealistic for an accurate QB / sets off my fake alert. I'm sure the hitting-stuff-in-mid-air-tricks took a number of takes but plenty of QBs can hit the goal post from 10-20 yards out (at least often enough to make shooting something like this relatively easy). That's actually a pretty common bored at practice competition between the QBs. Best out of 10 throws, etc. Knocking the cones off the head of a stationary target seems easier than hitting a back shoulder throw to a moving target and likewise the long throws into the buckets look really hard but they aren't necessarily. It's probably easier to do that than to hit a guy with 4.3 speed running a streak perfectly in stride in windy game conditions, or threading the ball into over/under coverage which pro QBs do all the time.
posted by nathancaswell at 4:02 PM on February 9, 2011

Or throwing on the run... goddamn Rodgers is good. As my friend said, rather unfortunately, during the Super Bowl "his balls are perfect."
posted by nathancaswell at 4:05 PM on February 9, 2011

A basketball court is 94 feet long. 94 feet = ~31 yards. Add another 15 yards for the angle and distance up the rows of seats, and you have a 45 yard toss.

Fair enough. My estimation was that it was a lot longer than that, and I also didn't think the angle from his hand matched the angle coming in, but I suppose I could be wrong. This whole thread is worth it for the Olivet Beer Pong team links, though. Those were a lot of fun.
posted by norm at 4:09 PM on February 9, 2011

Haters gonna hate. I was impressed.
posted by ColdChef at 4:09 PM on February 9, 2011

Rodgers: "his balls are perfect."

Yes, they are.
Unlike his predecessor, whose name escapes me.
posted by Floydd at 4:15 PM on February 9, 2011 [1 favorite]

Is this where we should post amazing throws?
posted by ofthestrait at 4:18 PM on February 9, 2011

I'm not hating. I'm just so cynical that I can't enjoy anything anymore. There is a HUGE difference.
posted by norm at 4:19 PM on February 9, 2011

Is this where we should post amazing throws?

Sonny Jurgensen had the prettiest balls of them all.
posted by nathancaswell at 4:23 PM on February 9, 2011 [5 favorites]

The throw at 1:20 of the Jurgensen clip is RIDICULOUS.
posted by nathancaswell at 4:24 PM on February 9, 2011

Well, it's a shame that Bob Burton (from this previous thread) decided to part ways with UConn. He probably would have enjoyed seeing his money well spent.
posted by Frank Grimes at 4:35 PM on February 9, 2011

Pretty badass... love this kinda stuff. Bet that dude gets laid a ton...
posted by ph00dz at 4:55 PM on February 9, 2011

Wow, I'd vaguely heard of Jurgensen before but I didn't know anything about him. Great little doc there.

(Just how good is NFL Films? Man. Is there anything even close for another sport?)
posted by kmz at 5:07 PM on February 9, 2011 [1 favorite]

Accuracy is why quarterbacks make the big bucks.

But can he throw well under pressure?
posted by bwg at 5:25 PM on February 9, 2011

Yeah kmz, Jurgensen is before my time but I saw him on one of the NFL Films season docs several years ago and was instantly struck by how amazing a passer he looked and the numbers he posted (modern numbers in a bygone era). He's got a funny motion (a lot like Philip Rivers, actually) but the ball comes out perfectly. I've trolled YouTube periodically trying to find a highlight video of him ever since and NFL Films finally released that little doc this year, much to my delight. Now, I never saw him play live obviously but I consider him and Marino to be the best two pure passers I've ever seen on film.
posted by nathancaswell at 5:32 PM on February 9, 2011

Yeah, there's a lot more to being a quarterback than how accurate your throws are. That part is important, but there's also reading the defense, mobility in and out of the pocket, hitting targets on the run, checking down multiple receivers, playcalling, etc etc.

...being tall enough to see over 6'8", 350lb linemen...
posted by Chuffy at 5:44 PM on February 9, 2011

I helped make it look like Joe Montana could still do this so I'm inclined to call a fake. There are plenty of times where the ball leaves screen and re-enters.
posted by matt_od at 5:48 PM on February 9, 2011 [1 favorite]

I think Drew Brees and Doug Flutie may have a word or two to say about "too small." It's a consideration, but it seems to me that there is a great deal of conflict in the NFL about "measurables" and "can he play?" The latter is obviously subjective, and anyone who advocates investment of resources in a player on the basis of a subjective evaluation is two bad calls away from the sack. How do you measure how someone reads a game? How do you evaluate which good performer on a bad team is actually good, and which good performer on a good team is actually bad? When big money is at stake, it is difficult for someone to make a call for the unconventional guy who has no real numbers to represent him.
If you look at drafts, the Raiders are famous for drafting by numbers and have a huge clutch of busts to show for it. But, if you are reporting to Al Davis, what else do you do but pick the numbers that please him? Conversely, Belicheck at the Patriots has the complete confidence of the owner. The Pats systematically trade down for a larger number of lower picks - guys who are not big number generators, maybe A-/B+ on physical attributes, but absolutely smart, responsible, driven individuals. Which team do you think costs more, and which one wins more?
Impressive as the trick-shot videos are (thanks, netbros), there's a whole world of difference between performing a set piece trick in a controlled environment and being able to do the same when there's a horde of huge, hungry, hairy-arsed animals in your face. The subset of the latter is very small.
posted by Jakey at 6:07 PM on February 9, 2011

For those who went to college. Remember college? A whole lotta fucking free time.
posted by repoman at 6:08 PM on February 9, 2011

Looking at the UConn 2011 roster, he stands a decent chance at playing time this year simply due to his tenure - he's the "oldest" QB on the roster and he does have actual playing time in a previous season. But as others mention it takes a lot more to get a starting nod in Div I football. This guy's football CV is pretty short if you compare it to the younger QBs looking to get into the mix: you see a lot of "HS Player of the Year" or "State Champion" mentions in their biographies, so who knows which one will best serve the interests of the program.

It'll be interesting to see if he can compete with those guys, because we're just seeing one aspect of his game. It's almost ridiculous how much a QB may be expected to do at even the collegiate level. Allow me to narrate a super slo-mo example play of what an elite QB might go through:
1) First I've gotta understand the play call, which is being signaled from the sideline using a code that changes every week. Is "Green Camel" the dive left or a Z fly? Fuck. Try to ignore the opposition and their fans, who are screaming at me to fail and implying that my genetic line has engaged in recursive shenanigans.
2) Deliver the play call to the 10 other people in the huddle. They're mouth-breathing and smell like wet foam rubber and some are not high academic achievers, so hopefully they're absorbing what I'm telling them, which I'm now second guessing... stupid camel.
3) Line up, and then interpret what the defense MIGHT do (based on how they're lined up). Which of these frothing linebackers that are showing blitz really will? How deep is the DB playing off the receiver? Why does that guy have a tattoo that says "Tattoo?"
4) Adjust the play if necessary, allowing time for players to shift before the play clock winds down. Some of these guys (especially the Tight End, who's failing in his Leisure Studies classes) are now completely confused and will forget where to run and who to block, I can tell. Concentrate despite all indications that this is going to end up in pain. My pain, massive.
5) After the snap, recognize what players are actually doing (based on how they're moving). Somewhere between 7-10 oversized dudes are engaged in group sumo all around me, and somewhere 10-50 yards downfield (it's flat from this perspective, remember) are guys running around with different agendas. Hopefully they're all around the same size so it doesn't mess with my depth perception. Is that guy 5' tall or is he just really deep? Is this guy 7' tall or about to tackle me?
6) Make 4-5 near instant decisions on how to deliver the ball (handoff to halfback, fullback, fly sweep? Throw to 1st, 2nd or which receiver? Tuck it and run?) Did any of these guys drop the ball last time? Can I still trust them? That one guy is such a mouthy jackass and even if he's not open he's going to say he was and that I'm not looking hard enough... the dick.
7) Deliver the ball (sometimes while running in any given direction) into a 1' diameter target that might also be moving at a speed of approx. 2.5 feet per second, while some griefers are doing everything they can to prevent my success. This is where I need to be as accurate as the video guy, regardless of the geometry and physics I'm forced to crunch in my adrenaline-addled brain.
8) Try to collapse onto my non-throwing arm as a 6'5", 310lb glandular phenomenon pancakes my defenseless body, hopefully just after I've got the ball out of my hand. Get up, dust off the hands, and get ready to do all of this over again in about 15 seconds.
posted by krippledkonscious at 7:05 PM on February 9, 2011 [10 favorites]

9) Fuck it, rely on instinct like everyone does always ever.
posted by tigrefacile at 7:19 PM on February 9, 2011

nathancaswell, thanks for that Sonny vid. He has been my 'skins announcer since I was a kid and I've never given much thought to his playing career.
posted by LobsterMitten at 7:59 PM on February 9, 2011

I don't like how much this guy likes himself. Does that make me a "hater"? Very well then, I am a hater; I am large, I contain hatitudes.
posted by penduluum at 8:09 PM on February 9, 2011

That was cool to watch, but I guess it doesn't seem all that different to me than ballplayers smashing 500-foot bombs in batting practice. It's a hell of a lot of fun to watch, but so utterly different than a game-time situation that it's not indicative of ability.
posted by xmutex at 9:43 PM on February 9, 2011

Best football throw?
posted by Mister Fabulous at 11:25 PM on February 9, 2011

More pointy ball goodness from NZ, and the Aussie response
posted by fullerine at 1:10 AM on February 10, 2011

Yeah, the ability to 'make all the throws' and be pinpoint accurate only make you a good QB if you make the right decisions, can read a defense, and have some sort of pocket presence.

He might be a great football thrower, but that doesn't make him a great QB.
posted by WinnipegDragon at 6:04 AM on February 10, 2011

How many other players could do what he did? Is that kind of accuracy common?

This "Sports Science" clip features Drew Brees throwing with greater accuracy than an olympic archer shooting a compound bow. To be honest, I didn't think it was very scientific, but it does demonstrate that many good QBs do throw with phenomenal accuracy.

On that basis, I don't think this is necessarily a total fake, though I expect there were probably way more takes than the final edited product implies.
posted by kxr at 3:29 AM on February 12, 2011

You know that time when you could get a paper ball into a the basket over in the next cubicle almost all the time? Now do that 5hrs a day for the next 10 years.
posted by rhizome at 12:38 PM on February 12, 2011