Armstrong's rise could make for an interesting decision

While Taylor Martinez remains Nebraska’s starting quarterback until further notice (despite what some Husker fans desire), reports out of fall camp indicate that true freshman Tommie Armstrong has thrust himself squarely in the mix for the No. 2 role.

Armstrong is competing with incumbents Brion Carnes and Ron Kellogg for the No. 2 job but Armstrong reportedly has been taking regular reps with the No. 2 offensive unit.

In an Omaha World Herald story on Monday, offensive coordinator Tom Beck and wide receiver Jamal Turner sang Armstrong’s praises.

“He's got a lot of the ‘it’ factor that you look for in a quarterback,” Beck said. “He’s picked up the offense much faster than I thought he would, he’s a student of the game and he’s a very talented young man. That combination has not only impressed myself but, I think, his teammates.”

Some of those teammates back that up, too.

“He came off kind of cocky at first, but once you get to know him it’s like, ‘No, this guy’s just a leader,’ ” Turner said. “He’s a really good guy. Really good quarterback.”

The newcomer from Cibolo, Texas, comes to Nebraska in highly touted fashion after leading his team to a 5A State Title. Quarterbacks named Tommie (as in Tommie Frazier) certainly bring a good omen for Husker fans as the last quarterback to don the scarlet and cream with such a name led Nebraska to back-to-back National Championships in 1994-1995 and came within a missed Bryon Bennett field of winning three straight in 1993. Frazier became Nebraska’s starter as a true freshman in Game Six in 1992.

So what should happen with Armstrong? You really can’t make any historical comparisons because what happened in 1992 will have no bearing on what happens in 2012 – and frankly it should not.

I have said before on this very website that unless a true freshman is going to make an immediate impact, the young man should redshirt. Think about it for just a moment, even though we live in this “now” culture.

The current NCAA rules state that an eligible athlete has five years to complete four seasons. Therefore, student-athletes may practice for a team but not play in a game for one season, not counting against his or her four seasons of eligibility. This is known as a redshirt. Fans don’t see their contributions in that they do not happen on gameday but the redshirt season is a valuable year in a system in that it provides shelter against some of the harsh realities of jumping to a new level of football.

You see, some highly-touted high school studs make their college choices in the recruiting process based on early playing time. Some coaches promise it or tell the youngster he has a fair chance to compete for playing time. Others will demand an automatic redshirt.

There are numerous reasons to redshirt freshmen. For starters, the college game moves a hell of a lot faster than high school, which means decisions have to be made faster. Therefore, the extra season working against starters in practice is a benefit.

Also, highly touted high school studs were often the stars of their team and their league. They were exponentially better than their high school peers. In college, everyone is at least as good if not better. That extra year of conditioning will give the youngster a better chance to handle the rigors of a 12-14 game college schedule.

The verbiage of a playbook (especially on offense) is also far greater in college than in high school as is the intricacy of reading the opposition. Some of that pressure can be alleviated during a redshirt season.

Then there is the whole matter of adjusting from high school to college away from the field. For some of these youngsters, it’s their first time away from home. All of the sudden cooking, cleaning, doing laundry and partying are a juggling act. Throw that in with trying to balance academics with athletics.

The temptation to put the best talent on the field is tough to overcome. The development of a successful program, however, is not about talent alone but it is about the development of an overall player and his maturity to handle the pressures and demands of being a great college football player.

So how does this tie in with what the Huskers should do with Armstrong? It’s a tricky situation with no easy solution. I think it’s very promising that Armstrong has made the strides he has already but I would much rather have three years of eligibility left when Martinez leaves. 

If he is going to get some meaningful snaps, then burn the shirt. If he is going to get 3-4 snaps in 2-3 games then no, keep the red shirt. The problem is how does one know if he can get enough snaps?

Personally, I would plan to redshirt him and burn the shirt only if Martinez goes down and Carnes is incapable.

If he’s the second best quarterback and you need him to win games, then you pull him out of a redshirt. If it’s garbage time, do not use him. He’ll have all next year to get garbage minutes.

I understand you can’t know if you’ll need him in Week Eight when you are contemplating garbage time in Week One but it’s not worth blowing a year to have him hand the ball off 10 times. Obviously getting a guy ready just in case isn’t a priority otherwise Carnes would have gotten some more playing time.

Let Carnes have the reps if available. With his time in the system he’s probably going to be serviceable (we hope) should Martinez go down briefly.