'15 NJ QB Brandon Wimbush (Notre Dame Signed NLI)

[ND88]

I’m just glad it’s not PSU. They suck and he deserves better in life. UCF is better.

 

[Pops Freshenmeyer]

He's got one last year to try and get it right for a real shot at his NFL dream. If he thinks he can put up numbers in UCF's offense then it's a good choice.

 

[Pops Freshenmeyer]

Is Milton not going to be ready next year? Ever?

He hasn't even finished with his slate of surgeries yet.

 

[SouthSideChiDomer]

Is Milton not going to be ready next year? Ever?

He still needs at least one more surgery on his knee, so its unlikely he would be ready and even if he were he would likely be rusty. He still has a redshirt, so the much better option seems to be to have a one year grad transfer in BW while Milton redshirts, then have Milton play his last season in 2020, and then they have a good QB prospect who should be ready to take over in 2021.

 

[STLDomer]

Is Milton not going to be ready next year? Ever?

I would say odds of never playing again is higher than playing next year

 

[BobbyMac]

THX guys.

So he's a rent-a-arm for 1 year and Milton comes back. Hopefully he has a good year and gets drafted late. He'll make some jack for a few years as a practice squad guy at worst. He's got a lot of physical tools that help teams prepare. A lot of mobile QB's who can scramble for plus yardage that BW can replicate in practice plus he has a big arm to test secondaries deep.

 

[NDohio]

I am so tired of the UCF fan base and their unrealistic take on how they should be a part of the big boy football landscape...and now I have to cheer for them...good luck BW, hope this is the right place for you...

 

[ndfi78]

I am so tired of the UCF fan base and their unrealistic take on how they should be a part of the big boy football landscape...and now I have to cheer for them...good luck BW, hope this is the right place for you...

I had the same thought

 

[Irish#1]

Why wouldn't he be? I would understand it if he had an ulterior motive, such as a great MBA program given how astute of a student he was at ND, but UCF doesn't appear to be it.

Overall university rank: 165th. (ND: 18)
Business school rank: UR (ND 31)

https://www.usnews.com/best-colleges/ucf-3954

I wish him the best wherever he goes. Maybe he just wants to head south to warm FL and live it up a little, but that has never seemed like his MO.

If he's looking for a shot at the league, competition, relative to the quality of the football program he'll be attending, i.e. conference prestige, SOS, etc., should be the first thing on his mind, because it's clearly not an academic play if he heads to Orlando.

Not following you. I'm not saying he's going there for the education. It was pointed he might be competing at UCF against two QB's who saw a lot of playing time. I was just saying he's not afraid to compete for the job like Tate Martell.

 

[IrishLax]

Over under 3 months until a UCF writer baits Wimbush into saying UCF has "more talent" than Notre Dame?

 

[Some Irish Bloke]

Not following you. I'm not saying he's going there for the education. It was pointed he might be competing at UCF against two QB's who saw a lot of playing time. I was just saying he's not afraid to compete for the job like Tate Martell.

Right, and all I was saying is why would he choose a competitive situation, though? It's great that he's not afraid of the competition. But if his dream is to really get to the highest level of football, why would he choose a more competitive situation than some of the other options on the table? That's all I'm saying.

My point about the education is that I could see him joining a football squad with a decent amount of competition if it had the caveat of a great graduate degree...which this is not the case.

 

[dublinirish]

as Sampson points out UCF plays Stanford at home in September. WTF were the Trees thinking scheduling that? Could be a blood bath

 

[irishtrooper]

Over under 3 months until a UCF writer baits Wimbush into saying UCF has "more talent" than Notre Dame?

Some on this board likely agree

 

[IrishLion]

I hope he wins the job. I’d love to see him play when UCF plays at Nippert Stadium next year... though I hope the UC defense gives him fits lol

 

[RDU Irish]

I don't see the upside. Wish him well.

 

[Irish YJ]

Whatever happens, it will make for an interesting sub plot to follow next year. Pretty sure Milton will sit (we don't know if he will even be able to ever play again), and this will be a two horse race between BW and Mack. Mack was pretty decent, but I'd give BW the edge given what I think UCF does, and wants to do. But who knows.

And who knows what BW thinks about potential NFL chances. He may just want to go somewhere with a chance to ball out for one last year. And why not in sunny Florida with a team that has a chance to go 12-0...

Go BW. Beat the bird shit out of Stanford!

 

[Irishize]

hmmm...interesting.

UCF said they aren't ruling out Milton playing in '19 if he recovers (personally I think it's doubtful, but how incredible would that recovery be). If Milton goes I think it's a non-starter; BW is riding the pine unless he gets hurt again.

Even if Milton sits out all of '19, Darriel Mack Jr. still filled in pretty admirably I thought. I'm surprised he would transfer to a school that will have that level of competition. I think BW could beat out Mack Jr more than likely, but that's not even a given.

Hopefully, BW knows something that we don’t. I don’t think Milton gets back to full strength to play next year...if ever. Mack, on the other, hand seems to possess a similar skillset to the point that I don’t see either having much of an edge tools-wise (Admittedly, I’ve only watched Mack in the AAC Champ Game & the bowl game) but Mack presumably already has the loyalty/trust of his teammates.

I’ll root for BW but I don’t feel confident he even sees the field...barring injury to Mack.

 

[OrlaNDomer]

Milton will miss all of 2019, I don't believe any of the nonsense about him returning midseason.

Mack has potential, IMO he is a less athletic and less experienced version of Wimbush.

Wimbush will win the job and I think he will get them to 13-0 with UCFs weak schedule. Maybe they have a hiccup or two and go 12-1 or 11-2.

Either way I'm excited to see what he can do for UCF as they are my 2nd team.

 

[Some Irish Bloke]

Milton will miss all of 2019, I don't believe any of the nonsense about him returning midseason.

Mack has potential, IMO he is a less athletic and less experienced version of Wimbush.

Wimbush will win the job and I think he will get them to 13-0 with UCFs weak schedule. Maybe they have a hiccup or two and go 12-1 or 11-2.

Either way I'm excited to see what he can do for UCF as they are my 2nd team.

I think Stanford COULD take care of UCF and perhaps Pitt will have some payback in mind in the Steel City. Other than that, typical AAC schedule should see them flirt with 10 wins at minimum. They had close calls against Memphis and Temple in the regular season too.

I have not been a fan of UCF with that weak ass SOS and whining about being a part of the conversation. But if BW is at the helm, I will certainly be a fan in 2019.

 

[Some Irish Bloke]

Well there you have it. He's enrolled and arriving this week, as early as today according to Loy. Came away impressed with is visit and the rest was history.

https://247sports.com/college/notre...tre-Dame-QB-Brandon-Wimbush-at-UCF-127904222/

 

[Irish#1]

Apparently PSU was never a consideration and GT was the early leader.

 

[RDU Irish]

Milton will miss all of 2019, I don't believe any of the nonsense about him returning midseason.

Mack has potential, IMO he is a less athletic and less experienced version of Wimbush.

Wimbush will win the job and I think he will get them to 13-0 with UCFs weak schedule. Maybe they have a hiccup or two and go 12-1 or 11-2.

Either way I'm excited to see what he can do for UCF as they are my 2nd team.

I am more skeptical of being able to insert yourself in to the team dynamic so easily. You think there is not an "us against the world" mentality there that will rebuke an outsider coming from an elite school having been widely recruited in HS? One loss and it will be 100% on him if he is starting.

As I said - I don't see the upside for BW. Wish him well but I am less optimistic.

 

[OrlaNDomer]

I am more skeptical of being able to insert yourself in to the team dynamic so easily. You think there is not an "us against the world" mentality there that will rebuke an outsider coming from an elite school having been widely recruited in HS? One loss and it will be 100% on him if he is starting.

As I said - I don't see the upside for BW. Wish him well but I am less optimistic.

UCF has transfers from P5 schools every year (including 2 on the roster from ND) I don't think it'll be a problem unless BW ends up costing them a game with a bad turnover.

Playing FAMU and FAU to open 2019 should allow him to ease into the offense I would think. Stanford and Pitt will both be tests for him and UCF next season but if they go 2-0 in those games 13-0 is attainable, as they should be favored in every other game.

 

[Irish YJ]

UCF has transfers from P5 schools every year (including 2 on the roster from ND) I don't think it'll be a problem unless BW ends up costing them a game with a bad turnover.

Playing FAMU and FAU to open 2019 should allow him to ease into the offense I would think. Stanford and Pitt will both be tests for him and UCF next season but if they go 2-0 in those games 13-0 is attainable, as they should be favored in every other game.

Transfers to UCF is a way of life there, so that element alone would not worry me. QB is however one of the leadership areas where it might be hard to slip into depending on the situation he's walking in to. We all know the situation where their leader went down, and Mack stepped in. Is Mack a good leader and was he put on a pedestal? IDK. While I think there will certainly be some guys that BW has to win over, but I think he can win 99% of the guys over with attitude and performance. If Mack makes the competition interesting, and it's a very close race, things might not be all roses in the locker room.

IMO BW will be able to lock it down. Mack looked pretty darn good, but I think BW could look like a video game vs some of their opponents. It really comes down to how much UCF wants to prioritize the short to intermediate pass. ND went with the trade off (electric running over short passing game) for 1.25 years. I think UCF will as well.

 

[CanadalovesND]

Brandon’s thread has been quiet to say the least since his transfer. UCFs spring game is this Saturday, and coach Heupel has been adamant about an open competition since the start of spring ball.

I haven’t seen any articles reviewing Brandon’s performance during their spring practices, but the game itself is always a good way for a QB to display his abilities.

Not sure if the game will be televised, call this shotty research on my end, but you can probably find a link streaming it somewhere.

https://www.floridatoday.com/story/...ame-showcases-open-qb-competition/3433782002/

 

[Irish#1]

Whomever starts is probably the current #1.

 

[IrishLion]

UCF's offense should be great for Brandon, and is the offense that BK and Long should have employed more often while he was running the ND offense. We saw it during the MSU and USC games in '17, and it was brilliant, but they kept trying to force the base offense.

UCF has a lot of designed QB run, including great designs for QB power, and simple vertical throws to capitalize on the threat of the QB run and speed at WR.

I hope he wins the job and has a great year.

 

[Some Irish Bloke]

I'll be at ND's spring game so won't be able to stream. If anyone happens to watch, any update on his performance would be greatly appreciated!

 

[ab2cmiller]

6-of-15 passing for 92 yards and a touchdown

https://www.orlandosentinel.com/sports/ucf-knights/os-sp-ucf-spring-game-0414-story.html

 

[Some Irish Bloke]

6-of-15 passing for 92 yards and a touchdown

https://www.orlandosentinel.com/sports/ucf-knights/os-sp-ucf-spring-game-0414-story.html

Yikes. I'm really pulling for him, but if he doesn't improve, rather drastically, wouldn't it make sense to roll with Mack Jr. as a RS Soph who already has experience in the offense?

Still don't fully understand his decision to transfer there with a tough competition, which seems to be coming to fruition. Would be nice to see him named the starter at some point.