Note: after this column was posted Minnesota coach Tim Brewster announced in a statement that MarQueis Gray isn’t currently with the Gophers because of an “NCAA Eligibility Center issue.”
Whether he plays in 2008 Gopher games, or sits out the season as a redshirt, freshman quarterback MarQueis Gray will be talked about. The 17-year-old from Indianapolis is probably the most anticipated quarterback recruit to arrive in Dinkytown in 50 years. That was when Sandy Stephens, from Uniontown, Pennsylvania, said no to a long list of other schools, enrolled at Minnesota and eventually led the Gophers to two Rose Bowls while becoming the first black All-American quarterback at a major college.
Gray, rated by Rivals last year as the No. 3 dual threat quarterback in the country, arrives in the Big Ten Conference at the same time Terrelle Pryor begins his career at Ohio State. Pryor was Rivals choice as the No. 1 dual threat quarterback and a player considered by many as the prize of high school football recruiting earlier this year.
Is Gray better? Howard Griffith of the Big Ten Network said he prefers Gray to Pryor as a passer, according to Dave Revisne’s blog on the network’s Web site.
When Gopher coach Tim Brewster was an assistant at the University of Texas he recruited Vince Young who became one of college football’s best quarterbacks of this decade. Young threw with a sidearm motion while Gray has a traditional over the top delivery. “His (Gray’s) mechanics as a passer at this particular point are better than Vince’s were,” Brewster said.
Gray is listed on the Gopher roster at 6-4, 215. Young is about 6-5, 230. Brewster sees many similarities between Gray and Young, describing their size, strong arms, running ability, love for football and willingness to prepare.
Brewster isn’t going to predict that Gray will be better than either Pryor or Young. But he does say his future quarterback is a “remarkable athlete” and that one day he will be an “all-star caliber” player.
Young redshirted his freshman year at Texas. With sophomore quarterback Adam Weber having two years of invaluable experience and coming off a season in which the Sporting News named him a third team freshman All-American, Gray seems likely to redshirt. “He’s not opposed to redshirting and not for redshirting, he just wants to help the team in anyway he can,” Brewster said.
A serious injury to Weber making him unable to play will put Brewster on the spot. If he believes senior backups Tony Mortensen or Mike Maciejowski can lead the Gophers “to victories,” than Gray seems certain to stay on the sidelines. “That to me is the huge wild card,” Brewster said.
“In a perfect world” Gray redshirts, according to Brewster. He watches, listens and practices as though he will be the starting quarterback for the coming game. Brewster expects nothing less than a sense of urgency in Gray’s preparations, even if he doesn’t play in a game all season. Sooner or later he will play, and the comparisons will continue. So far he’s in nice company.