Wisconsin Badgers quarterback Russell Wilson has piqued the interests of a few people, including Brock and Salk, as being a “potential” quarterback for the Seahawks. He certainly has potential, having set an NCAA Division 1 record for passing efficiency this past season. He did show “heart” in the losses against conference foes Michigan State and Ohio State, having engineered two fourth quarter comebacks from double-digit deficits before the Badger defense stood around to amaze at “Hail Mary” passes in the final seconds. Against Oregon in the Rose Bowl, Wilson surprised some observers by directing an offense that played toe-to-toe with the Ducks; only the wastage of two time outs in the third quarter and a fumbled pass inside the Ducks thirty-yard line late in the game prevented a different outcome.
But who is this guy? Like Robert Griffin III, he seemed to emerge in the national conscience out of nowhere. When he signed on with Wisconsin, people seemed to be excited about the development, without exactly knowing why. The problem was that Wilson wasn’t some five-star recruit out of high school, but a not highly regarded NFL prospect out of North Carolina State, despite the team finishing 25th in the final AP poll in 2010, with wins over at the time 16th-ranked Florida State and 22nd-ranked West Virginia in the Champs Sports Bowl. In his (unofficial) senior season, Wilson was among the nation’s leaders in pass attempts (527), but his completion percentage of 58 percent and 6.6 yards-per-pass against questionable competition in the ACC led many to doubt his potential, particularly in consideration of his short stature. Wilson, who also played baseball at NC State, signed a minor league contract with the Colorado Rockies, and appeared set for a baseball career. But after compiling disappointing numbers, he decided to use his remaining year of eligibility to return to college football. He was given his release by NC State, partly because the football coach thought it was unfair to disappoint the aspirations of Wilson’s replacement. There have been complaints that players like Wilson were able to take advantage of a loophole in NCAA regulations, which allows a player who has graduated from college but still has a year of eligibility to transfer to another school without sitting out a year. In any case, he put out his resume, and the Badgers came calling. Why is not readily obvious, but the Badgers may have been fascinated by having an athletic pure passer on the team, rather than a game manager.
Wilson performed to inflated expectation, flourishing with a Wisconsin team loaded with playmakers like Montee Ball and Nick Toon, and a perennially rock-solid offensive line. Besides setting a new quarterback efficiency mark, Wilson broke many Wisconsin single-season records, including yards passing (3,175), TD passes (33), completions (225) and total offense (3,513). His 72.8 completion percentage is not a team record, however; Scott Tolzien completed 72.9 percent of his passes a year earlier. Still, what the future holds for Wilson is uncertain; the only thing certain is that his profile was enhanced by playing for a Big Ten power. Wilson’s stock has improved enough to convince him to tell the Rockies that he will not be reporting to the minors, although Colorado still holds the baseball rights to him for several more years, and management has said he is welcome to return to that fold if he decides that he has no future in the NFL. The Badgers have not exactly been a quarterback mill; Randy Wright is the only Badger quarterback to start an entire season in recent memory, for the 1986 Green Bay Packers. The much lampooned Brooks Bollinger started just nine games for the New York Jets, but there were worse quarterbacks in this league. Wilson certainly has the requisite skills necessary to perform in the NFL; the question is whether his 5-11 frame will limit his "potential." To be certain, if Wilson does prove to be an adequate NFL starter, he will be the first Badger quarterback to do so.
Wilson, by the way, was not Wisconsin’s first black starting quarterback. In fact, Sidney Williams became the first such quarterback in Big Ten history when he started for the Badgers in 1957 and 1958, leading the team to a 7-1-1 record his senior year.
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