Rickie Collins has learned a lot from his first three starts as a college quarterback. What was the biggest takeaway?
“It’s hard to win,” said Collins.
And while the goal for Syracuse will always be to win
games, the mindset has changed as well. Syracuse head coach Fran Brown said after the Orange’s 30-13 loss to Pittsburgh that his quarterbacks are at a developmental point right now.
Given Syracuse’s current quarterback situation, it’s easy to understand that. Prior to this season, Collins had never operated as a true backup quarterback. He was primarily a third-string quarterback, focusing mainly on scout team duties and not developing his skills.
“This is his first time getting the opportunity to go out there on the field,” said Brown.
Syracuse wasn’t expecting to use Collins in this situation when the season started. Brown stated that the youth at the quarterback position is why Syracuse went after Steve Angeli from the spring transfer window.
But with Angeli injured and out for the season with a torn Achilles, the Orange have to simultaneously develop Collins while trying to win football games. And already there are limitations.
“It’s not like we have a large menu for Ricky either,” said Brown.
Collins hasn’t been entrusted with the same type of playbook and offensive responsibility that Angeli was to start the year. Because of that, installing the offense that Angeli ran at the complexity that Jeff Nixon likes in his pro-style system would be a lot for Collins right now. So Syracuse has had to adjust.
“You’re trying to make the game as simple as possible,” said Brown.
Brown did say that there were aspects of Collins’ game he did like against Pitt. He also acknowledged there are things from the game that he’d like Collins to process and do better. But Brown understands that while winning is always the goal, sometimes growing and developing needs to take priority also.
“It’s a process that sometimes, you got to take some of the punches,” said Brown.
