I got involved in a Twitter conversation earlier today that essentially branched off into a lengthy discussion with many people weighing in, and so I thought I would transplant it here to see what you all had to say on the matter.
For purposes of clarity, this all started by me noting the rare success Montez had against Nebraska for a CU quarterback: his wins against NU in 2018 and 2019 marked the first time since Darian Hagan in 1989 and 1990 that a Buffs QB had taken down the Huskers in back-to-back years.
Montez's win in Lincoln in 2018 was the first time CU had won there since 2004.
In total, Montez posted a 67% (61-of-91) completion rate with 726 yards (363 YPG average), 5 touchdowns and 1 interception in his two games vs. Nebraska. Pretty solid, all-around.
Comeback wins for CU in both cases and both highly entertaining games, with the 2019 OT win in Boulder being one of the top wins at Folsom Field this century, I'd argue.
So, there's that. In my eyes, you have to factor in how Montez owned Nebraska into his legacy. He's also Colorado's all-time leading passer (9,649), slightly edging Sefo Liufau by the time he graduated, while his 63 passing TDs ranks first, too, more than Liufau and Cody Hawkins, both of whom had 60.
But with all that being said, we have the inescapable reality that during his time under center from 2017-2019, Colorado went 5-7 every year and never reached a bowl.
Brian Howell entered the conversation on Twitter earlier and made a good point: while Montez certainly did not show consistent development from 2017 to 2018 to 2019, it's not exactly his fault that the Buffs' defense got thrown around in more than one instance during those seasons.
Khalil Tate embarrassed Colorado's defense at Folsom Field in 2017, despite Montez leading the offense to 42 points. Furthermore, it wasn't Montez who allowed ASU to score 24 points in the fourth quarter, also in 2017, en route to a 41-30 win.
I wouldn't place the Oregon State debacle of 2018 on Montez's shoulders, and in 2019, CU's offense managed 30 and 31 points in eventual losses to Arizona (Tate strikes again) and USC.
Point being, in every game cited above, ones that if CU were to have pulled off, the Buffs go to a bowl game, the offense put a good amount of points on the board.
That's not to say that those losses didn't feature missed opportunities by Montez or that he didn't make mistakes in them. But I think there's plenty of evidence out there to suggest he was far from the primary reason for Colorado's mediocrity during those years.
That can be true while also acknowledging that he had his limitations as a QB and perhaps did not live up to expectations as far as his overall development is concerned.
He gave Colorado three years of pretty consistent quarterback play; after watching Brendon Lewis last year, all of us should be a bit more appreciative of what that means to a football team. Were Montez under center last year, I have no hesitations is turning the Texas A&M and UCLA losses into wins.
I think Montez has been unfairly maligned as a bad quarterback whose inconsistent play sunk CU. Montez is not without transgressions, but I really believe it to be intellectually disingenuous to pin the majority of Colorado's problems from 2017-19 on him.
Curious as to if anyone agrees with me or wishes to offer a rebuttal to what I've asserted above. Sound off!
For purposes of clarity, this all started by me noting the rare success Montez had against Nebraska for a CU quarterback: his wins against NU in 2018 and 2019 marked the first time since Darian Hagan in 1989 and 1990 that a Buffs QB had taken down the Huskers in back-to-back years.
Montez's win in Lincoln in 2018 was the first time CU had won there since 2004.
In total, Montez posted a 67% (61-of-91) completion rate with 726 yards (363 YPG average), 5 touchdowns and 1 interception in his two games vs. Nebraska. Pretty solid, all-around.
Comeback wins for CU in both cases and both highly entertaining games, with the 2019 OT win in Boulder being one of the top wins at Folsom Field this century, I'd argue.
So, there's that. In my eyes, you have to factor in how Montez owned Nebraska into his legacy. He's also Colorado's all-time leading passer (9,649), slightly edging Sefo Liufau by the time he graduated, while his 63 passing TDs ranks first, too, more than Liufau and Cody Hawkins, both of whom had 60.
But with all that being said, we have the inescapable reality that during his time under center from 2017-2019, Colorado went 5-7 every year and never reached a bowl.
Brian Howell entered the conversation on Twitter earlier and made a good point: while Montez certainly did not show consistent development from 2017 to 2018 to 2019, it's not exactly his fault that the Buffs' defense got thrown around in more than one instance during those seasons.
Khalil Tate embarrassed Colorado's defense at Folsom Field in 2017, despite Montez leading the offense to 42 points. Furthermore, it wasn't Montez who allowed ASU to score 24 points in the fourth quarter, also in 2017, en route to a 41-30 win.
I wouldn't place the Oregon State debacle of 2018 on Montez's shoulders, and in 2019, CU's offense managed 30 and 31 points in eventual losses to Arizona (Tate strikes again) and USC.
Point being, in every game cited above, ones that if CU were to have pulled off, the Buffs go to a bowl game, the offense put a good amount of points on the board.
That's not to say that those losses didn't feature missed opportunities by Montez or that he didn't make mistakes in them. But I think there's plenty of evidence out there to suggest he was far from the primary reason for Colorado's mediocrity during those years.
That can be true while also acknowledging that he had his limitations as a QB and perhaps did not live up to expectations as far as his overall development is concerned.
He gave Colorado three years of pretty consistent quarterback play; after watching Brendon Lewis last year, all of us should be a bit more appreciative of what that means to a football team. Were Montez under center last year, I have no hesitations is turning the Texas A&M and UCLA losses into wins.
I think Montez has been unfairly maligned as a bad quarterback whose inconsistent play sunk CU. Montez is not without transgressions, but I really believe it to be intellectually disingenuous to pin the majority of Colorado's problems from 2017-19 on him.
Curious as to if anyone agrees with me or wishes to offer a rebuttal to what I've asserted above. Sound off!
