College baseball season may have just ended, but there is still plenty of news to get caught up on before the fall sports get into full swing. Perhaps the biggest news for the Tech baseball team is that pitcher Jonathan Hughes, a second round MLB draft pick who is committed to play for Danny Hall and the Jackets, still hasn't been signed by the Baltimore Orioles. Though it remains likely that he will sign with the MLB team in the near future -- his recommended signing bonus is just south of a million dollars -- it is still encouraging that he remains unsigned at this time. He very well could make it to the Flats after all if negotiations between he and Orioles go sour.
The fact that rising freshman defensive back Meiko Dotson is on the Flats at all can be attributed as much to fate (or misfortune, depending on who you ask) as anything else; Dotson was all set to commit to Wisconsin back in September when the Badgers informed him that his commitment would not be accepted. Dotson, a three-star recruit from Mainland High School in Daytona Beach, Florida, might actually be better off for it after all. He will enter a situation at Tech which would benefit any player; the 2015 secondary is full of seniors to teach him as a new recruit, but as a result there will also be a great opportunity for him to get playing time next season. That's a rare balance between learning and on-the-job experience, and hopefully the speedy corner can take advantage and become the next Ted Roof product in the NFL.
Former Yellow Jacket Thaddeus Young, a free agent as of yesterday, wasted no time before signing his latest contract with the Brooklyn Nets for 4 years and $50 million. Though that may seem like a severe figure for even a player as talented as Young, you have to consider how much money was spent yesterday by even the most frugal of teams. In fact, so much money was being thrown around in the first 24 hours of NBA free agency that 24 different players were signed to over $1.4 billion worth of guaranteed contracts. To put that number into perspective, $1.4 billion is higher than the GDP of 15 countries. That is insane, and it only compasses a fraction of the available free agents.
It just wouldn't be a full Thursday without something to be angry about, so I'll leave you with this article claiming that Clemson quarterback Deshaun Watson is the best returning quarterback in the entire nation. Please, allow me to tell you why that is garbage.
1. HE BARELY PLAYED: Deshaun Watson played in 8 games as a freshman. He had double digit passing attempts in exactly 4 of those games. Justin Thomas, in a run-based offense, had more completions and passing attempts than Watson.
2. HE DID VERY LITTLE AGAINST QUALITY COMPETITION: Sure, Watson threw for 6 touchdowns against UNC. So did I. So did you. Everyone threw for 6 touchdowns against UNC because UNC is UNC. He also threw three of his touchdowns in garbage time against South Carolina State. That is 9 of his 14 touchdowns 2 games.
3. HIS NUMBERS ARE NOT THAT IMPRESSIVE: I'm going to go ahead and eliminate the outliers here (the UNC game and every game in which Watson attempted fewer than 10 passes). He averaged 267 yards and 1.3 touchdowns in the few games he actually played. The completion percentage is impressive, but really? Is that really enough to call him the best in the nation?
I know I'll be swimming in hate pretty soon, but I cannot fathom why anyone would call him the best returning quarterback in the nation. I can deal with top 10, but there are at least 4-5 better players on that list. At least. It is also garbage that Justin Thomas is not in the top 10 of that list. That is all.
Who is the best returning quarterback in the nation? What kind of drug would make you think it's Deshaun Watson?