Although highly touted quarterback Pat Devlin is long gone from Penn State, many of you have speculated about whether he or Daryll Clark was the better quarterback. While that might be moot at this point (based on which one led an FBS team to an 11-2 record), it is still worth a peek at Devlin’s performance as a University of Delaware Blue Hen.
UDel finished the 2009 season with a 6-5 record, but they and Devlin kicked off the year with a bang-up 35-0 win over West Chester, in which Devlin completed 80 percent of his passes, while throwing for two touchdowns and no interceptions. However, at the end of the season, things did not look so good. Delaware lost three of four games, and Devlin’s QB rating dropped to double digits. In his final outing of the year, a 30-12 loss to Villanova, Pat completed 42 of 58 passes for 407 yards and a touchdown, but he was intercepted three times.
Here are statistics for Clark and Devlin, side-by-side:
| Clark | Devlin | |
| Games played | 13 | 11 |
| QB Rating | 95.7 | 99.7 |
| Completions | 232 | 220 |
| Attempts | 381 | 344 |
| Percentage Complete | 60.9 | 64.0 |
| Yards Passing | 3003 | 2664 |
| Yards per Attempt | 7.9 | 7.7 |
| Yards per Game | 231 | 242.2 |
| Touchdowns Passing | 24 | 16 |
| Interceptions | 10 | 9 |
| Rushes | 84 | 84 |
| Yards Rushing | 211 | 127 |
| Yards per Game | 16.2 | 11.5 |
| Average Yards per Carry | 2.5 | 1.5 |
| Rushing Touchdowns | 7 | 4 |
| Sacks | 15 | 26 |
So, we see similar stats, with some exceptions colored green or red. Delaware no doubt had a worse offensive line than PSU, as evidenced by Devlin’s 26 sacks as opposed to 15 for Clark. This may also mean the Devlin is not as slippery in the pocket.
There are a lot of things going on behind the stats that affect them, including Joe Paterno’s penchant for going tight-ass in big games.
What do you think? It is difficult to predict how well Devlin might have performed as a Nittany Lion, in spite of stats. Can the arguments and the hypotheses be laid to rest at this point?
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psurule4 says
Well, Devlin was right for one year anyway. He wanted a shot to play and he got it. He is a very good QB with perhaps NFL potential. He could not showcase his talents this year at PSU because D. Clark is a better college QB.
Now, this next year, should be painful for Devlin. UofD is nice, but it aint PSU in terms of exposure. So far, Devlin has done nothing at UofD to make you think he is an “exceptional” QB, merely a very good QB. Seems to me you have to be “exceptional” at UofD not merely very good to get to the pros.
By contrast, if he stayed at PSU he could have been very good (perhaps exceptional) at PSU against the likes of Ohio State, Alabama, Iowa, etc. etc. Such a performance would guarantee him his shot at the pros.
Overall, I understand his decision, but it was not without its risks. He now has to be exceptional at UofD not merely very good. This next year he pays the price for his one extra year of starting in terms of the risk he took. I certainly hope he plays exceptionally well for UofD and gets to his dream job in the NFL. I also wish he were lining up at center against Alabama. But c’est la vie.
The Nittany Turkey says
The model for success in springboarding from UDel QB to NFL QB is obviously Joe Flacco. After transferring from Pitt and sitting out a year because he couldn’t get out of his scholarship with the Panthers, his first season as a Blue Hen, 2006, was somewhat of a struggle. His final year was exceptional, leading the Blue Hens to an 8-3 season and the playoffs, thus greatly enhancing his NFL visibility. Now, he’s become the first decent starting quarterback the Ravens have ever had.
I don’t believe it is a coincidence that Devlin chose to transfer to UDel. Flacco’s success no doubt had a lot to do with the choice.
His 2009 stats are similar to Flacco’s in 2006. Now, if he can match Flacco’s senior year stats and gets the Blue Hens into the playoffs, he could get his shot. Flacco put Delaware on them map, and Devlin struck while the iron was hot.
—TNT
psurule4 says
No doubt Flacco is the model. Don’t forget Rich Gannon also a UofD product. It is a nice place to play big time DIAA (or whatever you want to call it now) football. Lots of guys come out of that pool of talent. Some hall of famers like Sweetness. The only point I want to make is that he can’t be merely very good at UofD and get the Flacco thing going. Flacco was better than merely very good at that level. I watched some of his games. He made “the NFL” passes. I hope Devlin does too. However, exposure counts — Matt Ryan from BC was drafted before Flacco. Flacco may be better than Ryan– but Ryan at the time had faced “big time” competition. If Devlin stayed and played really well and consistently for PSU in the Big Ten it would have been an easier path to the big money pro job– he would not be downgraded by the “experts” for “competition”; by contrast he will be downgraded somehwat for attending UofD (which may or may not matter if he is exceptional at UofD). That was my only point. His decision to leave us had its risks and a pretty good but not great year in 2009 did not put Devlin on the map yet. I still think he has to have an exceptional year at UofD next year to follow the Flacco road map. It’s a lot of pressure.
The Nittany Turkey says
Yes, absent the exposure of the big games with big-name opponents he would have had playing in the top division, I agree that Devlin faces an uphill fight. Whether the end result would have been better had he stayed at PSU is certainly arguable. This leads into the generations-old debate over whether the PSU system “ruins” quarterbacks, and in the process reduces their palatability to NFL teams. Delaware has produced a couple of quarterbacks who successfully competed at the NFL level, where as Penn State has produced exactly one, maybe two if you count Todd Blackledge. (I won’t go back to the Milt Plum era.) I’ve heard it argued that Kerry Collins had so much natural talent that even the Penn State system couldn’t destroy it — a cruel-ass indictment, to be sure, but with some essence of truth. So, would Devlin have been better off as a Nittany Lion? Too many variables for me to say, but I still think transferring was the best shot he had.
PSUGlenn - PSU blogger says
Somehow PSU got 2 top 10 QBs to commit this year (if you trust recruiting services at all) despite our reputation for a place to QBs to wither!! I think this will take a while to fade away, but there is enough other compelling reasons for kids to come to state college that we at least be able to get serveceable guys like Clark.
Plus defense wins championships, right?
Paul says
Don’t underestimate the CAA where UD plays – James Madison just beat Va Tech, and Villanova just got it’s perennial bid to join the Big East. Delaware has produced several starting NFL QB’s – Rich Gannon, Jeff Komlo, Scott Brunner and, of course, Joe Flacco.
Bottom-line – Devlin probably made the right decisoin – sitting on the bench is hardly exposure, more importantly, without game experience, how can you expect to be good?
The Nittany Turkey says
Yes, I think it was the best move for Devlin and it might turn out to be the best move for Penn State as well. After all, if Devlin had sat around behind Clark, he would just now be starting, assuming that he wasn’t beaten out for the position. The Nittany Lions would have had his services as starting QB for a year. With him gone, a talented freshman named Rob Bolden joined the program and found himself starting a couple of months after he set foot on campus, the first true freshman to start at quarterback for 100 years. He appears to be a keeper. If that assessment is accurate and he is lucky with injuries, Nittany Lions fans will be able to delight to watching him run the offense for four full years.
Back to Devlin, I’m anxious to see how he does this season and where he ends up in the NFL Draft next spring.
—TNT