Team captain with limited roll?

[Mattymc727]

Ever heard of a team captain starting his senior year on the bench before?

In a controversial decision, coach Mac announced this morning that sophomore Trevor Knight edged out senior captain Adam Riese for the starting QB spot in the opener against San Diego State. Ive never heard of a team captain that wasnt a starter (not due to injury or suspension).

Any other situations like that?

[UNIFanSince1983]

I guess this happens when you vote on captains prior to setting up the final 2 deeps.

[Laker]

I guess this happens when you vote on captains prior to setting up the final 2 deeps.

Exactly. At the end of my junior year the coach who had been fired named the two captains for football. One was deserved- the other a total joke. He told me that he wouldn't have gone out our senior year if he wasn't captain. Our new coach- who I still admire today- once asked what the hell we were thinking when we voted him in. To his relief we told him who made the decision.

So no, he didn't start- didn't produce when he did play- and had no respect from his teammates. When I was coaching we always VOTED on captains right before games started. Let players earn that honor.

[Thumper 76]

Ever heard of a team captain starting his senior year on the bench before?

In a controversial decision, coach Mac announced this morning that sophomore Trevor Knight edged out senior captain Adam Riese for the starting QB spot in the opener against San Diego State. Ive never heard of a team captain that wasnt a starter (not due to injury or suspension).

Any other situations like that?

Yeah, at South Dakota State this year our senior QB Zach Lujan was voted captain but was beat out for the starting spot by Taryn Christion.

[PaladinFan]

Furman is potentially in similar situation.

Reese Hannon was selected captain for the fourth time. Coach Fowler has not identified the week 1 starter against Michigan State, as the backup, PJ Blazejowski, is competent in his own right and a good deal more mobile than Hannon.

Most Furman fans expect to see Hannon run out there, but it wouldn't shock me to see Blazejowski.

[Mattymc727]

I think its a case of Riese being a role model as he is a good student, smart kid, and hard worker. Yet his potential isnt very high, even when he came onto campus. Knight has much more potential as an athlete and 3 yrs of eligeability left to boot.

2 thoughts come to mind. Either Knight is just a flat out better QB and gives them a chance to win

or

This is a rebuilding year and might as well throw the young kid into the fire.

[Laker]

How would you feel if you were a captain, but wasn't voted one as a senior?

http://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/ncaaf/2016/08/29/huskers-armstrong-says-captains-title-not-needed-to-lead/89553982/

[walliver]

One of Wofford's captains last year was a 5th year senior QB who never took a snap at QB (He never completely recovered from a knee injury, and only played a few downs as a wide receiver). He was rewarded for hard work, sticking with the team and leadership.

In modern football, the captain is a figurehead. The ref may speak to the captain, but he is quickly going to look to the sidelines and then do the coaches bidding.

[UNIFanSince1983]

How would you feel if you were a captain, but wasn't voted one as a senior?

http://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/ncaaf/2016/08/29/huskers-armstrong-says-captains-title-not-needed-to-lead/89553982/

Yeah this was fairly big news. It is the opposite really of what the OP was talking about though. I was going to bring that one up actually. Same as Connor Cook last year.

[FUBeAR]

Furman is potentially in similar situation.

Reese Hannon was selected captain for the fourth time. Coach Fowler has not identified the week 1 starter against Michigan State, as the backup, PJ Blazejowski, is competent in his own right and a good deal more mobile than Hannon.

Most Furman fans expect to see Hannon run out there, but it wouldn't shock me to see Blazejowski.

Loved the way Coach Sheridan did the 'Captain thing' at FU. The Coaches voted for 1 player on Offense and 1 player on Defense as Permanent Captains in the preseason. These were the guys who handled the in-game Captain's duties (dealing with the Officials, etc.). Then the Coaching Staff named 2 Game Captains for each game. This allowed them to pick guys that were maybe playing on the road in or near their Hometown (awful proud in 1982 to walk out as a Game Captain vs. NCSU in the stadium where I grew up selling "ICE COLD COKES!" as a kid) or who had some other reason (rival player, relationship with opposing Coach, GREAT game the week before...whatever). Then, when the season ended, the Team voted on 2 additional players who were (and always will be) named as Permanent Captains for that season. So smart - had the right guys doing anything that could affect the outcome of games, honored different players all season long...and allowed 2 additional players to be honored for their Leadership during that season.

As with most everything Coach Sheridan did, this is (IMO) the truth, the light, and the way for handling the 'pesky' Captain issue.

[NY Crusader 2010]

In 2011, Holy Cross voted backup QB Mark Tolzien co-captain along with fellow senior LB Ricky Otis and fifth-year senior LT Mike McCabe. Fifth-year senior starting QB Ryan Taggart, who also had been the starter in 2010, was not among those voted captain that year, interestingly enough. Taggart did have a solid career, leading the team to back-to-back winning seasons following the departure of Dominic Randolph as well as much of the O-Line that had protected him.

[ST_Lawson]

WIU's Wil Lunt (older brother of current U of IL Senior QB Wes Lunt) was a Senior in 2012. He was voted captain, but did not initially get the start at the beginning of the season. The QB that did earn the starting job was younger, and did well in camp, but once the season got rolling, didn't do all that well. Lunt did end up starting 5 games by the time the season was over and played in 7.