KU quarterbacks coach Powlus defines position

Kansas quarterbacks coach Ron Powlus harasses quarterback Michael Cummings during a passing drill at the Fan Appreciation Day open practice Saturday, Aug. 11, 2012, at Memorial Stadium.

Finding the right quarterbacks to recruit involves more than picking up the telephone and requesting one from central casting. So many factors, mental and physical, enter the equation when coaches try to determine which high school quarterbacks have what it takes to perform in a college game played at a faster speed with bigger players executing more sophisticated schemes.

Kansas University quarterbacks coach Ron Powlus, the top-rated high school quarterback in 1992 out of Berwick, Pa., and a four-year starter at Notre Dame, agreed to talk about what he examines, from head to toe, in a quarterback prospect.

“First of all there’s no perfect body and build because you’ve got guys playing now who are as close as you can get to being as good as there is — Peyton Manning, Tom Brady, Drew Brees and Aaron Rogers, the way he’s playing now — and they’re all different,” Powlus said. “I don’t think there’s an exact perfect guy. You’ve got tall guys. You’ve got small guys. You’ve got guys who can run, guys who can’t run.”

With that qualifier out of the way, Powlus went to work answering the question.

“So from head to toe, first of all in the head you’ve got to have a guy who’s a hard worker, who’s mentally a person who’s willing to put in the hard work and time to have the success they want to have,” Powlus said. “They have to be a good decision-maker, on and off the field. When you’re talking about quarterbacks, especially on the field, you have to be able to make a decision, based on the information you have, in a split second, and it’s got to be a good decision because you’re responsible for the ball.”

Staying with the head, Powlus continued: “You have to have leadership qualities. You have to have courage, courage and conviction. You have to be able to hear yourself talk and it sounds strange, but some guys don’t like their voice as the only voice in the room. They like to be mumblers in the back and whispering between each other. It’s hard to stand up and ask your peers to follow you. So those guys, the Bradys and the Breeses, those guys, you know that they’re willing to do that. Those are the factors to me that really separate a good quarterback from a great quarterback.”

Powlus next addressed the arm.

“The most important thing about throwing a football is accuracy. You’ve got to be accurate,” he said. “If you can’t get it from Point A to Point B, then you can’t play. People will say, ‘Well, he releases it sidearm.’ Does it get from Point A to Point B? Does he release it over the top? So there are certain things we kind of look for that I think can put you in position to be more physically accurate, but that’s not, I mean, Philip Rivers has got an odd throwing motion. And everybody will say Bernie Kosar was sidearm. Yeah, that’s one, but it doesn’t mean you have to look exactly a certain way throwing a football. It doesn’t mean we put a silhouette of Drew Brees or Tom Brady throwing a football and we lay you over the top of it to see if you look the same to know if you’re any good.”

Powlus’ boss, Charlie Weis, prefers a pro-style offense, but that doesn’t mean mobility is not important.

“You’ve got to be able to move your feet in the pocket to get out of trouble,” Powlus said. “We’ll ask the quarterbacks to run a little, but we’re not looking for a running back playing quarterback. We’re looking for a quarterback playing quarterback.

“So I look for guys with good feet who have good body control, have quick feet. Being able to move around in the pocket quickly and avoid pressure is a lot more important than your 40 time.”

The next factor Powlus discussed, the quickness of a quarterback’s release throwing the ball, blends head, arm and feet.

“You’re trying to figure out how long from the time they say, ‘it’s open’ and their mind says ‘throw it,’ until they can get it out of their hand,” he said. “So the action of the throw, yes, that’s a factor because windows close. You see an opening and if it’s taking you forever to get the ball out, why then, you’re going to miss your window.

“When he decides it’s open, does he get it out quick or is it a long process to get his feet turned and get his arm up? When we see it and anticipate it, we’ve got to get it out quickly.

After breaking it all down from head to toe, Powlus concluded: “Those are the factors we look for physically, but the mind is really more important than anything.”

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springtxhawk 9 months, 1 week ago

Nice story. I don't know anything about Powlus but have been curios if he was going to be an impact guy in our program. That last sentence really sums it all up and is right on.

Obviously, you have to be a gifted athlete to be in the conversation, but strong arms aren't that rare a commodity.

It's about dealing with a tremendous amount of prep ( play book, literally knowing all 11 role in each play, pre-snap read of defense and then 1.7 seconds to react, decide, distribute accurately all the while about 4 guys or more are trying to tear your head off)

I hope we can protect Crist, first qb we've had since Reesing.

I wish the best to Webb and will never get personal about a kid on this board, but in my opinion he didn't have the ability to do it on the D-1 level. I think CU will struggle, big time.

I never saw the kid work thru his progressions well at all. He was a hot read dump off machine.

Table_Rock_Jayhawk 9 months, 1 week ago

Wow - this guy knows what he's talking about. I agree that QB is more mental than anything.

kureader 9 months, 1 week ago

another interesting article, Keegan ... you're on a roll.

jhawkclassof02 9 months, 1 week ago

Yup, TK is two for two the past couple of days. Of course, 80% or more of this article is just quoting Powlus. Still, way to go Tom, from one of your biggest critics. Keep up the good work.

martyks 9 months, 1 week ago

Ah, I remember Powlus. He was so highly regarded by Holtz that he was not considered for redshirting because Lou thought the kid would be playing pro ball in less time than that. He did pretty well, actually, as a player. He rarely came through in the clutch, but it might not have been his fault. Lou wanted a Tony Rice, scrambling, option QB and Powlus was his exception. He was purely a pocket QB. Still, because of that, you would have thought he would at least have had a decent stint in the NFL. No. Didn't happen.

You know how most tv coverage goes. When a coach takes a player out of the game, they always have to show him on the sidelines after his replacement does well... trying to get an indication that the guy on the sidelines is not a team player... a frown... a head shake, something. They never get what they are looking for because 99% of players are sold on it being a team effort. Well... the only time I have seen a player walk away in disgust was when Powlus was taken out for Jarrius Jackson when they got inside the 5 yard line. When Jackson ran for a touchdown, or passed for one, whenever ND scored, they would show Powlus and he would stomp away disgusted, pouted like a little kid. Yeah, years ago, decades... but that sight happened more than once and it is just something you don't see.

Ron has probably grown out of such stuff. There might have been more to it than we knew at the time. All I can say is, it wasn't pretty.

inteldesign 9 months, 1 week ago

So what. I want to know what he is doing now. Is he putting in a grade A effort? Is he going to get us our first four-year five-star QB? I like the article.

KUHawkhead 9 months, 1 week ago

Thanks for that insightful comment, Marty. It adds so much to how Powlus will be as a coach. Like the old lady next to Forrest Gump at the bus stop said. Well....you tell that story with SUCH enthusiasm and excitement! Thanks for sharing!

Hope your kitty kats can live up to their preseason hype of winning 7 games!

vd 9 months, 1 week ago

Which of these listed attributes was the coach missing?

victormitchell 9 months, 1 week ago

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20061125225318AAEdfQC

inteldesign 9 months, 1 week ago

Why the bashing? Did you ride the pine behind him or something?

victormitchell 9 months, 1 week ago

Not an impressive background. A between ok and good college career. Started coaching career in 2005 then got the QB coach at ND as a result of name only....then bounced out with Weiss...only to reappear at Akron.

We'll see.

machinegun 9 months, 1 week ago

Coach Powlus forgot to mention getting good grades in school. He should drop and give us 20 push-ups. Seriously, Coach Powlus works extremely well with Head Coach Charlie Weis! That they are in sync with each other is very important considering the pro-style offense they are going to run.

Pro-style offense...they are going to pass! Just listen to what Coach Powlus is saying and you will understand what Coach Weis expects from his QBs.

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