Rating the quarterbacks: Locker has one more goal

Washington quarterback Jake Locker isn't thinking about anything other than winning enough games to get the Huskies in a bowl game. (Icon SMI)

By Bob Condotta

Jake Locker has heard the hype forever. It’s time, he says, to win a few games.

The Heisman Trophy? Becoming the No. 1 pick in the NFL Draft?

Well, first things first, and the first thing is leading the University of Washington football program back from the dead.

Rarely has any quarterback whose team is 8-20 in games he has started been as highly regarded and highly promoted as Washington’s senior. Suffice to say through his years with the Huskies, the hype surrounding Locker has far surpassed his team’s on-field success.

So much for hype.

There have been a variety of reasons for UW’s struggles in that time, including several injuries to Locker. Still, the hype had gone national, and when draft gurus pegged him late last season as a plausible, if not probable, first pick in the 2010 draft, it became conventional wisdom that coach Steve Sarkisian would need to coach up a new quarterback.

So much for conventional wisdom.

Locker’s immediate decision to spurn the NFL Draft to return for one more year prompted an entire region of college football fans to gasp (the purple-clad gasp was one of glee; of other colors, not so much).

His decision to stay made him one of the most popular Huskies ever. In the past three seasons, it seems that every positive moment of Husky football has had No. 10 in the mix.

If he leads the team to even marginal success in 2010 — such as a trip to the Sun Bowl — then Locker will become larger than life. And if he/they achieve the goals that have Dawg fans hyperventilating on sports radio? Never mind all that ... he just wants to show that last year’s victory over USC, and season-ending rout of Cal, are what he and his teammates have become, rather than isolated glances of what they could become.

“We’re going to have a really good football team,” he said. “When I was at home, sitting and watching all the bowl games, I thought it would be something fun to do, something you should experience in your lifetime.’’

And that’s a goal that seems reasonable enough, considering the way the 2009 season ended, when Locker and the Huskies staged a performance UW fans imagined would be commonplace when he arrived in 2006.

He’s got the arm. He’s got the feet. He’s got the size. He’s worked on his touch. And he ended his junior season by drilling through California for 325 yards of total offense and five touchdowns in Washington’s most impressive victory in years, a 42-10 thrashing of the Bears.

Rather than leading Locker to the NFL, as seemed so obvious at the time, he said it only further convinced him to return. Why not have that much fun a bunch more times in 2010?

“We have the opportunity to have an explosive offense,’’ he said.

He also liked the idea of having another year to work with Sarkisian, who groomed Heisman Trophy winners Carson Palmer and Matt Leinart as an assistant at USC. Locker has always been physically gifted (he’s 6-3, 230, and very fast).

But he arrived at UW raw in the nuances of playing quarterback. Former coach Tyrone Willingham shifted the offense to almost completely revolve around Locker’s talents.

Sarkisian went the other way, deciding to make Locker fit his offense. There were still elements of the zone read, but for much of last season, Locker was largely a drop-back quarterback. Sarkisian, however, loosened the reins on Locker’s running in the last two games — he had 171 yards rushing combined against WSU and Cal.

UW coaches said Locker’s biggest improvement in the spring came in reading defenses, something he’d rarely been called on to do before coming to UW. Continuing to fine tune his passing form was another spring goal for Locker, especially passing on the move. His legs make him one of the most dangerous threats in football, but his big ticket will be to burn defenses with passes while he’s on the run — something he’s done less frequently than one might think.

“We continue to work on his feet and his delivery and just make sure that everything is flowing smoothly,’’ quarterbacks coach Doug Nussmeier said.

Flowing right into a bowl game, Locker hopes.

TOP QUARTERBACKS

Rank Name Class College

1. Kellen Moore Jr. Boise State

Lefty is 26-1 as a starter and had only three INTS in 431 attempts last year.

2. Ryan Mallett Jr. Arkansas

Eager to get another shot at Alabama after going 12 of 35 last season.

3. Jake Locker Sr. Washington

Playmaker has wheels ... and Steve Sarkisian is making him a passer.

4. Case Keenum Sr. Houston

Aims for third 5,000-yard season and NCAA career passing record.

5. Terrelle Pryor Jr. Ohio State

Was Rose Bowl a prelude to greatness or just one of those things?

6. Andrew Luck So. Stanford

Strong arm, mobility, intelligence ... on the brink of a big season.

7. Jerrod Johnson Sr. Texas A&M

Last two games of 2009: 852 total yards vs. Texas and Georgia.

8. Greg McElroy Sr. Alabama

No need to look at the stats. You know you want him on your team.

9. Joshua Nesbitt Sr. Georgia Tech

Third-year starter knows all the tricks in the tricky triple-option.

10. Christian Ponder Sr. Florida State

Was having huge 2009 season before being injured in ninth game.

11. Blaine Gabbert Jr. Missouri

Tough kid who played through ankle injury in ‘09; ready to blossom.

12. Andy Dalton Sr. TCU

Savvy game manager; should reach 10,000 career passing yards.

13. Colin Kaepernick Sr. Nevada

Look for another year of 2,000 yards passing, 1,000 yards rushing.

14. Tyrod Taylor Sr. Virginia Tech

ACC leader in efficiency; waits for his spots and then strikes deep.

15. Landry Jones So. Oklahoma

Pressed into action and passed for 3,198 yards with 26 touchdowns.

16. Russell Wilson Jr. NC State

2008 All-ACC QB threw for 31 touchdowns and 3,027 yards last year.

17. Robert Griffin So. Baylor

Should be back to Freshman All-America form after 2009 ACL injury.

18. Jacory Harris Jr. Miami

Huge potential but has to cut down on his 17 interceptions from last season.

19. Ricky Dobbs Sr. Navy

Navy’s best run-pass quarterback of the triple-option era.

20. Scott Tolzien Sr. Wisconsin

Surprised in ‘09: 64.3 percent accuracy, UW-record 211 completions.

21. Matt Barkley So. USC

Building off big bowl game and can explore more of playbook in ‘10.

22. Ricky Stanzi Sr. Iowa

Good leader; 18-4 as starter; isn’t afraid to take his shots down field.

23. Nick Foles Jr. Arizona

Sophomore year suggests Arizona has found a tall, franchise QB.

24. Tom Savage So. Rutgers

Freshman year suggests Rutgers has found a tall, franchise QB.

25. Zach Collaros Jr. Cincinnati

Looked like the real deal in four starts for injured Tony Pike in ‘09.

Get all the players ratings by ordering Lindy's 2010 College Football Preview by clicking here: http://www.lindyssports.com/category.php?cn=NATIONALCOLLEGE.