Maynard puts hold on QB job
Lefty shows ability in UB’s spring game
Published: April 19, 2009, 12:30 am
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His arm strength and foot speed attract the eye whenever Zach Maynard is on the football field. The University at Buffalo sophomore from Greensboro, N. C., throws darts while keeping opponents honest and creating improvisational opportunities with his wheels.
How well he reads defenses, how sound he is in his decision-making, will be determined when Maynard lines up under center at the beginning of the Bulls’ 2009 season. It’s official. He’s the guy.
Coach Turner Gill confirmed the obvious at the conclusion of UB’s annual Blue-White Spring Game at UB Stadium on Saturday afternoon. Maynard is firmly entrenched atop the depth chart at the quarterback position. He’s the player who will lead the Bulls into the post-Drew Willy era, guide a team with designs on repeating as Mid- American Conference champions and securing a second-straight bowl bid.
“He’s the starting quarterback today, no question about that,” Gill said. “Unless he somewhat falls off the deal or something of that nature, I can sit here and say that going into August he’s our starting quarterback. I anticipate him being our starting quarterback going into our first ballgame unless something drastic happens. He’s our No. 1 guy.”
Maynard became the heir apparent to Willy when UB burned his redshirt midway through last season when Willy was temporarily knocked out of the Central Michigan game. The Bulls worked him into the offense thereafter, spelling Willy for a play here and there, using Maynard’s contrasting qualities to give defenses a new look.
Maynard solidified his standing atop the depth chart during the spring and the lefty completed 15 of 35 passes for 129 yards with an interception in the spring game played before an estimated 2,000. He also ran seven times for 19 yards, numbers tempered by two sacks subtracted from his total.
“Just a little jumpy at times,” Maynard said. “You get out there, you’re so hyped and ready to play. You just got to stay calm.”
Maynard’s long-ball accuracy was off in the blustery conditions. But he did hook up with wide receiver Naaman Roosevelt on a short fourth-down pass over the middle good for a first down at the 4. On the next play, Maynard showed another dimension, faking a handoff to Brandon Thermilus and trotting untouched into the end zone.
The only other TD of the game came on a 14-yard run by Thermilus, UB’s main ball carrier with James Starks sitting out the spring session after undergoing minor surgery.
“I think today, from an offensive standpoint, our quarterback Zach wasn’t quite as sharp on some of his throws,” Gill said. “But I did see some good things. We saw him able to move out of the pocket and make some things [happen] with his feet.”
Roosevelt could be the primary beneficiary of Maynard’s mobility, his ability to extend plays with his feet and buy his receivers time to shake coverage. Roosevelt was Willy’s primary target last season with 104 catches for 1,402 yards, and Saturday he led all receivers with five catches for 49 yards.
“It just opens up so much stuff, so many things down the field, especially with him scrambling and still looking downfield to throw the ball,” Roosevelt said. “It just makes the wide receivers better and everybody better knowing that we still got to give effort on every play knowing that he could just run at any time and we just got to get our blocks and be assignment-sharp.”
Roosevelt is just one of the skill position weapons UB returns from its title team. Wideout Brett Hamlin caught 38 passes, tight end Jesse Rack
21. Starks ran for 1,333 yards and caught 52 passes. Thermilus added 454 yards on the ground. The Bulls couldn’t hope for a better time to transition to a new quarterback.
“There’s not much of a concern,” Gill said. “I believe in what he’s able to do. And he’s not going to have to do it by himself. We have a good core of people around him. . . . It’s not like we’re totally inexperienced at receivers, running back and O-line. So we’ll get it all meshed together.”
bdicesare@buffnews.com
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