The Texas born quarterback is having a big year. Greg McElroy will face Colt McCoy in the National Championship game. Andy Dalton leads TCU to a BCS Bowl. Case Keenum at Houston and Kyle Padron at SMU have shifted the balance of power in Conference USA to the west. It got me thinking about these guys when they were mere high school boys making a name for themselves under the Friday night lights...
McElroy-led Southlake Carroll to a State Championship beating Andy Dalton and Katy in the 5A DII final in 2005.
McCoy-led the Jim Ned Indians to a State Final, losing to San Augustine in 2003.
Keenum-took Abilene Wylie to a 3A State Championship in 2004
Padron-Graduated from the same Carroll program that produced McElroy, Chase Daniel and Riley Dodge.
Obviously, these guys are winners. There is something about them that inspires confidence and significantly raises the level of play of their teammates. But while it is no coincidence that these high schools won a great deal while the above mentioned qb's were in charge...it is also no coincidence that these schools were successful before and after those guys as well.
My point is great programs produce great players...Greg McElroy would have probably been a much more prolific high school qb had he played somewhere else, but his time watching Chase Daniel prepared him for his record setting senior season and gave a school like Alabama the confidence to offer him a scholarship before he had ever really proven anything on the high school level.
Schools like Carroll, Katy, and Abilene Wylie groom their players for success from a very young age...kids learn the fundamentals first, then expand their knowledge. Along they way they learn to pay the price for victory...it is something that carries over as they move to the next level.
There is no substitute for a 6-4 frame, or 4.4 speed...but when the physiques are similar and the stats are similar, I would argue a player from a winning program has a distinct advantage entering college over a player who did not enjoy high school success.
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