His arm was a hell of alot stronger than Barret's.And he still went 22-28 in '16.They should have rotated him just on that fact and accuracy.He had a higher avg,QB rating and yds per in 2016.Prolly left not wanting to rock the boat.In 2017 is when he hurt his thumb
Burrow played in five games in 2016 as the back-up to Barrett. In nine career appearances, Burrow completed 29 of 39 passes (74.4 pct.) for 287 yards and two touchdowns Burrow was a two-time Academic all-Big Ten Conference honoree and an OSU Scholar-Athlete.
Burrow was selected as Ohio Mr. Football, first-team Associated Press all-state and the Division III co-offensive player of the year after throwing for nearly 4,500 yards with 63 touchdowns and only two interceptions … he threw for over 11,400 yards with 157 touchdowns in his career plus rushed for over 2,000 yards with 27 more TDs … ranked on the ESPN 300 a Top 25 quarterback prospect by Scout and Rivals
There are many good arguments for why Burrow could've started, why things got weird, etc. But this 22-28 and his HS stats are just kinda overwrought at a point.
You're right, he put up numbers against teams against which Barrett could lead OSU to leads of 56-10, 51-0, 55-3, 48-3 (the last one the QB change was made as OSU got inside the Maryland 10 before going up 55-3). In those games, Barrett's rating in those games, 219.7, 180, 167.3, 169.8. The yards per play ranking for those defenses: 103rd, 111th, 55th, 64th.
There are many nice things to say about Burrow. The 28 passes as a garbage time all-star is just not a thing to cling to.
And pointing out he threw for fewer yards than a kid who went to Old Dominican and 7,000 fewer yards than Maty Mauk is likewise a perfectly nice stat that isn't super indicative.
There's a good conversation to have. I'd honestly love to see some reporter talk to old OSU guys about those practices, what they remember, etc. But reminding me he could do well against teams JT could put up 50 on in three quarters and that he started four years against rural Ohio farm kids doesn't do a ton.