Whether or not Anthony Morelli is a smart quarterback is still up for debate. Similarly, his ability to handle questions from the media is still up for debate as well.
He became agitated during a conference call with reporters when it was pointed out that some critics believe the Nittany Lions beat Notre Dame, 31-10, Saturday at Beaver Stadium despite his play.
"I don't know how I didn't have a good game," Morelli said. "We won the football game. So many people are so caught up on stats. Stats are so overrated. I'm so tired of hearing about it. It's so ridiculous. It's just unbelievable. No one's ever satisfied with a victory."
Not true! 26% of the people were satisfied. But enough about stats since they are apparently overrated.
Anthony, let me tell you how you didn't have a good game. Your second pass of the game was intercepted and returned for a touchdown to put your team down early. Then with 0:50 seconds left in the first half you scrambled on first down. Instead of just running out of bounds to stop the clock you chose to dive for the first down even though you were three yards short. Instead of stopping the clock and giving your team a 2nd and five you fumbled the ball and gave Notre Dame the ball in Penn State territory.
Now, you made some nice plays. In fairness, the interception was a nice read. You had single coverage on Williams. It was just a bad throw. But the 51 yard strike to Chris Bell was a thing of beauty. And the touchdown to Jordan Norwood was a great read and reaction. But you have to realize that people don't remember these things.
Ask the average college football fan to remember the top three plays you remember about Anthony Morelli last year. 99% of the people would say the errant toss to Tom Zbikowski and the two pick sixes against Ohio State. Now name the top three memories of Michael Robinson in 2005. For me it's the throw to Derrick Williams to beat Northwestern, his total annihilation of the Minnesota safety, and the late fourth quarter drive against Michigan.
Michael Robinson was a special player that could strap a team on his back and carry them to victory. Anthony Morelli, to this point, isn't. Nobody remembers mistake free blowouts against Florida International. What matters as a quarterback is making plays when the chips are down. Until Morelli comes through in the clutch this will be his legacy as a Penn State quarterback. So he better get used to hearing more of these questions if he's going to make mistakes in big games.