discuss the traits of an elite quarterback, the Everyday Drills (EDD) performed at OBU (or at least some of them), and quarterback play as a whole. About the Speaker The speaker is from Northwest Oklahoma, born and raised. He attended Northwestern Oklahoma State, a Division II school, for one season before transferring to OSU. Initially, he just wanted to be a student at OSU but realized he wanted to coach. After a year of trying to get on staff by himself, he reached out to a friend and was on staff within two days. He started in recruiting and then spent three years on the offensive side as a student assistant. He jokes that he learned to make "the best coffee". In the spring of 2021, the opportunity to go to OBU opened. In his first year there, the team was successful, going 8-4. His quarterback, Preston Hair, threw for over 40 touchdowns and broke records, defining what it meant to be an elite quarterback, competitor, and man. The speaker felt that "this whole college quarterback thing... [was] pretty easy," but the next year was challenging. In year two, the team played four quarterbacks due to injury, including three redshirt freshmen and a redshirt sophomore. They ended up playing a fifth quarterback, the starting tight end who played quarterback in high school, also due to injury, and went 1-10. The speaker calls this "by far the best year" he's had in three years of coaching and the most he has ever learned. This experience forced him to "really dive into what [he knows] about X's [and] O's," his mission statement, and program development. The head coach, Coach Jensen, allowed the staff to be a part of raising the program up after the 1-10 season. They made the offseason much harder and went through every detail. The team went 6-5 the past season. The passing game ranked third in the conference, despite playing four quarterbacks due to injuries. The speaker feels this year's team is the deepest in every single position. He mentions he has been married for one year as of a week ago. His wife is a physical therapist who graduated from Baylor and "makes the money right now," which he says is "okay". They have a dog named Baylor that he treats "like my son". Traits of an Elite Quarterback After the 1-10 season, the speaker re-evaluated and narrowed the traits of an elite quarterback he looks for in recruiting and coaching down to three:

1. Elite Competitor
2. Elite Leadership
3. Elite Toughness

These are the three traits he asks about when talking to a coach about recruiting a player. 1. Elite Competitor The speaker categorizes competitors into three tiers:

• Quote-unquote competitor: "Wonderful on game day" but "mosing through practice, mosing through weights, mosing through conditioning".
• Good competitor: Does what is necessary, works hard in practice, conditioning, film, and the weight room, but "doesn't have the preparation, the will to prepare to win".
• Elite competitor: Relentless in preparation to win. He cites Preston Hair as an example. Preston treated every practice rep like a game rep, wanting to win every two-minute drill as if it were for the conference title. He was "dialed in" on conditioning, nutrition, and sleep, getting seven to nine hours. He watched film and did extra work with receivers, truly making his teammates better.

Building an Elite Competitor The speaker uses three methods to build elite competitors:

1. Exemplify it: The coach must exemplify the trait every day. If he asks players to prepare in an "elite manner," he must do the same. This includes being prepared when watching film on Monday morning and presenting a great game plan.
2. Emphasize it: Explain why competitiveness is important, citing that football is a results-driven game. Competitiveness is also necessary in life. He gives the example of his current starter, Aiden, who initially "crumbled under competition," focusing on the player next to him instead of himself. Aiden now focuses on himself but also teaches the young guys trying to take his job, understanding that if they are better, he will be pushed to be better, and the team will improve as a whole.
3. Teach it: Teach how to be competitive. Most drills incorporate a competitive aspect, such as a knockout game while throwing into a net, or competition in conditioning and lifting. The speaker is also the strength coach at OBU, so he sees their mannerisms and actions in the weight room. He teaches them how to watch film using a template in the quarterback manual. The template includes:
   • Sunday: Watch an entire game.
   • Monday: Watch all first-down clips.
   • Tuesday: Watch all third-down clips.
   • Wednesday: Watch all red-zone clips.
   • Thursday: Put the call sheet up against the defense they will face.
   • Friday: Go through the call sheet with the coach or offensive coordinator (Coach Eaton).
   • Finally, rewarding the competitive characteristics he wants to see.

2. Elite Leadership The speaker discusses leadership at OBU, where he can live out his faith and talk about Jesus.

• Servant Leadership: This is always the first and foremost topic. Citing Mark 10:44, Jesus "came to not be served, but to serve and give his life as a ransom for many". Quarterbacks are expected to serve their teammates (linemen, wide receivers, etc.).
• Elite Encourager: Leadership is simply "encouraging the guys around you to be their absolute best". He uses a 4:1 ratio: encourage them four times and hold them accountable to the standard once.
• Willingness to Follow: Preston Hair had this "trust and belief" in his teammates. The highest honor for a quarterback is being elected a captain by his teammates, not the coaches.
• Holding Others to the Standard: Quarterbacks must hold others to the team standards, such as getting parallel on squats or getting their chin above the bar on pull-ups. He tells the quarterbacks and other guys in the weight room to "just hold the standard, but do it in your own way".

Building Leadership

• Servant Leadership: In every fall camp, he challenges his quarterbacks to serve one coach or teammate (but not him) in a different manner. He asks them who they served and how.
• Building Trust: This is essential. He tells his quarterbacks to connect with a new teammate during fall camp. In meetings, he has them report back details about the person (where they are from, family situation, major, why they came to OBU). This builds connections within the team and helps the coach learn about the other players.
• Holding the Standard: Set a standard (in the weight room, conditioning, no walking on the practice field) and have them hold it.

3. Elite Toughness The speaker defines this as both mental and physical toughness.

• Mental Toughness:
  • Are they willing to uphold the standards they set for themselves, such as being conference player of the year? He uses this as leverage, telling his players that if they miss class or skip weight room reps, they are not setting themselves up for their future.
  • Persevering through hard times.
  • Performing in high-pressure situations, such as a two-minute drill. He watches film to see how recruits react in these situations.
• Physical Toughness:
  • Are they willing to play through injury?
  • Will they stand in the pocket, take a shot, and deliver a strike, or will they "evade or coward down"?
  • Do they push past their limits?

He shares a story about Aiden, who played through a punctured lung (pneumothorax) against Henderson State in game five. Aiden, having taken a shot in the first quarter, walked over to the sideline and claimed he "got the wind knocked out of me". After taking another hit in the third quarter, the trainer checked him out, but Aiden insisted he was fine. Finally, in the fourth quarter, he took a shot that sent him to the hospital, revealing the punctured lung. The speaker clarifies he is not saying to push players to do this, but it is an example of "elite toughness" and how to get teammates to believe in you. Physical Traits of an Elite Quarterback (The Three A's) The speaker is "massive on the intangible traits first" and then focuses on the physical traits, which he calls the "three A's":

1. Accuracy: Achieved by having a very consistent base and mechanics, even while moving in the pocket.
2. Anticipation: Being able to throw the ball early. This includes throwing a hinge out to the sideline when the receiver is at 10 yards, or anticipating a tight window on a cross concept.
3. Arm Strength / Velocity: The speaker says he hates the word "arm strength" because it's truly about velocity, which comes from the legs, hips, and core.

He is a "massive component" of the squat for building velocity. He challenged his 6'4" starting quarterback to squat at least 405 lbs, currently at 375 lbs, believing that "the stronger their legs get, the more power they can generate from the ground and the more velocity they've have". He has seen freshmen notice "more velocity on his ball" as their legs get stronger. Mechanics

• Grip: The two most common grips shown are Dak Prescott and Brock Purdy. Purdy's is often used by guys with smaller hands, with the ring finger on the first lace and pinky on the fourth. Prescott's has the ring finger on the second lace and the pinky on the fifth. He emphasizes the need for a relaxed grip.
• Ball Carriage: Shows images of Tom Brady and Jalen Hurts. The ball is typically held in the middle of the chest to the upper abdomen, on the middle to back pec. This position allows the shoulders, traps, and forearms to be relaxed before throwing. He notes that though holding the ball higher can be quicker (as Kyler Murray did in high school), it puts stress on the upper body, which is why Murray has transitioned to a lower, more relaxed position in the NFL.
• Base: He tells quarterbacks to keep the back foot underneath the back armpit/shoulder. Weight distribution should be 60% on the back foot and 40% on the front (though he notes Joe Burrow discusses 50/50). He prefers a vertical torso from the waist up, a slight knee bend, and a quick six-inch stride (sometimes no stride at all). He compares the stance to a baseball hitter, not a pitcher, emphasizing a quick, rotational movement to keep the power.
• Low Position: This is the first progression in the throwing motion. He now teaches getting to a lateral L or lateral 90 (90 degrees at the elbow, right off the back pec), moving away from the old method of going straight to a vertical L first. He notes that 99% of NFL quarterbacks start in this lateral area.
• Release Point: Shows Tom Brady, CJ Stroud, and Aiden. Key points are:
  • Level shoulders.
  • Neutral head.
  • Firm front side ("eating the apple" with the non-throwing hand).
  • Different throws will require different shoulder levels.

Everyday Drills (EDD) The first four or five drills are done before the ball is even thrown, typically on Monday during the 40-45 minute individual period (Tuesday through Thursday focus more on pocket movement).

1. Bag Ball Security (Bag BS): Done every single day. The player runs through four bags spaced about 1 to 1.5 yards apart (shoulder width), ensuring they tuck the ball in their right arm, and in the left arm when they come back. They also go laterally.
2. Steps/Stops at Lateral 90: The quarterback takes a drop and stops to reach the lateral 90 position before throwing. They go through the motion twice and throw on the third time.
3. Front Side Constraint: To fix quarterbacks who open up their front side too much, he makes them put their non-throwing hand on their side or belt, forcing them to keep that side closed while throwing. He also tried an "overemphasis drill" where the player extends their front arm straight out to ensure they stay closed.
4. Footwork with Drop: He focuses on the 3-step drop, emphasizing a solid second step and the third step landing "right underneath his back armpit/shoulder pad". He is a "big believer" in getting the heel down on the ground, as being "toesy" is not a powerful position.
5. Adding the Hitch Element: Incorporating the hitch after the 3-step drop, emphasizing a "step and replace" motion rather than a shuffle.
6. Throwing to the Right/Left: Focusing on directing the hips and eyes toward the target on the second step of the drop.
7. Brady Shuffle: A single small step followed by shuffling back to a solid base. This is used for quick game/intermediate mix concepts and for throws like the glance.
8. Base Constraint (3 Bags): Used for quarterbacks who struggle with a good base (too wide or too short). The player keeps his feet in the ground between three bags, and on a clap, gets the back foot down and throws.
9. Working in the Pocket (Sliding Bags): Three bags are separated by about a yard, forcing the quarterback to maintain a good base when working up or back in the pocket.
10. Short Step/No Stride: Using two bags to force the quarterback to take a short step or no stride when working up in the pocket, requiring them to "really rotate through". The coach stands on the opposite side to force them to throw against where they are stepping.

Quarterback Play

• Pre-Snap Routine: Since the team will play fast this year, the routine must be quick and simple. Key reads are: free access throw (if a run play), pure progression (with cross/mesh elements), and identifying one-high or two-high coverage.
• Down and Distance/Contour: Quarterbacks need to be situationally aware. Contour is "reading corner, safety, safety, corner" and then seeing the box. He has them start on the side of the down marker.
• QB Metrics: The speaker learned not to put too many goals on his players, so he focuses on three key metrics:
  1. First Down Efficiency: Get four yards to set up second and six, aiming for a 60% success rate (last year was 47%).
  2. Second Down: Get at least half the yards needed (e.g., five yards on second and 10).
  3. Third Down Conversion: Convert the down. They aim for above 50% to be in the country's top 10 (their first year was 55%).

The speaker provides his contact information, advising people to text or email rather than use Twitter. He ends by expressing excitement for OBU's upcoming season.