Optimistic About Maxwell

Last season, after the Ohio State game, I wrote that Maxwell would graduate as MSU's best quarterback ever.  I felt he looked smart, and more accurate and strong-armed than Kirk Cousins.  Then, in the second half of the season, the wheels gradually came off.  He actually seemed to regress from game to game, and he seemed to hit rock bottom against TCU, where Connor Cook offered more of a spark to the offense.  Even I (the eternal Spartan slappy) started to have my doubts about Maxwell.  And I started to doubt my ability to evaluate talent (from the comfort of my couch).

But no! I know what I saw.  Maxwell clearly flashed some serious talent in the first half of the season. And maybe, just maybe, he's about to put it all together in his senior season. I know, scrimmage stats don't tell us much, but they are nevertheless tantalizing:

17 of 27 and 3 touchdowns in the first scrimmage
14 of 18 and 1 touchdown in the second scrimmage

Keep in mind that the quarterbacks are live and that the running game has been relatively weak.

Of course, 2 scrimmages do not a first-round pick make. But if Maxwell turns into a Heisman Trophy candidate by about the 5th game of the season, let's just say I called it here first.  And if he ends up playing like Andre Ware (when he was with the Lions), let's just remember that I'm just a couch potato.  But seriously, I think Maxwell has all the physical tools to excel.  The only thing that could derail him would be an inability to deal with pressure.  I think Dantonio was aware of this, too, and that's why he wanted to see how Maxwell would practice under pressure.  So far, so good.