I'm watching some of Akron on ESPNU tonight.
Our chances will be greatly improved if Navarro plays.
Poulos wasn't horrible today but that's a tepid way to phrase it.
I would call 8/19 for 110 yds, a pick six and a lost fumble inside the UK 5 pretty close to being horrible. But given that he's a freshman and UK has a pretty good D, we can cut him slack.
He's a Redshirt-Junior, not a Freshman. Remember, he spent 2-3 years in JUCO, one of them injured (so he might get that one back). Rather than focusing on his age, though, I'd rather say "But given that he's new to Ohio's offensive schemes, and UK has a pretty good D, we can cut him slack."
Let's look at the last three QBs Ohio has taken from JUCO:
1. When T3 arrived from JUCO in 2007, he played sparingly his first year, behind Bower, and didn't really play much until about the 5th game, so he had a smoother transition. Still, he was only 2-5 in his first game, and that was against Gardner-Webb.
2. Boo arrived the following year, but he was thrust into playing in his second game, against OSU, after T3 was taken out for the season. Boo was 9-25 for 86 yards with 3 interceptions. Ohio struggled that year as he made the adjustment to Ohio, but he turned out to be a good QB.
3. Nathan arrived in 2017. He had an easier transition, with his first game being against Hampton, which Ohio won 59-0. His second game was a loss to Purdue, but Nathan was a respectable 16-23 for 211 yards and a TD.
I'd say that Poulas' start is no worse that T3 or Boo, but far from Nathan's start. Of course, Nathan did not have a team that was wholly reconstituted from the portal to deal with. Regardless of who starts next week, let's hope that both Navarro and Poulas continue to improve, and that one or both develop into fine QBs.