Sam Leavitt Has the Tool That the Elite Quarterbacks Have
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Think of the Best Quarterbacks of All Time: Tom Brady, Joe Montana, Peyton Manning, Drew Brees, John Elway, Dan Marino, Aaron Rodgers, etc. What do they all have in common?
Is it i the arm? Eh, not really, sure they can all throw it deep but QBS like Rogers, Favre and Elway guys are on another level. Is is mobility? Sure some guys like Fran Tarkenton and Steve Young can run, but other QBs like Brady and Montana aren't mobile so it's not that? Is it the ability to be clutch? To a degree, they have all have clutch moments, but it is hard to measure that.
However, the factor that makes the best QBs the best is the mental game. The best QBs of all time are all smart people, as they have a high IQ to process the game. To process what defenses are being thrown at them, what is the coverage, what is the read, or throw to make; and to do this game in and game out, year in and year out.
Sam Leavitt's Mental Game
This is where ASU QB Sam Leavitt comes into the discussion. Leavitt has shown that he has a high Football IQ a lot already, even though he has only started one year, which is quite impressive.
In 2023, Leavitt was the backup for the Michigan Spartans. As a Spartan, Leavitt throw two touchdowns and two interceptions, and attempted only twenty three passes. Bottom line: he did not play hardly at all
Then, the following season at ASU, Leavitt threw for 24 Touchdowns, 6 interceptions and for 2,885 yards. The fact that Leavitt has able to be this productive in his first year as a starter for the Sun Devil just shows how smart and quickly he can adapt to the game.
Quickly adapting to the game is something that the best QBs have been shown to do
- Tom Brady won the Super Bowl in his second year starting.
- Dan Marino threw for a than record 48 touchdowns in his second season.
- Patrick Mahomes won the Super Bowl in his second stating season after winning MVP the first year he started
- While guys like Steve Young, Aaron Rodgers and Brett Favre were on the bench for a while, when they got the chance to start, they were winning rings and MVPS.
Having a high football IQ allows QBS to adapt to the game quicker and thus find success quicker.
The Coaching
Another way that Leavitt's IQ has been on display is the way that he has adapted to Offensive Coordinator Marcus Arroyo's Offense. Orroyo brings a lot of expertise and knowledge to the ASU offense, and Leavitt has done a great job adapting to it.
Now, yes, Orroyo did tailor some stuff last year to Leavitt's first year starting, but there was plenty of high level concepts and plays in there. It also does help to have great playmakers like Jordyn Tyson to throw the ball up to, but Leavitt did a great job reading the offense.
Leavitt has shown to adapt to a high level of coaching, thus expanding his knowledge of football as a whole.
In conclusion, it might seem odd to compare Leavitt to Hall of Famers, but Leavitt shows that he has the one thing that the best do, a great mind.
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Tanner Cappellini holds a mass communications degree from Arizona State University and is pursuing his dream of being the person at the games, practices, and events who takes others inside the team they love.