• Hi Guest, want to participate in the discussions, keep track of read/unread posts access private forums and more? Create your free account and increase the benefits of your eGriz.com experience today!

Lamson > Ay Yat

mthoopsfan said:
Learn something about the game of football. Mellott won every possible FCS and conference award. Are you really this stupid?

Winning a national championship doesn’t make someone a better player. My god, what is wrong with you?
Click to expand...
So this is long, but fun. I had a great time writing it.

I spent a bit of time in court in my day bantering about with more than a few attorney's, some who were not as great as Hoops, and some who were far better. I have been on the winning and losing end of more than a few Ivy League trained attorney's with such experience, I am here to present the reason why may it please the court and the dubious Judge Hoops to hear this most excellent defense of eGrizzers, and some Puds fan as to why Justin Lamson is the Puds greatest QB: :

We are here today to examine the football fates of two extraordinary athletes from Montana State University: Tommy Mellott and his successor, Justin Lamson.

The evidence will show that while Mellott was a collegiate hero, his genetic and stylistic profile doomed his chances of sustaining a career in the NFL.

Conversely, the evidence will prove that Justin Lamson possesses the exact elite traits that will grant him a far better opportunity and define him as the superior NFL caliber quarterback.

Exhibit A: Why Tommy Mellott Fails to earn the title "The Puds Best QB"
The defense may argue that Tommy Mellott "Touchdown Tommy" was a Walter Payton Award winner and an elite dual-threat weapon.

However, the rigorous, cold testing ground of the National Football League does not project college production; it projects physical and technical translation.

Mellott failed to establish an NFL foothold at any of the three proposed positions for three undeniable reasons:

1. The Disqualification as an NFL Quarterback
  • Sub-Standard Frame: At exactly 6’0” and 208 pounds, Mellott lacks the prototype height to see over collapsing NFL offensive lines or withstand the pocket dynamic.
  • Deficient Arm Talent: Scouts explicitly cited his average arm strength and inconsistent footwork. He cannot consistently drive the ball into tight windows outside the numbers at the professional speed.
  • System Inflation: Mellott operated in a highly specialized, run-heavy, RPO-heavy FCS scheme. This offense masked deficiencies in processing full-field, multi-high safety looks common in the NFL.
2. The Disqualification as an NFL Running Back
  • Lack of Mass and Density: NFL running backs must absorb interior punishment from 320 lb defensive tackles. At 208 lbs, Mellott lacked the required lower-body thickness and muscle density to function as an every down zone or gap scheme runner.
  • Running Style Instability: Mellott was a quarterback running against spread-out Big Sky Conference defenses. He lacks the natural, instinctual vision in tight, congested running lanes and the elite change-of-direction mechanics required behind an NFL line of scrimmage.
3. The Disqualification as an NFL Wide Receiver
  • No Linear Translation: Despite a blistering 4.39 40-yard dash, track speed does not equal football route-running speed.
  • The Route-Running Deficit: Mellott spent his entire life with the ball in his hands. He never developed the release packages, hand-fighting techniques, or blind-spot processing required to beat NFL press-man coverage.
  • The Waiver Evidence: The Las Vegas Raiders drafted him in the 6th round to attempt a wide receiver conversion. However, the speed of the transition caught up to him; he was waived before the regular season even began, proving he could not adjust to the position at the highest level. He was subsequently picked up by the New Orleans Saints for their practice squad, but once again, "Touchdown Tommy" was found to be wanting.

Exhibit B: The Superiority of Justin Lamson, and why he is "The Puds Greatest QB"
Let us now direct the court's attention to the successor of the Montana State mantle, Justin Lamson.

The data dictates that Lamson is not just a better fit for the modern NFL; he is fundamentally a far more polished quarterback.

1. Pro-Style Frame and Physical Durability
  • Lamson stands at a sturdy 6’2” and 220 pounds. This gives him the optimal sightlines required to manipulate NFL pockets and the necessary physical frame to absorb the velocity of professional pass rushes.
2. Advanced Passing Efficiency and Accuracy
While Mellott was a runner who could throw, Lamson is a passer who can run.
  • In the 2025 season, Lamson took over the Bobcats and completely elevated the passing vertical, throwing for 3,172 yards and 26 touchdowns.
  • Lamson demonstrated elite ball placement and decision-making, completing an extraordinary 72% of his passes with only 3 interceptions. He proved he could handle high-volume passing dropbacks without turning the ball over.
3. High-Level Elite Pedigree
  • Unlike Mellott, who played strictly against lower tier FCS competition, Lamson possesses a Power-5 pedigree. He spent years competing, practicing, and starting games at Syracuse and Stanford.
  • Lamson has logged real repetitions against elite, blue-chip defensive coordinators and future NFL defensive backs. He already understands how to process complex coverages at a major college level.
4. Performance Under Championship Pressure
  • When the stakes were highest in the 2025 FCS National Championship game against Illinois State, Lamson delivered. He put up 280 passing yards and accounted for 4 total touchdowns, showing clutch, ice-cold decision-making under fourth-down pressure to win the national title.
Closing Argument
Members of the Jury and Judge Hoops, the verdict is clear. Tommy Mellott was an electric FCS level football player, but he was a man without a true position. He was too small to be an effective passing quarterback, too light to be an elite running back, and too unrefined for wide receiver. While he excelled at most positions he attempted, HE WAS NOT ELITE at any of them. He was a true "Swiss Army Knife."

As you have witnessed, Justin Lamson is the evolution of the position.

He possesses the ideal QB frame. He has a proven 72% completion metric, and invaluable FBS experience of playing in the former Power-5 conference landscape. Justin Lamson does not need to convert to wide receiver to survive in football, or to make a professional football team's roster; his arm, size, and elite football IQ guarantee him a legitimate, sustained opportunity to play quarterback at the professional level.

While it is true that Tommy Mellot was chosen by the FCS sports pundits to win the Walter Payton Award. But was he the best player in the FCS? Of the three finalists, one is clearly superior:
  • WPA Finalist, Cam Miller is still playing in the NFL with the Miami Dolphins.
Of the top ten finalists:
  • Mark Gronkowski is with the Miami Dolphins and competing for a spot on the roster.
  • Efton Chisim III is with the New England Patriots and having a fantastic career.
  • Lan Larison is with the New England Patriots and has all but secured the primary 3rd Down Back role.
  • Zach Calzada who transferred to Kentucky from Incarnate Word is currently with the Ottowa Blacks.
If the court pleases, The FCS Walter Payton Award is decided by a nationwide panel of more than 150 members of the college football community.

The selection committee consists of individuals who closely follow and cover the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) all season.

The voting panel is made from Sports Information Directors and media relations professionals representing FCS schools and conferences.

These are people who are puckish, and vacillate far too much. In other words, the FCS award for the "Best" College football player in the FCS annually is left to a bunch of hens to include regional media members, including prominent sports writers, reporters, analysts, broadcasters, possibly former players, coaches, or historians.

So, by no means should a person be impressed by a "Swiss Army Knife" who couldn't even make it through training camps in the CFL, let alone the NFL. Were the "Best" football player in the FCS to actually be voted on by someone other than fickle jurnos and has been's. It's clear that Cam Miller should have been the winner of the WPA in 2024.

Tommy Mellot was a great football player, but he is no Justin Lamson.

Justin Lamson has shown he can win both in the air and on the ground. Further, he led his team to the ONLY award that actually matters and DOES prove he is the best QB for MSU. As a Field General, he led the Puds to a National Championship, which is won on the field and not in the press.

Nostalgia aside, Justin Lamson is the best QB.

I rest my case.
 
Last edited:
uofmman1122 said:
This is literally just the Tommy Mellot debate again, but slightly different.

Lamson runs his offense with surgical precision, and is a fantastic runner. He is so in tune with his receivers that they can explode on any play (ASK ME HOW I KNOW). However, it's unlikely the NFL is gonna give him a call because he's not a prototypical passer. He needs rollouts and running game misdirection to thrive, which he has, so he's thriving lol.

Ah Yat doesn't run his offense quite as well as Lamson runs his (yet), but he is clearly a better "pure passer". He can drop back, read the field, and go through progressions better than Lamson. I also think he has a better arm, a higher ceiling, and can make throws Lamson can't. If his improvement curve continues like it did the last two years, he's going to be the best QB in FCS this season, and he's going to be playing P5 football next year (not saying it will, just what would happen if it did).

I can't remember the last time the quality of QBs at each school at the same time was this high. Both will likely be Payton finalists.
Click to expand...
Fair argument. I slightly disagree with your assessment of Lamson's arm.....he made some incredible throws this past season and got better each week. I agree that each QB is perfect for their respective systems. I'm impressed with how both QB's are willing to take hits when in the pocket.
 
UncleRico said:
It is unfair to throw that out there when the kid has no control over something happened before he was even born. I think there is a line when people talk about these college kids. I think this is over the line. I didn't know it either and really why should I know? Why should that kid have that hanging over his public image?
Click to expand...
Apple...Tree
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Latest posts

Back
Top