Someone else is going have to say he can't do it, because you'll never hear those words from my mouth.
Penn State Football: McGloin ‘Up For The Challenge’ as the Raiders’ Starting QB
by Mike Poorman on December 25, 2016 9:40 PM
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It’s been awhile since the Oakland Raiders were in the NFL playoffs -- 2002, to be exact.
The Raiders’ quarterback then was Rich Gannon.
Now, with one regular-season game remaining, they have already locked up a playoff berth with a 12-3 record.
Their starting quarterback next Sunday?
Matt McGloin.
Fourteen years ago, McGloin was a 13-year-old at West Scranton Intermediate School and was quarterback in a youth league for the West Scranton Falcons. He could sling it, even back then.
“I had a great arm,” McGloin chuckled over the phone as he spoke from his home in the Oakland suburbs on Christmas afternoon. “We were one of the rare Pop Warner teams that used to throw the ball all the time. I played with a bunch of buddies I still hear from today.”
And by today, McGloin wasn’t exaggerating. Many of those teammates stayed friends through high school, McGloin’s career at Penn State and now into his fourth season with the Raiders. A group of them have kept in touch throughout McGloin’s NFL career via group chats. And on Saturday afternoon, with 11:07 left in the fourth quarter of the Raiders’ game against the visiting Indianapolis Colts, they went nuts.
That’s when the Raiders’ starting quarterback, Derek Carr, went out with a broken fibula that will sideline him for next Sunday’s Week 17 game at Denver, as well as the NFL playoffs.
And that’s when McGloin went in.
RAIDER IN RELIEF
McGloin calmly staved off an 11-point Indy fourth quarter rally to lead the Raiders to a 33-25 victory. McGloin was 2 of 3 for 29 yards in the late going, capped off by a crucial third-and-8 completion to Amari Cooper deep in his own territory with 2:22 left in the game. Watch it here.
Miss the pass, Oakland punts and Indy gets the ball back. Make it, game essentially over and the Raiders get their first 12-win season since 2000. All McGloin did was thread the needle to Cooper for a 19-yard completion and a first down that clinched the victory.
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“It was a really good catch,” said CBS NFL analyst Phil Simms. “And an unbelievably brave throw.”
Cooper was also impressed, saying after the game: “Matt’s a great quarterback. The biggest thing about him that sticks out is that he’s a competitor.”
It was typical McGloin, who threw for 46 TDs and 6,385 yards in his career at Penn State, including 3,266 yards while leading PSU to an 8-4 mark in 2012 – a Penn State record that Trace McSorley broke by passing for 3,360 yards (and counting) in 13 games in 2016. It was a rare appearance in the 2016 season for McGloin, who started six games for the Raiders as a rookie in 2013, then has served as a backup to Carr over the past three seasons.
“The way we finished the game – everybody stayed calm, everybody stayed focused, everybody stayed poised,” said McGloin, who was taking a break from watching the Steelers-Ravens game when we talked. “The guys really embraced me when I came out onto the field and into that huddle. They’re all professionals. They had my back.”
NO LUCK IS GOOD LUCK
McGloin knew how important that pass was. To seal the win. And to seal the squad’s confidence in their backup QB.
“On the other sideline you have Andrew Luck, who’s one of the really good quarterbacks in the league,” McGloin said. “And the last thing you want to do is give him and his offense the ball and a chance to make some plays. They didn’t have any timeouts.
“We wanted to win the game right there. It was a great job by the O-line up front with the protection. I haven’t had the opportunity to work with Amari a lot as the backup. But I know the type of routes he runs. He’s an aggressive guy who will go up and get the ball for you. I gave him an opportunity to make a play and he did that. Guys who are that talented – like Amari and (Michael) Crabtree and Andre Holmes and Seth Roberts – you have to give them the chance to make plays. And a great majority of the time they do the job right and make a play for you. We were able to kneel it and get out of there with a victory.”
The Raiders will move forward with McGloin as the starter and Michigan State rookie Connor Cook as the backup. The Raiders conclude their regular season at 4:25 p.m. next Sunday -- New Year’s Day – at Sports Authority Field at Mile High in Denver.
McGloin says he’ll be ready. He’s appeared in a dozen games for the Raiders, starting six in 2013, with the following stat line: 155 of 266 for 1,847 yards, with 11 touchdown passes and 11 interceptions. The Raiders gave him a big vote of confidence when in March they signed McGloin to a second-round tender offer of $2.559 million for the 2016 season.
“The organization and the staff really do believe in me, think I can be a starter, and know I am capable of getting the job done,” McGloin said. “I’ve always believed that. I know the guys around me in that locker room believe it as well.
“It’s my fourth season here. I’ve been a part of a lot of football games in Oakland. I’ve been a starter, I’ve been a backup, I’ve had to go in in a lot of different situations.”
THE WEEK AHEAD
McGloin spent Christmas Day with his fiancé, Bailey Amos, a Penn State grad, touching base with family back in Pennsylvania; watching football; and doing some film study on his Pad. He also went outside to do a bit of throwing – tossing a tennis ball to his Labrador Retriever, Rudy. McGloin’s scouting report: “He’s quick, really likes to run and has a ton of energy.”
Monday is a typically an off-day, but McGloin will head to the Raiders’ facility early, to get in a lift and also get a head start on preparing for Denver.
“I’ve been a starter before, so I know what to expect, from things like the media,” he said. “But at the end of the day, the main focus is to prepare for the Denver Broncos, day in and day out. You just need to focus on the task at hand and not worry about those things you can’t control.”
McGloin’s half-dozen starts as a rookie give him confidence. It’s well-founded, especially when you consider that in his debut as an NFL starter he threw for three TD passes and led the Raiders to a 28-23 victory over the Houston Texans. Despite the presence of Carr, who was having an MVP-type year in 2016, McGloin stayed upbeat and ready.
“I’ve always tried to be optimistic, to believe that my time will come,” said McGloin, reciting a mantra that has worked since his days as Penn State walk-on who earned a scholarship under Joe Paterno. “I just try to be ready for the situation. I believe I’m ready to go, and can help our offense accomplish the goals we set at the beginning of the season.”
McGloin has been to Denver three times for a Raiders-Broncos game, but this will be the first time he will see playing time. “It’s a great atmosphere in Denver,” he said. “It’s going to be cold, but that’s OK – it will remind me of back home. It’s exciting, I’m pumped. You don’t pay much attention to the altitude. You just go out and play. It’s the same for both teams.”
NITTANY LION FAN
McGloin said he has been closely watching his old college team and and its meteoric rise to 11-2 and a berth in the Rose Bowl. It’s not quite what he imagined after the 2012 season, when he gamely led the Nittany Lions to that 8-4 record and an upset of Wisconsin.
But, characteristically, he never lost faith, either.
“It’s awesome to see. It’s crazy almost in a way,” McGloin said. “You think about where the program was when we were there and all that we had to battle through. And the support has stayed there when everybody thought Penn State was going to fall off and become this or that. It shows you what kind of university it is, what kind of football program it is and what type of fan base it has. It’s not like any other place in the country. There’s no one else in the country who could have done what Penn State did the last five years.
“It’s unbelievable. I couldn’t be prouder to say I went to Penn State and was fortunate enough to play football there. Hats off to those guys for believing in the process and getting the job done.”
McGloin can certainly relate. With a spot in the starting lineup looming, his confidence remains strong.
“I’m up for the challenge,” he said. “I’m excited to help contribute to the team. I’m going to work my tail off every day to make sure I’m prepared and do the job to the best of my ability.”
Penn State Football: McGloin ‘Up For The Challenge’ as the Raiders’ Starting QB
by Mike Poorman on December 25, 2016 9:40 PM
Print Comments(0) Email ShareThis
Click photo for gallery
It’s been awhile since the Oakland Raiders were in the NFL playoffs -- 2002, to be exact.
The Raiders’ quarterback then was Rich Gannon.
Now, with one regular-season game remaining, they have already locked up a playoff berth with a 12-3 record.
Their starting quarterback next Sunday?
Matt McGloin.
Fourteen years ago, McGloin was a 13-year-old at West Scranton Intermediate School and was quarterback in a youth league for the West Scranton Falcons. He could sling it, even back then.
“I had a great arm,” McGloin chuckled over the phone as he spoke from his home in the Oakland suburbs on Christmas afternoon. “We were one of the rare Pop Warner teams that used to throw the ball all the time. I played with a bunch of buddies I still hear from today.”
And by today, McGloin wasn’t exaggerating. Many of those teammates stayed friends through high school, McGloin’s career at Penn State and now into his fourth season with the Raiders. A group of them have kept in touch throughout McGloin’s NFL career via group chats. And on Saturday afternoon, with 11:07 left in the fourth quarter of the Raiders’ game against the visiting Indianapolis Colts, they went nuts.
That’s when the Raiders’ starting quarterback, Derek Carr, went out with a broken fibula that will sideline him for next Sunday’s Week 17 game at Denver, as well as the NFL playoffs.
And that’s when McGloin went in.
RAIDER IN RELIEF
McGloin calmly staved off an 11-point Indy fourth quarter rally to lead the Raiders to a 33-25 victory. McGloin was 2 of 3 for 29 yards in the late going, capped off by a crucial third-and-8 completion to Amari Cooper deep in his own territory with 2:22 left in the game. Watch it here.
Miss the pass, Oakland punts and Indy gets the ball back. Make it, game essentially over and the Raiders get their first 12-win season since 2000. All McGloin did was thread the needle to Cooper for a 19-yard completion and a first down that clinched the victory.
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“It was a really good catch,” said CBS NFL analyst Phil Simms. “And an unbelievably brave throw.”
Cooper was also impressed, saying after the game: “Matt’s a great quarterback. The biggest thing about him that sticks out is that he’s a competitor.”
It was typical McGloin, who threw for 46 TDs and 6,385 yards in his career at Penn State, including 3,266 yards while leading PSU to an 8-4 mark in 2012 – a Penn State record that Trace McSorley broke by passing for 3,360 yards (and counting) in 13 games in 2016. It was a rare appearance in the 2016 season for McGloin, who started six games for the Raiders as a rookie in 2013, then has served as a backup to Carr over the past three seasons.
“The way we finished the game – everybody stayed calm, everybody stayed focused, everybody stayed poised,” said McGloin, who was taking a break from watching the Steelers-Ravens game when we talked. “The guys really embraced me when I came out onto the field and into that huddle. They’re all professionals. They had my back.”
NO LUCK IS GOOD LUCK
McGloin knew how important that pass was. To seal the win. And to seal the squad’s confidence in their backup QB.
“On the other sideline you have Andrew Luck, who’s one of the really good quarterbacks in the league,” McGloin said. “And the last thing you want to do is give him and his offense the ball and a chance to make some plays. They didn’t have any timeouts.
“We wanted to win the game right there. It was a great job by the O-line up front with the protection. I haven’t had the opportunity to work with Amari a lot as the backup. But I know the type of routes he runs. He’s an aggressive guy who will go up and get the ball for you. I gave him an opportunity to make a play and he did that. Guys who are that talented – like Amari and (Michael) Crabtree and Andre Holmes and Seth Roberts – you have to give them the chance to make plays. And a great majority of the time they do the job right and make a play for you. We were able to kneel it and get out of there with a victory.”
The Raiders will move forward with McGloin as the starter and Michigan State rookie Connor Cook as the backup. The Raiders conclude their regular season at 4:25 p.m. next Sunday -- New Year’s Day – at Sports Authority Field at Mile High in Denver.
McGloin says he’ll be ready. He’s appeared in a dozen games for the Raiders, starting six in 2013, with the following stat line: 155 of 266 for 1,847 yards, with 11 touchdown passes and 11 interceptions. The Raiders gave him a big vote of confidence when in March they signed McGloin to a second-round tender offer of $2.559 million for the 2016 season.
“The organization and the staff really do believe in me, think I can be a starter, and know I am capable of getting the job done,” McGloin said. “I’ve always believed that. I know the guys around me in that locker room believe it as well.
“It’s my fourth season here. I’ve been a part of a lot of football games in Oakland. I’ve been a starter, I’ve been a backup, I’ve had to go in in a lot of different situations.”
THE WEEK AHEAD
McGloin spent Christmas Day with his fiancé, Bailey Amos, a Penn State grad, touching base with family back in Pennsylvania; watching football; and doing some film study on his Pad. He also went outside to do a bit of throwing – tossing a tennis ball to his Labrador Retriever, Rudy. McGloin’s scouting report: “He’s quick, really likes to run and has a ton of energy.”
Monday is a typically an off-day, but McGloin will head to the Raiders’ facility early, to get in a lift and also get a head start on preparing for Denver.
“I’ve been a starter before, so I know what to expect, from things like the media,” he said. “But at the end of the day, the main focus is to prepare for the Denver Broncos, day in and day out. You just need to focus on the task at hand and not worry about those things you can’t control.”
McGloin’s half-dozen starts as a rookie give him confidence. It’s well-founded, especially when you consider that in his debut as an NFL starter he threw for three TD passes and led the Raiders to a 28-23 victory over the Houston Texans. Despite the presence of Carr, who was having an MVP-type year in 2016, McGloin stayed upbeat and ready.
“I’ve always tried to be optimistic, to believe that my time will come,” said McGloin, reciting a mantra that has worked since his days as Penn State walk-on who earned a scholarship under Joe Paterno. “I just try to be ready for the situation. I believe I’m ready to go, and can help our offense accomplish the goals we set at the beginning of the season.”
McGloin has been to Denver three times for a Raiders-Broncos game, but this will be the first time he will see playing time. “It’s a great atmosphere in Denver,” he said. “It’s going to be cold, but that’s OK – it will remind me of back home. It’s exciting, I’m pumped. You don’t pay much attention to the altitude. You just go out and play. It’s the same for both teams.”
NITTANY LION FAN
McGloin said he has been closely watching his old college team and and its meteoric rise to 11-2 and a berth in the Rose Bowl. It’s not quite what he imagined after the 2012 season, when he gamely led the Nittany Lions to that 8-4 record and an upset of Wisconsin.
But, characteristically, he never lost faith, either.
“It’s awesome to see. It’s crazy almost in a way,” McGloin said. “You think about where the program was when we were there and all that we had to battle through. And the support has stayed there when everybody thought Penn State was going to fall off and become this or that. It shows you what kind of university it is, what kind of football program it is and what type of fan base it has. It’s not like any other place in the country. There’s no one else in the country who could have done what Penn State did the last five years.
“It’s unbelievable. I couldn’t be prouder to say I went to Penn State and was fortunate enough to play football there. Hats off to those guys for believing in the process and getting the job done.”
McGloin can certainly relate. With a spot in the starting lineup looming, his confidence remains strong.
“I’m up for the challenge,” he said. “I’m excited to help contribute to the team. I’m going to work my tail off every day to make sure I’m prepared and do the job to the best of my ability.”
