A dual-threat quarterback is a commodity coveted by most college coaches on the recruiting trail. In a sport defined by its spread offenses and complex schemes, it is a trait that is undoubtedly more of a necessity than a luxury.
Yet, some dual-threat signal-callers are defined as such with the often unfair implication that their athleticism and scrambling capabilities are behind the bread and butter necessity of the position, i.e., the requisite technique and mechanics to be a deft passer.
This is where the 7v7 circuit can provide development and dividends for such quarterbacks, as they play in a format where they literally cannot gain yards with their feet and need to put their abilities as accurate passers, sound decision-makers, and decipher defenses on full display.
For the past few months, Arizona State 2023 quarterback Israel (Izzy) Carter has been playing for 7v7 club Trillion Boys, one of the nation’s premier 7v7 organizations. Founded only last year and based out of Los Angeles, this entity has already produced six five-star and 23 four-star recruits just in the 2022 and 2023 classes.
Trillion Boys’ Owner and Offensive Coordinator Josh Stupin, a former SMU quarterback, said that Carter’s impact on his club has been immense.
“Izzy is one the most prominent names when it comes to 2023 quarterbacks in Southern California,” Stupin said, “especially him playing at Corona Centennial High School, which is consistently a top-five program in our state. When he hit us up on Instagram, knowing who he is as a player, we were pretty excited about that. I got to personally meet him in February, and since then, we’ve had that coach and quarterback relationship. He had a lot of interest in playing with us, and obviously, we were interested in him as well. We clicked, and he was able to take over the QB1 spot and really embraced the role, and has displayed a lot of great qualities as a quarterback.
“Before I coached him, I didn’t know his full abilities, but what appealed to me on film was his motivation. He has a lot of videos of him up at 6 a.m. grinding at Winner’s Circle, which is the training facility that he goes to, and I really liked that motivation and the emphasis on work ethic. That is huge for me in a quarterback because you have to be the leader by example as well as verbally and being able to move a program from point A to point B. I think his work ethic is unmatched, which is important because QB1 is the face of your program.”
Stupin says that Carter’s toned body and increased speed from last year are just a couple of examples of the benefit of the quarterback’s dedication to his strength and condition training, let alone his overall drive for improvement.
“He’s just an athletic freak,” Stupin described. “On film, he’s jumping over people, running for big plays, he has a really good deep ball where he puts a lot of air under it and allows the receiver to make a great play on the ball. He just has a lot of traits that can help a program move to the next level and be successful. He’s very humble, doesn’t talk back, and doesn’t have any character issues. If anything, he is super, super just relaxed, humble, even-keeled player that you want on your team and someone who makes other people around him better.”
Stupin sees Carter’s proficiency in making plays with his feet as an asset that complements the signal caller’s passing aptitudes and noted that the future ASU quarterback does an extraordinary job balancing those two elements every time he takes to the field.
“When he plays 7-on-7, he is forced to throw the football, and he doesn’t have an option to take off with his legs, which he’s so gifted and able to do,” Stupin explained. “But we’ve seen from the get-go when he came with us in February how talented of a thrower he actually is. He can put it on money and on the spot every single time he throws the ball. He’s very, very good at going through his progression and finding the open guy, and delivering a ball at the right place for his receivers. Going up against live defenses in the off-season has been really beneficial for him.
“He has a great feel for ball placement. It’s very rare for him to make a throw where a DB can make a play and break up the pass. He knows when to fit in there, when to layer a ball when to give it a little bit of pace…he has those qualities that aren’t really taught when you go to a quarterback mechanics coach. It’s the natural feel he has for the position, and Izzy is blessed with. He has the full package at quarterback, and he makes it look easy.”
Stupin commented that overall leadership qualities, notably on the verbal aspect, were areas of improvement he noticed that have to be developed with Carter because of his quiet nature. The fact that Trillion Boys has attracted top players from all over the country has only accelerated the process with carter in that regard, and his coach has certainly been pleased with the progression in this area.
“Izzy has been able to take the reins, and he has the keys to the car,” Stupin remarked. “I challenged him to be a leader to all those kids who come into a new environment, where he’s not used to playing with them, and he doesn’t have chemistry with them. So, he knows he has to build that, and he’s done a great job of developing his leadership qualities in that way. He’s not naturally very verbal or loud, but he does it in a way where he’s able to effectively communicate with the player, be uplifting and really mend the team together. He’s been great at that, being a glue for everybody.
“He needs to continue to improve his footwork and his dropbacks. Having consistent feet on every single rep is super important as a quarterback so that you don’t have to feel inconsistent in any part of your game. That’s true with any quarterback; you can never work on your feet enough because your feet lead to your arm and your eyes. That’s the most important quality of a quarterback being consistent. I know he has great intangible traits; he has good size, and is strong and athletic, and is also a smart kid. He already does a great job with his development, and as long as he continues with that, he will be really fun to watch.”
The name, image, and likeness (NIL) has only become a major aspect in recruiting and retaining college players, but more and more high school players are getting into the NIL game, especially when they’re just a season or so away from suiting up on Saturdays. With over 35,000 Instagram followers and half a million subscribers on YouTube, Trillion Boys has a massive social media presence that aids college prospects off the field with an exposure that is vital for future NIL deals.
“I think what attracted Izzy to Trillion was the job we do in social media, which is super important in this NIL, “Stupin said. “Social media followings give them the opportunity to make money nowadays, and that’s where you’re seeing a lot of these (NIL) deals happen. We do a really good job marketing players, whether that’s through Instagram, or YouTube, and Tik Tok. Izzy came to us with maybe about 2,000 Instagram followers, and now he’s up to over 10K on Instagram. This is not really of any on-the-field importance, but the fact in this new era of college football, the landscape has changed so much. These kids find value in having their names promoted and being pushed out there. the exposure is a huge part of college football nowadays.
“Having this social media avenue for them as a prep player is super important. So, kids really are drawn to that. We also run our program like a college program, and we have coaches who coached at the college level, like Chris Hawkins, who coached at ASU. So, kids are also drawn to the college environment we have here.”
Whether it’s in the Pac-12 or other power five conferences, there have been so many successful quarterbacks that have come out of the state of California in recent years. An intense 7v7 circuit that lasts nearly the first half of the calendar year is one aspect that contributes to those achievements at the next level. Stupin is confident that the experience Israel Carter is getting at Trillion Boys will effectively manifest itself once the quarterback arrives in Tempe.
“Kids like Izzy are fully invested in football,” Stupin stated. “They’re going up against live defenses, as opposed to just going to a quarterbacks coach and throwing a ball into a net or a standing target. It’s constant movement. They’re getting flustered and learn how to overcome it in a competitive atmosphere. Izzy does such a great job of honing in and being able to really benefit and thrive in that type of environment. He’s probably one of the most competitive people I’ve ever been around in my life. And that’s shown in all the games that we’ve played.
“Our track record of success was pretty good before Izzy got here. But he definitely elevated our program to another level. We were getting to some championship games, and we weren’t winning them. And when we brought Izzy in, bang, bang, bang, we won three championships out of the first four tournaments with him. He’s a natural born winner and a natural born leader. Being able to play in the 7v7 circuit is just another element to develop his passing skills. He has thrived in this environment.”
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