WVU QB Coach Tyler Allen Assesses Hype vs. Reality for Garrett Greene, Nicco Marchiol

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – After hearing from head coach Neal Brown, offensive coordinator Chad Scott and even Greene himself, it was time for quarterbacks coach Tyler Allen to discuss what he believes WVU’s QB1 needs to work on.

While speaking with the media for the first time since being promoted, Allen offered his assessment of Greene’s play in 2023 and what he must do to get his game to another level on Friday. Allen agrees that Greene must be more accurate and play smarter, but Allen elaborated beyond that as well.

“He’s been getting a lot of PFF hype and a lot talk on Twitter, but he has a lot he needs to work on,” said Allen about the hype surrounding Greene throughout the offseason. It’s possible Allen just said this to keep his quarterback in check, but based on Greene’s own honest evaluation of his game, he fully understands he still has a long way to go.

WVU QB Coach Tyler Allen on Garrett Greene: “He’s been getting a lot of PFF hype and a lot talk on Twitter, but he has a lot he needs to work on.” Allen then detailed examples of things Greene missed on last year and needs to improve on to get to the next level. Allen clearly has…

— Mike J. Asti (@MikeAsti11) March 29, 2024

Allen even discussed Greene’s deep ball, which is widely viewed as a strength of his game as a passer. Allen, who started his coaching career as a grad assistant in 2008, even feels Greene can improve on the deep ball aspect of his game too.

The Mississippi native went as far as to say, “he missed a lot of deep balls too” while talking about Greene’s 2023 season. Of course, Allen is not trying to be negative, but speaking as someone who wants Greene, a player he’s known since recruiting him at Troy in 2018, reach his true potential.

Allen did label Greene’s season a “great” one, but knows that Greene needs to turn it up another notch if the Mountaineers are going to contend for the Big 12 title. He also knows that Greene has to improve upon his completion percentage and accuracy if he’s going to live up to the hype and actually be one of the best quarterbacks in the country. Most elite quarterbacks are over 60%, but Greene only was only at 52.9% last year.

Allen also touched on Nicco Marchiol, bringing up his longstanding relationship with both WVU quarterbacks. “I’ve been around Garrett and Nicco for a while.. I’ve know GG since 2018. I was a GA at Troy. When Coach brown hired me we were recruiting him, and Nicco was a freshman when I came back (to WVU). We spent a lot of time together.”

As far as Marchiol’s progression, Allen cited his in-game experience from 2023 being valuable moving forward. However, Allen expects more production and confidence from Marchiol if he had to enter a game again this fall. In fact, Allen made it clear he will demand a lot more from Marchiol or whoever is under center.

For a related story, click here for why promoting Allen made sense for WVU, especially in terms of keep a continuity for Greene.

Asti: WVU’s Decision to Promote Tyler Allen to QB Coach Makes Tons of Sense