Let’s be clear.

The Blue-White game is purposed as much for tailgating as it is tackling and cheerleading as it is chalking up plays.

The substance of spring football lies not in one public scrimmage, but in the series of preceding, private practices.

That all said, for one gorgeous afternoon, man, it was good to have football back.

As you know, the Trace McSorley-led Blue team smacked the White squad, 37-0, last Saturday before approximately 65,000 at Beaver Stadium. Saquon Barkley (smartly) took as many snaps as the Nittany Lion did. And most other storylines flowed from the apparent successful installment of offensive coordinator Joe Moorhead’s new system.

While the most interesting post-game discussions revolve around Moorhead, it’s McSorley whom we focus on today.

Why?

For one, his individual performance is far more useful to dissect versus the dynamics of a developing unit, which you’ve heard so much about already. And the unusual circumstances (hello, no tackling quarterbacks, white-bread play-calling, running clock, etc.) mitigate much of the insight we could claim to have gained about the entire offense.

Surely, those same cautions apply to any study of McSorley, and to a degree they do. However, when isolated as much as possible from the play of his teammates, his performance sent an unmistakable message.

McSorley looked freaking terrific.

The redshirt sophomore’s final passing line of 23-27, 281 yards and four touchdowns told you that. I’m here to say the tape backed it up. Barring unforeseen catastrophe, he will capably succeed Christian Hackenberg as Penn State’s next quarterback.

Now for those of you ready to show off your one-time brush with research or statistics shouting “What about the small sample size?!”,  remember: It’s not the size, but how you use it. Or so I hear…

When approached appropriately, findings can be unearthed from the majority of small samples in any field, including the two-plus quarters McSorley played Saturday. The key lies in understanding your study’s limitations and the power of its results.

We all realize Saturday’s spring quiz was different from the regular-season tests to come, so there’s no use in expounding on their damning differences. Instead, I’ve examined the traits that McSorley should carry over to the Lions’ opener on Sept. 3 and beyond.

The same qualities that have rendered any idea of a Penn State quarterback competition completely and utterly laughable.

Quick decision-making

The most primitive observation any on-looker can make of McSorley as a quarterback goes something like this.

“Damn, that dude’s pretty fast.”

There’s another type of swiftness, though, that ought to catch your eye: his speed of mind.

Prior to the Blue-White game, Joe Moorhead lauded the quarterbacks for absorbing his offense in the matter of a few months, which is tremendous news for Penn State fans. For quick processing, already among the chief requirements for quarterbacking, is far more critical to running Moorhead’s system than fleetness of foot. And here’s why.

Roughly half of the plays McSorley executed were “RPOs,” known as run-pass options, which have grown like Gremlins in popularity across all levels of football the past decade.

For those who missed last season’s Tale of the Tape series, RPOs feature a built-in, post-snap decision for the quarterback to commit to a run or pass depending on the alignment of the defense. Occasionally, there will be more than two passing options packaged together, as seen on McSorley’s first scoring strike to Chris Godwin.

In the GIF above, McSorley must immediately choose whether to complete the hand-off, throw a quick bubble screen to his left or hit Godwin running a skinny post. Spotting the vacant space on the offense’s right, created by a dropping safety and his own run fake, McSorley selects the correct option.

Now that particular choice was as easy for the young gunslinger to make as chocolate over fruit cake. However all afternoon, his mind seemed swift and clear.

Here’s another RPO, where McSorley recognizes seven defenders in the box and off-coverage to the outside. He doesn’t even bother with the run fake, instead throwing back to Godwin on an out route with good anticipation.

That play may seem simple, but throwing with anticipation and processing information correctly are pillars of any successful passing attack.

When McSorley didn’t execute in one of those areas, such as on a particular long, lofty throw he made after staring down his target, the ball ended up in the hands of defensive back Amani Oruwariye.

To further hammer home the significance of quick decision-making, look no further than the last full game Hackenberg played in a Penn State uniform. When the former Lion fired a pass in 2.3 seconds or less post-snap at Michigan State, he went 20-of-27 for 249 yards, two touchdowns and a tipped interception. On longer-developing plays, he completed two of 12 passes for eight yards and one pick.

To date, McSorley has demonstrated adeptness in this area, even when the Lions defense shifted into a slight disguise. Albeit this was no work of a master spy, but watch McSorley recognize the safeties' late rotation into a Cover 3 defense, which takes away his primary receivers. Without hesitation, he turns to fire to his tight end Mike Gesicki in the flat for four yards.

That was only McSorley’s second pass Saturday. And he only got better from there.

Completing most every kind of throw

Somewhere between “physically looks the part” and “intangibles,” the need for making every throw falls high on the armchair NFL scout’s checklist for quarterback prospects.

Any discussion of McSorley as a potential pro is, of course, premature and absurd. Yet you glance at the chart below and tell me the Virginia native didn’t make all those throws Saturday.

Of note: The yards listed are those Penn State accumulated on completed passes, but each throw was included in a particular square by the yardage it covered through the air.

Most important of all, McSorley chucked just two uncatchable passes, his interception and a deep toss down the right sideline on his 25th throwing attempt.

That’s a damn good day at the office, no defense, little defense or ’85 Bears defense.

He completed every pass within nine yards of the line of scrimmage and behind it, even all the bubble screens and swing passes where Hackenberg’s accuracy maddeningly fluctuated a year ago.

McSorley also occasionally threaded footballs inside tight zone-coverage windows.

And he hit a deep bomb or two, as well.

A game will not pass next fall without remarking about the impact of Godwin or DaeSean Hamilton, whose big-play abilities were on full display Saturday. The wideouts’ 2016 success will undoubtedly be intertwined with the rise or fall of McSorley, and the quarterback’s stats were ballooned slightly Saturday thanks to their yards gained after the catch.

For now, McSorley is doing his part, no matter where they’re flying on the field, and that’s a good sign for all involved.

Keeping his eyes downfield

Given the NFL-caliber talent soon to exit, it’s frankly improbable that Penn State’s defense next season will match the unit from last year.

As for Saturday, the Lions rarely blitzed, and when they did, they attacked via their most popular five-man rush design from 2015. Obviously, it’s a spring game. No one’s flashing more than a peek of their cards.

The reason we open with this is to illuminate that within the small, two-plus quarter sample from Saturday, there was an even smaller, more diluted pool to draw from regarding McSorley: How he performed under pressure.

Clearly, those snaps were few and far between for the exact reasons mentioned above. Nevertheless, when McSorley was bothered, he largely stepped up by keeping his eyes down field. Most notably, McSorley flung this 19-yard beauty to Hamilton after escaping a zone blitz.

And much earlier, there was a short completion that followed this incoming rush.

Again, drawing whole conclusions from tiny bits of evidence is a tough, dangerous ask, one we’ve carefully navigated to this point. When it comes to handling physical and mental stress, there wasn’t much to analyze. Unfortunately, that ability sits in the top 3 of necessary quarterback qualities behind accuracy and processing information.

How well McSorley will deal with a ferocious pass rush, repeated hits and leading a potential game-winning drive on the road, we don’t know. For now, in the comfort of spring, he looks fine.

September, we know, will not afford McSorley the calm, simplicity or time that Saturday did. If he crumbles against pressure, it renders the rest of his traits almost entirely useless.

So far, what the available tape reveals is that there’s no question McSorley stands armed with the proper tools and system fit to the collective skill set of the offense he’ll direct. And that’s as good a start you can ask for, especially in April.