Quarterback questions abound in the SEC
I cannot remember the last time that the SEC had this many questions at the quarterback position as Spring practice draws to a close.
It’s just one man’s opinion, but:
**–There are only two solid locks returning at quarterback in this league.
**–There are four returning starters who I will call “on the bubble.”
**– There will definitely be six new starting quarterbacks in the SEC when the 2010 season starts.
Here’s the breakdown. Feel free to tell me where you agree or disagree:
THE LOCKS
These guys will go the distance if they stay healthy:
Greg McElroy, Alabama: Led his team to a national championship last season and is 29-0 as a starter dating back to high school. He completed almost 61 percent of his passes last season for 17 touchdowns and only four interceptions. Redshirt freshman AJ McCarron is the backup and is going to be very, very good.
Ryan Mallett, Arkansas: Mallett, who is sitting out the spring while recovering from foot surgery, led the SEC in passing (3,624 yards) with 30 touchdowns and seven interceptions. He should only be better in the second year working in Bobby Petrino’s offense. Mallett is the best NFL prospect in the league.
ON THE BUBBLE
These guys started a year ago and will start again. But there are no guarantees they will keep the job for the entire season:
Mike Hartline, Kentucky: Hartline, a rising senior, suffered a season-ending knee injury in the fifth game against South Carolina and was replaced by true freshman Morgan Newton. Hartline’s experience has given him an edge this spring but he will be pushed by Newton and sophomore Ryan Mossakowski. Newton gives the ‘Cats bigger play-making ability. He also makes more mistakes.
Jordan Jefferson, LSU: Jefferson (2,508 passing, 17 TD) has all kinds of talent but he is wildly inconsistent and I don’t believe the coaching staff trusts him enough to turn really him loose. He will start against North Carolina in the opener (Sept. 4 at the Georgia Dome) but watch this one closely. I’ve spoken to enough football people to believe that Jarrett Lee, who has had an up and down career, is talented enough to regain the job if he can find his confidence again. Lee has talent but has not been developed well.
Stephen Garcia, South Carolina: Coach Steve Spurrier has made no secret of the fact that he is not completely pleased with the junior from Tampa. Garcia’s numbers were decent (2,862 yards, 17 TD) but he still makes too many bad decisions (ninth in the SEC in passing efficiency) and doesn’t work hard enough in the off-season. Freshman Connor Shaw (from Flowery Branch, Ga.) played well in the spring and will push Garcia this summer. Garcia will be on a very short leash once the season begins.
Larry Smith, Vanderbilt: When Smith led the Commodores to a win over Boston College in the 2008 Music City Bowl, the coaching staff thought they had their quarterback of the future. But Smith (46.7 percent passing) and the Vanderbilt offense (ranked 110th nationally) struggled last season. JUCO transfer Jordan Rogers, freshman Charile Goro, and redshirt junior Jared Funk all got snaps in the final spring scrimmage. Head coach Bobby Johnson shook up his offensive coaching staff hoping to get more production so a change in quarterback could also be possible.
THE NEW GUYS
(Last year’s starter in parentheses)
Cameron Newton, Auburn (Chris Todd): The former Florida backup is a great athlete at 6-6, 247-pounds. He won a JUCO national championship and is going to get the chance to run Gus Malzahn’s spread offense. The coaching staff is mum on the subject but it’s hard to see Barrett Trotter, Clint Moseley or Neil Caudle running this offense better.
John Brantley, Florida (Tim Tebow): The junior had a good spring but that was expected. The unexpected news for the Gators this spring is how well freshman Trey Burton and tight end Jordan Reed can run the “Tebow package.” Florida can’t replace Tebow’s leadership and intangibles, but it looks like the offense is going to be very good again.
Aaron Murray, Zack Mettenberger, Logan Gray, Georgia (Joe Cox): Mettenberger has a very good arm, which he showed in the spring game. Gray is a versatile athlete who can do a lot of things. He is one of those “glue guys” who holds a team together. Yes, I know that the coaches are saying that the quarterback competition will carry over until this summer. But barring injury Murray, my Bulldog friends, will be your starting quarterback when the season begins on Sept. 4. He is the complete package. He has what (Duke coach) David Cutcliffe calls the “it” factor that good quarterbacks have.
Nathan Stanley, Ole Miss (Jevan Snead): Stanley has all but locked up the job because an expected challenge from redshirt freshman Raymond Cotton never materialized. Stanley, a redshirt sophomore, is an accurate passer with good mobility. Cotton, a redshirt freshman, is more mobile. JUCO transfer Randall Mackey will get in the mix this summer and could spice things up with this athleticism.
Chris Relf, Tyler Russell, Miss. State (Tyson Lee): Relf, a redshirt junior, played well in the 2009 season finale against Ole Miss (three touchdowns) and has had a very good spring. But Russell is a special talent and, after redshirting last season, is just too good to keep on the bench. Coach Dan Mullen is going to have some nice options in 2010.
Matt Simms, Tyler Bray, Tennessee (Jonathan Crompton): Nick Stephens, the only Tennessee quarterback with experience, has transferred leaving the field open for Simms, a junior college transfer, and Bray, a true freshman. With back-to-back games against Oregon and Florida in September, it’s hard to believe that Simms won’t start the first game if he stays healthy. With a very young offensive line, it could be tough sledding for whoever wins this job.
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230 comments Add your comment
dawgs01
April 14th, 2010
11:02 am
i agree with yall about CMR playing guys that should not play. Just bc you are a senior and paid your dues does not mean you should start this is not pee wee football. Joe T never should have even been on a football field. Bryan Evans continually pissed me off every game being out of position taking poor angles and getting burnt. I hope Grantham plays the best player not the oldest.
DerekDoodoo
April 14th, 2010
11:04 am
UGA versus Tenn will only decide 3rd and 4th places in the SEC East. USC will, after innumerable false dawns, finally experience actual success.
Digger Dogs
April 14th, 2010
11:07 am
Looking back on Richt’s years at Georgia, what you like, is every time he’s had a bad year, he responded with a run for the National Championship. first time was back in 2002, came off a bad year, finished #2 in nation. 2nd time was 2007, came off another bad year, finished #3 in the country. 2009 was his worst year, so I fully expect it, if you’re a student of history, to be another National Championship run.
I also think if Richt wins the SEC in 2010 & 2011, Richt will knock out Saban, Spurrier, and Meyer. They’ll all either quit, retire, or head to another team. Saban and Meyer always quit at the 5-6 year mark. Spurrier’s close to his breaking point. So Richt has a lot of incentive to win. He can send his competition packing, and I am confident, looking at Richt’s history, he will send them all packing.
ed
April 14th, 2010
11:12 am
Nick, in the interest of accuracy, I’ll modify my statement and say Grantham will not only be the best defense in the SEC, he’ll be the top 10 best in the nation in both points allowed, and yardage surrended. And my guess, he’ll be in the top 20 nationally in forced turnovers/takeaways. You forget, Grantham SPURNED Nick Saban when Saban BEGGED him to be his defensive coordinator. Grantham is THE MASTER, Smart is the PROTEGE.
Clemson T
April 14th, 2010
11:14 am
Clemson will beat south carolina this year like a rented mule. spurrier’s not getting it done at usc—they will push him out in a year or two and bring in a coach with an offense for the 2000s, not the 1990s–bank on it.
Charles from Reeltown
April 14th, 2010
11:22 am
ed, I guess Grantham will make all the difference just like John Chavis did at LSU?
JB
April 14th, 2010
11:23 am
Carolina will hire Paterno from Penn St. when Spurrier is forced out, LOL. They need to hire them a young, tireless working energetic young coach who’s ready. These guys Spurrier is recruiting weren’t even born when he was tearing it up at Florida
Holtz and Spurrier are two pretty good coach’s who couldn’t get it done over there.
Anonymous
April 14th, 2010
11:25 am
Digger:
I want some of whatever it is you’re smokin’!!!
JP
April 14th, 2010
11:26 am
Clemson T seems very confident considering the Tigers were owned in the game last fall in Columbia. The same defense that shut down your offense and heisman hopeful only lost 2 starters.
Gatorzone
April 14th, 2010
11:31 am
Digger, you have an unusual thought process. It is quite comical!
SOGADOG
April 14th, 2010
11:31 am
Tony,
You must have missed the G day game. Mettenberger has the “it” factor, but you are right, Murray will start Sept. 4 because Mettenberger cant hold his beer very well.
HardTruth Soldier....
April 14th, 2010
11:36 am
Tony have to say that with UGA, starting either guy isn’t going to hurt them. What most people aren’t looking at is that UGA had alot of freshmen talent play last year at key positions. O Charles, R Wooten, W Ealey, and those where at the skilled positions. This is really a team on the verge of something “BIG”, and this is a must year for Mark Richt. This is a team with something to prove this year after seeing your neighbors win national championships. Look for UGA and surprisingly Auburn to have “shock” years in the SEC. Auburn has a “reborn” QB, and a solid kid coming in at RB, and some could argue a better recruiting class than anybody. LSU will be a beast to contend with after last year, and don’t think that the people in the Bayou haven’t reminded Les Miles that Nick Saban won the big one last year. Ut fans hold your breath, with the departure of Bryce Brown, a young QB and a new head coach it’s going to be a hellacious first year for head Coach Derek Dooley. Gator fans ya’ll will have a good year, but when you’ve had “great” years a good year will seem.. well good! Look for UGA and the winner of LSU/ALA to play in the SEC Title game. Last but not lost in the crowd, if ARK can find a defense, the West becomes anybody’s to win, but Ala just has to good of a head coach to lose in tight games>
SEC West Headlines – 4/14/10 « MrSEC.com
April 14th, 2010
11:40 am
[...] 1. Wisely, Tim Tebow has declined an invitation to attend the NFL draft in New York. (Why risk being this year’s Aaron Rodgers?)2. Buffalo remains one of the more likely Tebow landing spots.3. Here’s a final wrap on Florida’s spring practice.4. Georgia had better stay healthy at wide receiver this year.5. Wideout Marlon Brown still has plenty to prove, according to this notes column.6. Kentucky’s Chandler Burden — who is moving from defensive line to offensive line — believes he’s basically a third-year freshman.7. John Wall is reportedly close to signing with an agency owned by LeBron James.8. Defensive coordinator Justin Wilcox says defensive tackle Montori Hughes has the ability to star at Tennessee.9. Freshman defensive linemen Corey Miller and Jacques Smith are getting used to the challenges of college life.10. Sportswriter John Adams will be a celebrity coach at UT’s spring game, but don’t expect him to run through the T.11. Did you hear the one about UT trying to charge sportswriters $50 to attend a scrimmage. No, really.12. Former Vols Eric Berry and Dan Williams have been invited to New York to attend the NFL draft. 13. Emmanuel Negedu — who suffered sudden cardiac arrest in September — has been cleared to play again… but not by Tennessee.14. In case you didn’t see it HERE… the questionable SEC quarterback situation is broken down HERE, too. [...]
HardTruth Soldier....
April 14th, 2010
11:44 am
Clemson T please leave the “BIG BOYS” website, Basketball season is over, and ya’ll aint even worthy then. You got spanked by S. Carolina, and your ACC Opponent for the title game got man handled by a “subpar” and less than well coached UGA team. Bottom line, the ACC IS A JOKE in football!
Gatorzone
April 14th, 2010
11:48 am
JB
April 14th, 2010
9:55 am
I wouldn’t exactly call Brantley having SEC experience being put in a game with a 30-40 point lead and the other team has “quit”, mostly against non ranked teams . Would the above poster please list which “SEC ” Games he entered and what his stats where for the game. When he drives the Gators down the field with 3 minutes tolay against say ” Bama’ to win the game, then I’ll tip my hat.
JB, Brantley has plenty of game time experience. Up until now he has not been in a position to drive against Bama, but having seen his performance I will say he can do it. He will be a better passer than Tebow, but only people who have watched him for the last 2 years are assured of that fact. The rest of the SEC will have to find out on gameday. UF may even be underdogs against LSU and UGA, which will benefit them this year. We know they will be underdogs against Bama.
ed
April 14th, 2010
11:49 am
Florida will be decent, they have a tough schedule. 9-4, Meyer has great seasons 60% of the time, goes 3 or 4 losses in the SEC about 40% of the time, this is one of those 10-3 or 9-4 years for him.
Auburn has a BRUTAL schedule: Clemson (9-5 last year), S. Car, Ark (0-2 last 2 ), Ole Miss (9-4 last year) LSU (0-3 last 3), Georgia (0-4 last 4), and Alabama.
Sanford Drive
April 14th, 2010
11:50 am
I feel like Stephen Garcia has been playing at SC fo 8 years.
JB
April 14th, 2010
11:56 am
Gatorzone…….We have many many questions in Athens before we feel we will be ready for you guys.
A new unproven QB, also very thin at receiver ( But one of the best in A J Green). A new DC with a new system. Very young and thin along the defensive line. Our Strength’s will be OL, TE, and two above average running backs. See you in Jacksonville….
GO
April 14th, 2010
12:13 pm
GO blue mountain state all the way
Our O-Line Rocks
April 14th, 2010
12:15 pm
Florida has a harder schedule than 2009.
USF (ranked top 20 last year)
Fl St. (pre-season top 25)
UGA
S. Caro.
Alabama
LSU
Florida might win 2 or 3 of these 6 games.
How2fish
April 14th, 2010
12:16 pm
Good article TB I always find the folks 2nd guessing CMR’s QB choices slightly amusing..after all he has only coached 2 Heisman winning QB’s and the No.1 NFL draft pick at that position. No coach in the SEC can equal that I think and yet we have tons of “fans” that think they can do better. But I guess that’s what makes blogging popular everyone is an expert and there is no penalty for being wrong….lol.
Bill W.
April 14th, 2010
12:23 pm
Murray to start and he will mature fine. Too talented not to. Dawgs have a chance to win the SEC East if things go well.
hit em' hard
April 14th, 2010
12:31 pm
Georgia’s schedule this year is perfect for a run at the Championship. No Alabama or LSU like Florida has on their schedule.
Ga Tech–Richt has 8-1 record
Auburn Richt is 4-0
S. Carolina-Richt is 7-2
Kentucky Richt is 7-2
So that means Florida is the toughest game. Luckily for Coach Richt:
1- Down year for Florida with Tebow, Harvin, and Charlie Strong gone now
2- They don’t play Florida until the 9th game on Oct. 30
rocketide
April 14th, 2010
12:32 pm
You gators are as delusional as your bipolar coach. We will be better and more physical this year than last. We’ll leave you crying and stuttering on the field. The SEC east looks really weak this year.
UF "86" Class
April 14th, 2010
12:34 pm
“”"”"”"”"”" UF-vs-AL”"”"”"”"”"”"
SEC and National
That IT……
...ACC...
April 14th, 2010
12:35 pm
………………Josh Nesbitt for Heisman
Patrick
April 14th, 2010
12:37 pm
Our O-Line Rocks, ed, digger; all=patrick got kicked out of the marines for obsessing with blowup dolls.
hit parade
April 14th, 2010
12:38 pm
What was that record for Richt against Florida ?
Did you leave it behind in Shreveport ?
Patrick
April 14th, 2010
12:38 pm
hit em’ hard is also me.
The rest of us
April 14th, 2010
12:40 pm
Can’t wait until the “My Tebow, my Tebow, why hast thou forsaken me!” cries start up after the second loss of the season.
hit em' hard
April 14th, 2010
12:40 pm
Arkansas is on our schedule too, but again, like Auburn, Richt beats them every time, Richt is 4-0 against Arkansas.
Not to say those teams, Ark, Auburn, Kent., S. Carolina, and Ga Tech won’t be tough games, they might, but Richt usually comes out on top of all these 5 teams, with an improved offense AND defense, and the punter/kicker combo, Georgia will make a run. Thanks to the schedule.
Patrick
April 14th, 2010
12:45 pm
Georgia will make a run alright; to Shreveport.
AceDawg
April 14th, 2010
12:45 pm
I’ve gotta believe whoever UGA’s quarterback becomes, they will be in the top 1/3 of SEC quarterback’s statistically even if the guy isn’t that good. That said, I am very confident that our starter will be quite good and will be all-SEC caliber (though there will be more than enough good ones to leave a couple solid qb’s without the honor, so who knows)
Gatorzone
April 14th, 2010
12:46 pm
It is very comical to see UGA fans predicting UF’s demise every spring. We shall see. No need to talk when you have 2 National Championships since 06. But ed, and our o-line rocks; why don’t you wait until you win something significant before being blowhards about UF losing and Meyer’s “history in the SEC.” His history in the SEC includes his one stint with Florida. How can you predict a trend from the last 5 years?
Ambien
April 14th, 2010
12:50 pm
Why does Urban Meyer abuse me so bad. I never did anything wrong to him.
Jeremy Fowler
April 14th, 2010
12:51 pm
You’re telling me, Ambien.
Shelly Meyer
April 14th, 2010
12:52 pm
Nobody knows the tantrums I’ve seen. Nobody knows but Tebow.
Patrick=ambien=jeremy fowler=blowup doll
April 14th, 2010
12:53 pm
Enter your comments here
How2fish
April 14th, 2010
12:54 pm
Gatorzone I hate to agree with you but until we beat the Gators a couple of times in a row all we can do is wait…however that being said I think we are close to those days….but again till we actually play those games..well 2 NC’s since 06 speaks for itself.I don’t have to give the Gators love but that record does demand respect.
Patrick=ambien=jeremy fowler=blowup doll
April 14th, 2010
12:54 pm
gatorzone, the guy is a complete idiot, you cant reason with someone in therapy.
ed
April 14th, 2010
12:56 pm
slow news dayt huh?
hit em' hard
April 14th, 2010
12:58 pm
Georgia has real chance in 2010. Looking at Florida, Auburn’s, Alabam’s schedule, I really disagreee with Tony B here.
Gatorzone
April 14th, 2010
12:58 pm
how2fish, you seem like a logical guy. Do you thing Richt will play Mett, since he has all of the intangibles? Or, will he play Gray until he falls and then insert Mett? It sounds like the little kerfuffle in Remerton is going to keep the obvious choice from starting.
ed
April 14th, 2010
12:59 pm
geez, those Florida fans get mighty defensive when you start sayign Meyer has a tougher schedule than Richt. Who cares? It’s true.
Shelly Meyer
April 14th, 2010
1:02 pm
Urban, wake up! Urban, wake up! Stop screaming “Saban” and wake up!
roger
April 14th, 2010
1:02 pm
funny to read how Florida fans say the same junk every year, we will replace Harvin, we’ll find a go-to WR, more Pro Style, less fumbling from our rb’s, Brantley’s the greatest (except for Mettenberger of course) blah blah, lah.
Our O-Line Rocks
April 14th, 2010
1:07 pm
Brantley’s not even the best QB in his state. FSU- better. FSU will beat Florida this year with Ponder at QB–he’s the real deal, probably #1 NFL draft next year.
http://www.seminoles.com/sports/m-footbl/mtt/ponder_christian00.html
Tide Rising
April 14th, 2010
1:11 pm
“AJ McCarron is going to be a very, very good qb.” You’re right about that Tony. Our O spent the spring working on a lot more “explosive” plays of 20 yards or more. Look for a Bama O to be much more wide open this season.
John Brantley- 3rd year in the system and a better pure passer than Tebow- UF will be fine. The other 2 qbs will fill in on running plays the same way Tebow spelled Chris Leak as a freshman. That seemed to work as the gators won a national title in 06 using that system. Somehow people tend to forget that. Big mistake.
Georgia- One poster said it best. Logan Gray couldn’t beat out an average qb last year in Joe Cox but yet he is still in the mix competing against Murray/Mett. If neither of these guys can decidedly pull away from a guy who was 1 for 1 in the UF game with a td to Brandon Spikes then how good can either of these guys really be? A redshirt year is plenty of time to establish yourself in the pecking order. AJ McCarron won the backup job over Star Jackson at Bama 2/3rds of the way through last season. Why is it that neither of these 2 guys can separate from the mediocre Logan Gray in a race that will continue into the fall according to Richt?
Cam Newton- He looks like the real deal at AU and if he lives up to half the hype AU is going to be much improved and maybe win 10 games including some bigguns.
Ryan Mallett- The best pure pro prospect but I’m not 100% sold on him. Sometimes he makes some really poor passing decisions like winging the ball 50 yds downfield on a 3rd and 4 and makes a wildly errant throw right after a great throw.
Jordan Jefferson- I said it last preseason that I just wasn’t sold on this guy and sure enough he exceeded my low expectations of him. Can you imagine how good LSU could have been last year or this year if they had a Mallett, Brantley, or McElroy? They could be scary good if they could just get a qb to play steady if not spectacular football. An improved rushing attack would help too of course.
Stephen Garcia- Ya gotta grow up kid.
Nathan Stanely at Ole Miss- May be steadier and better than we think.
MSU- Dan Mullen will get these qbs playing better and better. MSU will pull a surprise or 2 this year.
UT- Nick Stephens was not a bad qb and a lot of people including UT players and fans thought he beat out Crompton in spring last year. His stats were demonstrably superior to Crompton in spring practices. But Kiffin started Crompton for the sole reason that he wanted a senior starter so that he could recruit a super freshman qb with the promise of starting immediately. Bray and Simms quickly surpassed Stephens this spring so that kinda tells me these kids could be a lot better than what we’re thinking. They will still have growing pains after Dooley’s initial transition year but the future looks bright for UT at qb. Having something like only 6 scholarship offensive lineman certainly doesn’t help a young qb though.
ed
April 14th, 2010
1:16 pm
Hope we get Bama in the SEC Championship. Richt is 3-1 against Bama. Of course, if it’s Auburn, fine too, Richt is 4-0. Richt is 7-1 against those Alabama teams.
Downtown Gator Brown
April 14th, 2010
1:19 pm
Tide risin, how2fish and others; you seem like reasonable dudes who are proud of their teams, yet reasonable. My take on the 3 teams is; Bama will be unbelievable on offense and young but aggressive on D. UGA will have a dominant running game and if the QB works out, will have a better than avg passing attack, the D will be inexperienced with the new system but very aggressive. UF will be more explosive on offense and will be similar to Bama on D. All three will have good seasons.