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
Patrick
April 14th, 2010
1:20 pm
you better worry about SC, KY and Vandy. UGA will probably go 6-6.
Gatorzone
April 14th, 2010
1:22 pm
Tide Rising, I agree 100%. Just not sure if Newton will be the savior Auburn hopes for.
Digger Dogs
April 14th, 2010
1:22 pm
I think this will be the start of a 2 year Georgia run, 14-0, 2010 & 2011, Georgia WILL NOT LOSE A SINGLE GAME and will set the NCAA RECORD for consecutive wins.
And Richt will also knock 3 coaches from the SEC: Saban and Meyer both quit ever 5-6 years. Spurrier will be knocked out of the conference this year, Spurrier’s always said he’s retiring at 65, he’s 65.
Capstone Report » Crimson Tide briefing: QBs & defense
April 14th, 2010
1:23 pm
[...] QBs On the issue of quarterbacks, Mr. College Football provides an overview of the quarterback situation in the SEC. He had this to say about Alabama [...]
Tide Rising
April 14th, 2010
1:30 pm
ed,
Richt is 3-1 against Bama. But beating Bama teams coached by Shula and playing with 21 fewer scholarship players is a little different than playing a Saban coached Bama team with a full complement of scholarships. Even the 2007 Bama team that lost in OT to Georgia(Saban’s first team) had jr. and sr. classes that were decimated due to probation. I wouldn’t brag too much about beating us in the early and mid 2000s. Hell, LA Monroe was doing that.
Patrick=digger dogs= ed= o line rocks,etc...
April 14th, 2010
1:30 pm
I guess you didnt research enough to realize after the 2010 season the doggies lose about 14 seniors so 2011 will be another down year. poor I got kicked out of the marines patrick.
innocent bystander
April 14th, 2010
1:31 pm
You are correct Tide Rising and Richt has been going down hill ever since he graduated Donnans players.
Tide Rising
April 14th, 2010
1:33 pm
Gatorzone,
Newton may not be a savior but they say he’s looking pretty darn good. Some of their other skill players like Onterio McCaleb who added 10 lbs muscle are looking tough also. AU still lacks depth and is short on scholarship players but I expect them to make some noise assuming Newton works out fairly well.
Tide Rising
April 14th, 2010
1:40 pm
Digger dogs,
Meyer and Saban both quit every 5-6 years so both will be gone shortly?
Nope. They simply took logical job promotions every few years as all coaches do. Meyer went from Bowling Green to a bigger Utah program to a huge Florida program. Its a logical series of job promotions each at a bigger program with bigger pay. Saban went from Toledo to Mich state to LSU and then to the Dolphins. Each was a logical job promotion to a position with bigger pay and prestige. He left the Dolphins and took a million dollar pay cut to step back down to college and take the Bama job because he realized he is not a pro coach. Plain and simple.
You can always hope one or both will leave from here but there is nowhere else for either of them to go on the college level. Meyer’s offense is not a pro type offense and there is no better job for him than UF. Saban burned his bridges to the pros and frankly there is no one out there left that can pay Bama type money to pull him away. There is a reason why his name never surfaced as a candidate for the ND and USC jobs. Its because he is not a candidate for any other jobs.
Keep hoping but you’re just going to be disappointed.
Digger Dogs
April 14th, 2010
1:40 pm
Meyer never has a good season when he faces THE TRIO:
Georgia
LSU
Auburn or Bama
2010 is one of those years because he gets
Georgia
Auburn
LSU
Goes 9-3 or 9-4 when THE TRIO falls on his schedule.
roger
April 14th, 2010
1:45 pm
Richt finished #2 in the nation in 2007 with his own recruits–best uphill Richt’s had. Meyer has never won the big one with his own recruits. We’ll see what he can do this year.
balls
April 14th, 2010
1:46 pm
I agree with you on Murray. Though the qb race in Athens still doesn’t have an honest front runner on merit, I just believe Richt will not repeat the nonsense he did with Shockley and Greene, and probably start Murray if no other reason he has the most accolades out of the group and the most hype. I’d feel comfortable with any of them playing actually.
Digger Dogs
April 14th, 2010
1:47 pm
Bama, not Auburn, so 2010 THE TRIO is:
Georgia
LSU
Alabama
Meyer gets Alabama and LSU, back to back, early in the season. Not good at all. For Florida. Very good for Georgia of course.
Tide Rising
April 14th, 2010
1:49 pm
Digger Dogs,
Were you serious when you said Georgia goes 14-0 in 2010 and goes undefeated in 2011 and then sets the NCAA record for consecutive wins? I can’t tell if you’re serious, just kidding, or truly delusional. BTW, I think the record for consecutive wins is something like 45 or 47. Bud Wilkinson from Oklahoma won something around that number in 1955-1958 I think at OU. Not sure though. But I am sure Georgia will not win 40 something games in a row to break the record. That much I can guarantee you.
innocent bystander
April 14th, 2010
1:50 pm
dumba$$ patrick, meyer faced Georgia LSU and Bama in 08 and that turned out ok and the same in 09 but bama won. face facts patrick you are a loser.
innocent bystander
April 14th, 2010
1:50 pm
tide rising, he is serious; patrick is insane.
Gatorzone
April 14th, 2010
1:53 pm
Roger, how about 08? All of the starters were recruited by Meyer.
Tide Rising
April 14th, 2010
1:55 pm
Roger,
Meyer has never won big with his own recruits? He came to Florida I believe in late 2004 for the 2005 season so the recruits for the 2005 recruiting class were his. Zook I think was fired before the FSU game in 2004. From 05 to 08 is his recruits so that’s 4 years worth of recruits when he won the national title in 08. How is that not winning with his own recruits?
Shelly Meyer
April 14th, 2010
2:05 pm
Who do you think recruited Tim Tebow to come to Florida?
richt fan
April 14th, 2010
2:07 pm
I’ve always though Richt had in him a championship level consistency that reminded me of the Wooden’s and Geno’s of the world, you know those 80 game winning streak guys (Georgia has College football’s longest winning streak of 8+ wins per year).
I think Richt has a Wodden like run in him, and I think it’s about to start. Yes, the record for consecutive wins will be broken by Mark Richt. Doable, been done before in other sports, Richt’s more consistent than Meyer or Saban or Spurrier. A few tweaks and it’s perfection, year after year.
Meyer knows it, that’s why Meyer schedules Richt on his bye week as often as possible, like 2010. Meyer wants 2 weeks to prepare for Richt.
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/sports_blog/2010/04/wooden-geno-auriemma-connecticut-ucla.html
Gatorzone
April 14th, 2010
2:08 pm
Roger, last year wasnt too bad either.
Patrick Richt
April 14th, 2010
2:08 pm
Why does everyone make fun of me?
Urban
April 14th, 2010
2:09 pm
I think it worked out ok last year when markie mark had 2 weeks to prepare and I only had 1. What really threw me was the black Grambling State Uniforms Markie put on em.
Jeremy Foley
April 14th, 2010
2:11 pm
I wish georgia wasn’t so good; I lay asleep at night worrying about what would I do to beat Georgia if Urban quit. I know! I will bring back Ron Zook, the Zooker went 2-1 against the puppies.
Digger Dogs
April 14th, 2010
2:15 pm
Oklahoma won the Championship with a Freshman QB, so did Miami. Nothing new there. So will Georgia. All the support pieces are there for the QB, best wr (AJ), best TE (OC), best RB (Ealey), best O-Line (247 a game and only 10 sacks), plus the best defensive staff IN THE NATION (Grantham, Belin, Lakatos, Garner)and the best PUNTER AND KICKER COMBO IN THE NATION. Best offensive mind in the nation (Richt). Best set of QB’s in the country (only team in the nation with with 3 Elite 11 QB’s).
Shelly Meyer
April 14th, 2010
2:15 pm
Jeremy, I wish you hadn’t made my husband come back.
Jeremy Foley
April 14th, 2010
2:17 pm
Digger, I mean Shelley he did just to torture you. Arent you proud of your new truck?
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1158327737&ref=name
hammertime
April 14th, 2010
2:18 pm
I see our old buddy patrick is back for another afternoon of torture.
Agent
April 14th, 2010
2:19 pm
I would like to apologize to the Gator Nation. I had no idea that the party I threw the Monday before the SEC championship game would cause so much agony for you. I’ll make sure the next party I throw is after the first week in December.
Digger Dogs
April 14th, 2010
2:19 pm
Make that 3 Elite 11 QB’s and another that’s a Parade All-Amercan who just threw for 4500 yards and 55 touchdowns his senior year. 4 PREMIER QB’s, BEST SET IN THE COUNTRY.
hammertime
April 14th, 2010
2:21 pm
digger you might be right about having the best WR, but Bama has the 2 best RB, your OL sucks every year except when you run thru Tech, your Coordinator got fired for having an NFL worst defense in his only coordinator job, and its always a bad sign when you have a great punter; its because your OFFENSE SUCKS. And your QB’s couldnt beat out Joe Cox last year.
Shelley Meyer
April 14th, 2010
2:22 pm
That looks like the truck that the Alabama boosters took away from Travis Carroll when he transfered to Florida.
blow up doll
April 14th, 2010
2:22 pm
Patrick, where did you get the new truck?
Gatorzone
April 14th, 2010
2:36 pm
Agent, thanks. We would appreciate that. You really screwed us last year. That, and oh yeah a REALLY good/great BAMA team that ran right over our Defense.
pi$$onatechie
April 14th, 2010
2:37 pm
Florida Fans, I cant believe how delusional you are?!! you talk about John Brantley as the next Peyton Manning despite the fact his own coach, Meyer, is not confidant he can run the offense! Florida has no good RB, 70% of your ground game was generated by Tebow. Brantley is a good QB, don’t get me wrong, but he doesn’t fit in Meyer’s offense. 60% of Meyer’s offense is about running the option and that is not feasible with Brantley under center. If Georgia cut down the turn overs and Penalties committed Georgia should not face any difficulty in beating Florida
Delbert D.
April 14th, 2010
2:42 pm
“Quarterback Questions Abound in the SEC”
So why all the comments about the ACC?
kaput
April 14th, 2010
2:44 pm
pi$$onatechie –
Wrong, wrong and wrong.
Meyer is supremely confident in Brantley, and has said so repeatedly.
Florida has three good running backs and a fourth enrolling this fall. Demps, Gillislee, Moody and Brown will pack quite the punch, figuratively. Demps and Gillislee will be the guys, and will perform well.
Brantley will run the offense in a much more efficient manner than did another national championship winning quarterback, Chris Leak. Yes, there will be a ‘wildcat’ guy coming off of the bench, but that doesn’t take away from the fact that Brantley will put up great numbers.
It’s like people have forgotten that Meyer won before Tebow . . .
The biggest weakness for that team is going to be pass rushing ends, they have bodies but nobody has shown the ability to consistently pressure the quarterback, yet.
blow up doll
April 14th, 2010
2:45 pm
pi$$onatechie, patrick why are you so ashamed to use your name? Is it because of all of the gay women on your facebook?
Nutt-Smokin Gaytor Fans
April 14th, 2010
2:48 pm
REMEMBER THE ARKANSAS GAME? YOU CHEAT AND YOUR LUCKY!!! WITH THE TRADITION OF WAKE FORREST!!!!!!!!!
hammerin hank
April 14th, 2010
2:48 pm
pi$$onatechie
If Georgia cut down the turn overs and Penalties committed Georgia should not face any difficulty in beating Florida.
Just like every other year since 1990.
PTI
April 14th, 2010
2:48 pm
Pardon the interruption, but………this is the worst article EVER WRITTEN. Actually, is it even an article???
hammerin hank
April 14th, 2010
2:50 pm
Nutt-Smokin Gaytor Fans.
Cry me a river U G A Y fans=LSU cheated us, the refs cheated us, ESPN cheated us. Lou Holtz, Chris Fowler, Kirk Herbstreit, Lee Corso, Mark May (well actually he does) all hate us. Even the refs and SEC hate us.
blow up doll
April 14th, 2010
2:51 pm
Come on out of the closet Patrick.
Bulldog59
April 14th, 2010
2:52 pm
Good SEC breakdown by TB, and it appears he is correct about AM being the starter for Georgia. Although, based on scrimmages to date, not sure Murray can hold off Mettenberger once the season starts and ZM has served his suspension. For sure, if AM starts missing wide-open receivers and/or throwing back across the middle for an INT the minute he feels a blitz, he will hit the sidelines and ZM will get a shot.
Logan Gray
April 14th, 2010
2:53 pm
The pick that midget Aaron threw saturday kind of reminded me of the one I threw to Spikes.
Gatorzone
April 14th, 2010
2:54 pm
Nutt-Smokin Gaytor Fans
April 14th, 2010
2:48 pm
REMEMBER THE ARKANSAS GAME? YOU CHEAT AND YOUR LUCKY!!! WITH THE TRADITION OF WAKE FORREST!!!!!!!!!
Wow…
WAKE FORREST??? Really. Way to show your intelligence.
Innocent bystander
April 14th, 2010
2:55 pm
Gatorzone
Nutt-Smokin Gaytor Fans is another one of Patricks names.
SOUTHGADAWG88
April 14th, 2010
2:57 pm
pti..bud ..crack me up lol
Patrick Fact
April 14th, 2010
3:01 pm
Under CMR:
UGA is 14-11 against SEC east opponents the last 5 years.
UGA is 2-7 against Florida
UGA is 3-8 against Florida and Tenn. the last five years.
UGA is 2-3 against Tenn. the last five years.
UGA has never beaten won all its SEC east games in a season
UGA has never beaten Tenn and Fla in the same season
PTI
April 14th, 2010
3:01 pm
Here is some edgy analysis and a true article. There are many examples, but this approach is one TB could emulate..just sayin,,,geeshh…… http://bleacherreport.com/articles/377978-auburn-football-a-look-at-the-opinion-of-the-rival-camp