The upcoming college football season will feature a number of front-stage dramas, one of them being the quarterback play in the SEC. The Southeastern Conference fell on hard times in 2016, with every non-Alabama team (13 in all) losing at least four games before the bowls. One of the ways the conference can make a big comeback is for its quarterbacks to play at a much higher level. This was lacking last season, but people in and around the conference think that a revival can be engineered.
Auburn Tigers
The prevailing opinion in the SEC might be that Alabama has the best quarterback situation, but there is a strong argument to be made that the Crimson Tide’s rival represents the best quarterback situation in the league. Jarrett Stidham played well and produced well when at Baylor before he got injured. The reality that he was injured should not have a meaningful effect on him, for the principal reason that he had a year to sit out, fully rehabilitate, and get physically fresh for the coming season. He should be in great shape to play his very best. He will also play for a head coach, Gus Malzahn, and an offensive coordinator, Chip Lindsey, who have shown they can do good work with talented players. Stidham is the kind of quarterback Malzahn has needed for a long time at Auburn. Other quarterbacks haven’t panned out, but Stidham has proved that he can perform at an elite level. He is likely to be the best in the SEC in 2017.
Alabama Crimson Tide
The Crimson Tide have a good quarterback situation because their team situation is good. Jalen Hurts was a quarterback on a national runner-up team last season. He was not a great quarterback, but he didn’t prevent the Crimson Tide from reaching nearly all of its goals. Alabama had a very successful season with Hurts in a leadership role. Hurts was good for the Crimson Tide last year, using his rushing ability and his mobility out of the pocket to help the offense while minimizing mistakes. When Alabama didn’t overload Hurts with responsibilities, the Crimson Tide steadily moved forward en route to division, conference, and Peach Bowl championships, winning the College Football Playoff semifinals and making the national championship game. Hurts is not as good a passer as Stidham, but he’s more reliable than anyone else in this league will be.
Mississippi State Bulldogs
When Nick Fitzgerald busted onto the scene last year, his running ability caught Texas A&M and other SEC defenses off guard. He is a dual-threat signal caller with a lot of talent, someone coach Dan Mullen can rely on to make big plays. While a number of SEC QB situations are in flux, Mississippi State is in a relatively stable place. That should serve the Bulldogs well in 2017, even though they are limited at other positions.
The Bulldogs have a long ways to go to get back to credibility in the SEC. They were just 6-7 overall and 3-5 in conference play. There was some ugly losses in there too, including the 51-3 drubbing at the hands of Alabama and the 58-42 loss at home to Arkansas. The good news is they won four of their final six games and head into the 2017-18 campaign with some momentum.
Georgia Bulldogs
The most-hyped 2016 freshman quarterback in the SEC was not Jalen Hurts, but Jacob Eason. The prototypical pocket quarterback was viewed as a golden-boy savior of the Georgia offense. Eason stands tall in the pocket and has a gun for an arm. He certainly gave Georgia fans the feeling that the Bulldogs were just on the verge of changing. He didn’t have a dominant 2016 season, but with a year under his belt, he offers legitimate promise and potential, enough to suggest that he can lead Georgia to the top of the SEC East this season.
The Bulldogs entered last season with a lot of hype but failed to live up to expectations. They were just 4-4 in conference play. We’ll see if they’ve learned their lesson for 2017.
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