Facebook with Latestnigeriannews  Twieet with latestnigeriannews  RSS Page Feed
Home  |  All Headlines  |  Punch  |  Thisday  |  Daily Sun  |  Vanguard   |  Guardian  |  The Nation  |  Daily Times  |  Daily Trust  |  Daily Independent
World  |  Sports  |  Technology  |  Entertainment  |  Business  |  Politics  |  Tribune  |  Leadership  |  National Mirror  |  BusinessDay  |  More Channels...

Viewing Mode:

Archive:

  1.     Tool Tips    
  2.    Collapsible   
  3.    Collapsed     
Click to view all Entertainment headlines today

Click to view all World headlines today

SEC Football Q&A: Which Team's QB Situation Is Most Concerning

Published by Bleacher Report on Tue, 31 May 2016


For some schools, the quarterback picture came into focus this spring and teams have the luxury of working with the unquestioned No. 1 signal-caller through "optional" summer workouts.Others weren't afforded that luxury and will navigate through summer with quarterback questions dominating headlines.Which team's quarterback position is the most concerning heading into 2016'That question and more are answered in this edition of SEC Q&A.This question goes hand-in-hand with which coaches are on the hot seat, so consider the finalists LSU, Texas A&M, Kentucky and Auburn.Of those, though, only Auburn's quarterback position is unsettled, which makes it the most concerning situation in the SEC as we turn the calendar to June.Some of that is by necessity.John Franklin III transferred from junior college after serving as a backup for East Mississippi Community College last year, and he needs time within the system to get comfortable with the coaches, playbook and his new teammates.In what's a critical year for Tigers head coach Gus Malzahn, he's the best shot they have to get back into SEC West contention thanks to his ability to be a difference-maker on the ground and keep defenses honest with a strongalbeit erraticarm.There's no way that Auburn can trust Jeremy Johnson after he threw six interceptions in three games prior to being benched last year. Former Elite 11 MVP Sean White is a tremendous talent, but I'm not sure the staff trusts him to last a full season after he was banged up last year after replacing Johnson.Most of Malzahn's eggs are in Franklin's basket, which is a tremendous risk. It could pay off. After all, Malzahn and offensive coordinator Rhett Lashlee did turn former Georgia cornerback Nick Marshall into an SEC champion quarterback.It's going to be a wild ride if history repeats itself.Jim McElwain rode the roller coaster during his first season as the head coach of Florida, jumping out to a 6-0 record before his starting quarterback, Will Grier, was suspended, injuries decimated the young offensive line and his offense became a shell of itself down the stretch.With that said, he did lead the Gators to their first SEC East championship since 2009, and I don't think Kirby Smart can match that in his first season as Georgia's head coach in 2016.The Bulldogs are set at running back at Nick Chubb and Sony Michel, have a tremendous future (and possibly present) at quarterback with Jacob Eason and an experienced secondary.But there's an abundance of inexperience along the defensive line, sophomore Trent Thompson is really the only defensive lineman Georgia trusts at the moment and, as Chip Towers of theAtlanta Journal-Constitution noted, the offensive line isn't much more stable."I wouldnt say anybodys been standing out. Its been a struggle with that group," Smart said according to Towers. "Nobody has really stood out, Id say."Regardless of style, the SEC is still a line of scrimmage conference, and Georgia is unsettled on both sides of the ball in that department.That, coupled with a loaded Tennessee roster and more stability at Florida, will likely prevent Georgia from winning the East in Smart's first season.Nobody is talking about the Week 3 showdown between Texas A&M and Auburn at Jordan-Hare Stadium, and that's a shame.Both of those teams have the potential to contend for the SEC West title, and that game will likely serve as a de facto elimination game with the winner having a chance and the loser fighting a nearly impossible uphill battle for the remainder of the season.Texas A&M has a loaded defense, made the proper changes at offensive coordinator (Noel Mazzone) and offensive line coach (Jim Turner) and signed one of the best graduate-transfer quarterbacks on the market in Trevor Knight.Will Knight consistently look like he did when he steamrolled Alabama in the 2014 Allstate Sugar Bowl while with Oklahoma' Probably not. But if all goes according to plan for the Aggies, he won't have to.If they run the ball and play defense up to their capabilities, all Knight has to do is give off the impression that he can be that same guy who lit up the Crimson Tide for the Aggies to be in the mix.For Auburn, it's a similar story.The defensive is loaded with studs like end Carl Lawson, tackle Montravius Adams, linebacker T.J. Neal, cornerback Carlton Davis and safety "Rudy" Ford. Malzahn's teams always run the ball, and the offensive line should be able to evolve into one of the SEC's best.If the Tigers can find somebody who can consistently make the right decisions at quarterback, they should be in the mix as well.The twopotentiallydangerous SEC West teams meet on the Plains on Week 3, in what will be a fascinating matchup.I've said this since the day the College Football Playoff was announced, and nothing has changed to suggest anything different.There won't be two teams from the same conference in the playoff unless there are no other options.In 2011, this case presented itself.The debate on who should play LSU, either Alabama or Oklahoma State, dominated headlines down the stretch that year, but there was no doubt that both would be in a four-team postseason tournament had one existed.Members of the College Football Playoff selection committee will (and do) sell the goal as finding the best four teams, regardless of conference. OK, but if the SEC champion is already in and a team without a conference title has a similar resume to conference champs from around the country, those other teams are getting in because arbitrary titles like conference championships still matter in the minds of the members of the committee.That's not the way it should be, but that's the way it is.The playoff exists, in part, to be a spectacle. It exists to be college football's "Super Bowl." But unlike pro football, the regional nature of college football won't allow that spectacle to exist unless a broad swath of the country is represented.Quotes obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted. Statistics courtesy of cfbstats.com unless otherwise noted. Recruiting information courtesy of 247Sports.Barrett Sallee is the lead SEC college football writer and national college football video analyst for Bleacher Report, as well as a host on Bleacher Report Radio on SiriusXM 83. Follow Barrett on Twitter @BarrettSallee.
Click here to read full news..

All Channels Nigerian Dailies: Punch  |  Vanguard   |  The Nation  |  Thisday  |  Daily Sun  |  Guardian  |  Daily Times  |  Daily Trust  |  Daily Independent  |   The Herald  |  Tribune  |  Leadership  |  National Mirror  |  BusinessDay  |  New Telegraph  |  Peoples Daily  |  Blueprint  |  Nigerian Pilot  |  Sahara Reporters  |  Premium Times  |  The Cable  |  PM News  |  APO Africa Newsroom

Categories Today: World  |  Sports  |  Technology  |  Entertainment  |  Business  |  Politics  |  Columns  |  All Headlines Today

Entertainment (Local): Linda Ikeji  |  Bella Naija  |  Tori  |  Daily News 24  |  Pulse  |  The NET  |  DailyPost  |  Information Nigeria  |  Gistlover  |  Lailas Blog  |  Miss Petite  |  Olufamous  |  Stella Dimoko Korkus Blog  |  Ynaija  |  All Entertainment News Today

Entertainment (World): TMZ  |  Daily Mail  |  Huffington Post

Sports: Goal  |  African Football  |  Bleacher Report  |  FTBpro  |  Kickoff  |  All Sports Headlines Today

Business & Finance: Nairametrics  |  Nigerian Tenders  |  Business Insider  |  Forbes  |  Entrepreneur  |  The Economist  |  BusinessTech  |  Financial Watch  |  BusinessDay  |  All Business News Headlines Today

Technology (Local): Techpoint  |  TechMoran  |  TechCity  |  Innovation Village  |  IT News Africa  |  Technology Times  |  Technext  |  Techcabal  |  All Technology News Headlines Today

Technology (World): Techcrunch  |  Techmeme  |  Slashdot  |  Wired  |  Hackers News  |  Engadget  |  Pocket Lint  |  The Verge

International Networks:   |  CNN  |  BBC  |  Al Jazeera  |  Yahoo

Forum:   |  Nairaland  |  Naij

Other Links: Home   |  Nigerian Jobs