Fans of the Alabama Crimson Tide have watched Quarterback AJ McCarron emerge from a novice quarterback to a two-time national champion. With his season being his last in white and crimson, one question remains, “Who will take his place when he leaves for the NFL?”
Besides McCarron, there are seven other quarterbacks in this year’s roster. They include a sophomore, four freshman and two juniors. Some of them have played on the field while others haven’t got a chance yet. However, when it comes down to figuring out which of these quarterbacks will start next season? The list comes down to two people.
The first notable backup quarterback who should be selected to take McCarron’s place would be Blake Sims, one of the juniors. In 2011, he started off playing four games as a running back, averaging 26.8 yards per game, scoring two touchdowns and rushing 22 times for 107 yards. Last season, he became a backup quarterback for nine games where he ran the ball 30 times for 187 yards, scored two touchdowns and completed 5 of 10 for 77 yards. In this year’s A-Day Spring Game, he completed 5 of 10 for 52 yards with two interceptions as one of the quarterbacks for Team Crimson. With statistics like that, he would seem like the top nominee for the Crimson Tide’s next starting quarterback. The question for Sims is will able to fit the Saban system in being an efficient passer instead of just being an option quarterback?
The second candidate fit for the quarterback position is Alec Morris, the 6’3 230 lbs. freshman specimen from Allen, TX. For a freshman QB, Morris has tremendous upside. He has the frame of the prototypical pocket passer with a great arm. In this year’s A-Day Alabama Spring Game, Morris impressed me with his ability to drive the ball down field. Despite his youth, he showed confidence in his ability to pass the ball effectively. He will have to become more acquainted with the playbook more and learn from QB AJ McCarron along with coach Saban, but if there is one thing that Saban loves its confident guys who are willing to learn and take on the challenge of leading a team. With this being said, Alec Morris has that mentality of being able to lead the Alabama Crimson Tide from the quarterback position.
Whichever one of them gets chosen, one thing that is certain is they don’t meet McCarron’s expectations yet. They both have experience playing on the field, but they would also need good strategies, skills and leadership like the way McCarron showed during his career with the Crimson Tide. Either way, next season will be another new beginning for the team with a new quarterback stepping up to the plate.
