2013 Alabama Crimson Tide Preview: Quarterbacks
Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports
If there is one position where the Alabama Crimson Tide is 100 percent confident in the starter it’s at quarterback.
Senior AJ McCarron has a career record of 24-2 with one SEC Championship, two BCS National Championships, and is on pace to shatter every Alabama passing record. In addition, an 11-win season will make McCarron the winningest QB in Alabama history.
McCarron is the unquestioned leader of what may be one of the most prolific offenses in Alabama history. He was one of most efficient QBs in the country last year, completing 211 of 314 passes (67.2 percent completion rate – highest in the country) for 2,933 yards and an Alabama single-season record 30 TDs passing (breaking the old mark by 10) while only throwing three interceptions all year. He also had a QB rating of 175.28 – also the highest in the country.
McCarron’s highest completion rate was 85.7 percent on throws between 35-39 yards, which is staggering and by far the highest rate in the country. Having a dominating offensive line and running game obviously contributed to that, as McCarron has become deadly on play-action passing. The play-action pass actually became one of Alabama’s biggest weapons as the season progressed last year.
The deep ball wasn’t the only place on the field McCarron was accurate, however, as he was 50 percent or better from behind the line of scrimmage (screen passes – 85.7 percent), 0-4 yards (77.5 percent), 5-9 yards (71.7 percent), 20-24 yards (63.6 percent), 25-29 yards (55.6 percent), and 40+ yards (57.1 percent). McCarron is a great leader, great passer, and probably one of the frontrunners for the 2013 Heisman Trophy, but none of this is news to anyone. The only questions at the quarterback position for Alabama are the players behind McCarron.
Last season Blake Sims and Phillip Ely shared backup duties, with both playing at garbage time during the season. Ely typically came in and ran Alabama’s base Pro-Style offense, while Sims usually ran some Read Option. Fast forward a year, and Phillip Ely is on the roster at Toledo, joining Phillip Sims as a QB that has transferred from Alabama elsewhere over the last two years.
Blake Sims is now a Junior and is the only QB besides McCarron with any game experience at all. Sims has also played tailback at Alabama, but seems to be remaining at QB for now. By all accounts Sims improved over the offseason and Spring, but didn’t show much improvement at A-Day (though none of the QBs looked very impressive, including McCarron).
Sims will likely hold on to the No. 2 spot this season while also coming in and playing some Wildcat/Read Option as as a change of pace during the year. His athleticism adds a useful wrinkle to Doug Nussmeier’s offense. Redshirt freshman Alec Morris seems to have made some strides in the offense, and his size is similar to that of McCarron. Morris was the most efficient QB for the Crimson team at this year’s A-Day and easily looked like the most comfortable and natural of the backups.
Walk-on Luke del Rio seems to have the drive to become a potential starter as well as a solid arm along with having the pedigree (his father is former Jacksonville Jaguars Head Coach and USC Linebacker Jack del Rio). Del Rio actually passed up scholarship offers from schools like UCLA to walk on Alabama.
Freshmen Parker McLeod and Cooper Bateman are also very talented but also very young. It seems this battle will be between Sims and Morris, and if Morris can wrest the No. 2 spot away, Sims may end up back at tailback or maybe even a “Slash” position all over the field.
The future of the QB position may not actually be on the team this year, as Alabama just last week received a commitment from the No. 1 pocket passer of the 2014 recruiting class in David Cornwell of Norman, OK. This season will be a big one for the backups to get better and try and make an impression on the coaching staff before the highest-rated QB in the Nick Saban era arrives on campus.