Alabama Football: More than two unsettled SEC quarterback situations

Most conversation about SEC quarterbacks features the unsettled situation for Alabama Football. So much so that it might be clouding a possible reality that close to half of SEC teams have QB question marks.

Let’s review SEC East quarterbacks first, before turning to the SWC West and most of the Alabama Crimson Tide’s opponents.

Locked in as starters on SEC East teams are Devin Leary at Kentucky, Spencer Rattler at South Carolina and Joe Milton at Tennessee. With Leary entering a new conference after a transfer from North Carolina State and Milton’s career troubled by inaccurate passing, there is no guarantee the two locks will deliver. Both programs will be under duress if their designated starter struggles.

Spencer Rattler is in a more secure situation at South Carolina and could have a big season. In Nashville, AJ Swann is coming off six starts in his freshman season. Being the Dores QB1 can be tough duty, but Clark Lea and Vandy’s offensive players appear to be sold on Swann.

For Missouri, Brady Cook is the projected starter, after playing much of last season with a shoulder injury. The Tigers are expected to depend on more vertical passing with new OC, Kirby Moore. A healthy Cook could be much improved, but as the St. Louis Post-Dispatch pointed out last season Cook was only 32.2% on passes of 20 yards or longer.

In Gainesville, Billy Napier has named Wisconsin transfer, Graham Mertz as Florida’s starter. Mertz is not much of a dual-threat guy and some Florida fans are hoping, rather than believing he can prosper against SEC defensive backs.

In Athens, everybody but Kirby Smart is sure Carson Beck is the guy. Smart probably is as well, but is not ready to admit it. The former 5-Star could become a major star, but some Georgia football insiders have stated none of the Dawg’s QBs have been great in fall camp.