D.C. Reeves
TideSports.com Managing Editor
Smarting from its Sugar Bowl loss, Alabama has plenty of questions to answer as it rolls into 2015. None will be more popular than this: Who will start at quarterback?
One thing we know for certain is that Alabama will have its third different starting quarterback in as many years, a quandary Alabama coach Nick Saban hasn't faced since his first three years at LSU (2000-02).
The search for a replacement will start with senior Jake Coker, who has competed but lost out on starting jobs at Florida State and Alabama each of the past two seasons.
Jake Coker, who lost out on the starting QB battle last fall, is expected to enter the spring as Alabama's No. 1 quarterback.
Coker, who was in a tight battle with Sims in preseason camp, served as the backup quarterback all season and is expected to enter the spring as the No. 1. He went 38-of-59 for 403 yards, four touchdowns and no interceptions in 2014, getting most of that work while still battling for the job in the first month of the season. And while Coker enters as the defacto No. 1, as Saban showed a season ago, a lot can change from January to August.
"Man, I plan on doing the same stuff, just working hard, trying to get better every day," Coker said after Alabama's loss in the Sugar Bowl. "Right now, I'm going to miss these guys that are leaving this year, especially Blake, and when next year comes we'll be ready."
As for offseason training Coker, who spent last offseason working in his hometown of Mobile with QB coach David Morris, said he hasn't made any plans yet.
"Heck, I was planning on still playing next week," Coker said.
Coker should get a big push from a host of candidates including rising juniors Cooper Bateman and Alec Morris, freshman David Cornwell, a highly touted prospect from Norman, Okla. who redshirted in 2014, and perhaps even highly touted, five-star true freshman Blake Barnett.
"It's really nice to not have a redshirt, you know, actually see where I'm ranked," the 6-foot-5, 240-pound Cornwell said following the Sugar Bowl last week. Cornwell was rated as the nation's No. 3 pro style quarterback in the 2014 class and enrolled at UA last January while recovering from a torn ACL.
"When you're a redshirt you're sort of off to the side, same as walk-on. So it will be nice to see how they handle (the competition) without the redshirt," he said.
Cornwell will work with a bevy of quarterback coaches this offseason. His main coach in Oklahoma is former University of Oklahoma offensive coordinator Joe Dickinson but Cornwell said he also will spend time learning from two other renowned QB gurus: George Whitfield and Terry Shea.
"I'm going to go work out over the break," he said. "Right now it's a tough loss and we'll get over it in a few days but I have to get better as a football player no matter what, that's my goal."
Bateman, listed as the No. 4 quarterback this season behind Sims, Coker and Morris, had the best spring game performance amid a host of rough ones in April, going 11-for-24 for 156 yards and a touchdown. Morris threw just seven passes in last year's spring game but was the team's No. 3 quarterback this season.
So who's the wildcard? Barnett, Saban's highest rated quarterback signee in his time at Alabama. Rated as the No. 1 dual-threat quarterback in the nation, the 6-foot-4, 198-pound Barnett, clearly out of the mold of the pocket passers typically recruited by Saban, won MVP honors at the prestigious "Elite 11" camp last summer. Boosting his wildcard status, Barnett has enrolled this semester, allowing him an entire spring to learn offensive coordinator Lane Kiffin's system.
"I want to go in there and compete. That's my biggest goal right now," Barnett told TideSports.com. "Blake Sims is leaving. I want to compete for the job. If redshirting is to come I won't be disappointed. I am just looking forward to competing and see what the future holds."
Blake Barnett, the highest-rated QB recruit in the Saban era, enrolled at UA this semester.
It may be unlikely because of his lack of experience; Saban has never started a true freshman quarterback. But Saban has not held back at other positions if the youngster is the team's best option. Saban had never started a true freshman left tackle in 18 seasons as a college head coach until Cam Robinson, the nation's top offensive line recruit, won the job last fall.
Like Barnett, Robinson was also an early enrollee, giving him all of spring ball to get acclimated.
"Going in a semester early gives me a head start," Barnett said. "I would like to fight for the spot. If it doesn't happen I will have to live with it. I am looking forward to it a lot. I am looking forward to playing with these guys."
No matter what happens, familiarity with Kiffin should help all candidates, even Barnett, who was wooed to Tuscaloosa in part because of Kiffin's hire. Unlike a season ago, there are no questions about what the offense will look like, only a question of who will be running it.
"I love our quarterback room here, how we handle things," Cornwell said. "I love Coach Kiffin, he's coming back which is great, it's good to have (the same) offensive system. I'll be able to go back to watch film of all our games this year go through decisions I would make, really learn from Blake."
Note:
D.C. Reeves: We only got Coker/Cornwell after the game because we couldn't find Bateman. We could have talked to him at media day but guys are less apt to talk about next year when there's still a game to play.
Would love to have gotten him for the story and I think he'll be a factor in the competition, but simply couldn't grab him before we were kicked out of the locker room.
- See more at: https://alabama.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=1722238#sthash.kibPBzEx.dpuf
TideSports.com Managing Editor
Smarting from its Sugar Bowl loss, Alabama has plenty of questions to answer as it rolls into 2015. None will be more popular than this: Who will start at quarterback?
One thing we know for certain is that Alabama will have its third different starting quarterback in as many years, a quandary Alabama coach Nick Saban hasn't faced since his first three years at LSU (2000-02).
The search for a replacement will start with senior Jake Coker, who has competed but lost out on starting jobs at Florida State and Alabama each of the past two seasons.
Jake Coker, who lost out on the starting QB battle last fall, is expected to enter the spring as Alabama's No. 1 quarterback.
Coker, who was in a tight battle with Sims in preseason camp, served as the backup quarterback all season and is expected to enter the spring as the No. 1. He went 38-of-59 for 403 yards, four touchdowns and no interceptions in 2014, getting most of that work while still battling for the job in the first month of the season. And while Coker enters as the defacto No. 1, as Saban showed a season ago, a lot can change from January to August.
"Man, I plan on doing the same stuff, just working hard, trying to get better every day," Coker said after Alabama's loss in the Sugar Bowl. "Right now, I'm going to miss these guys that are leaving this year, especially Blake, and when next year comes we'll be ready."
As for offseason training Coker, who spent last offseason working in his hometown of Mobile with QB coach David Morris, said he hasn't made any plans yet.
"Heck, I was planning on still playing next week," Coker said.
Coker should get a big push from a host of candidates including rising juniors Cooper Bateman and Alec Morris, freshman David Cornwell, a highly touted prospect from Norman, Okla. who redshirted in 2014, and perhaps even highly touted, five-star true freshman Blake Barnett.
"It's really nice to not have a redshirt, you know, actually see where I'm ranked," the 6-foot-5, 240-pound Cornwell said following the Sugar Bowl last week. Cornwell was rated as the nation's No. 3 pro style quarterback in the 2014 class and enrolled at UA last January while recovering from a torn ACL.
"When you're a redshirt you're sort of off to the side, same as walk-on. So it will be nice to see how they handle (the competition) without the redshirt," he said.
Cornwell will work with a bevy of quarterback coaches this offseason. His main coach in Oklahoma is former University of Oklahoma offensive coordinator Joe Dickinson but Cornwell said he also will spend time learning from two other renowned QB gurus: George Whitfield and Terry Shea.
"I'm going to go work out over the break," he said. "Right now it's a tough loss and we'll get over it in a few days but I have to get better as a football player no matter what, that's my goal."
Bateman, listed as the No. 4 quarterback this season behind Sims, Coker and Morris, had the best spring game performance amid a host of rough ones in April, going 11-for-24 for 156 yards and a touchdown. Morris threw just seven passes in last year's spring game but was the team's No. 3 quarterback this season.
So who's the wildcard? Barnett, Saban's highest rated quarterback signee in his time at Alabama. Rated as the No. 1 dual-threat quarterback in the nation, the 6-foot-4, 198-pound Barnett, clearly out of the mold of the pocket passers typically recruited by Saban, won MVP honors at the prestigious "Elite 11" camp last summer. Boosting his wildcard status, Barnett has enrolled this semester, allowing him an entire spring to learn offensive coordinator Lane Kiffin's system.
"I want to go in there and compete. That's my biggest goal right now," Barnett told TideSports.com. "Blake Sims is leaving. I want to compete for the job. If redshirting is to come I won't be disappointed. I am just looking forward to competing and see what the future holds."
Blake Barnett, the highest-rated QB recruit in the Saban era, enrolled at UA this semester.
It may be unlikely because of his lack of experience; Saban has never started a true freshman quarterback. But Saban has not held back at other positions if the youngster is the team's best option. Saban had never started a true freshman left tackle in 18 seasons as a college head coach until Cam Robinson, the nation's top offensive line recruit, won the job last fall.
Like Barnett, Robinson was also an early enrollee, giving him all of spring ball to get acclimated.
"Going in a semester early gives me a head start," Barnett said. "I would like to fight for the spot. If it doesn't happen I will have to live with it. I am looking forward to it a lot. I am looking forward to playing with these guys."
No matter what happens, familiarity with Kiffin should help all candidates, even Barnett, who was wooed to Tuscaloosa in part because of Kiffin's hire. Unlike a season ago, there are no questions about what the offense will look like, only a question of who will be running it.
"I love our quarterback room here, how we handle things," Cornwell said. "I love Coach Kiffin, he's coming back which is great, it's good to have (the same) offensive system. I'll be able to go back to watch film of all our games this year go through decisions I would make, really learn from Blake."
Note:
D.C. Reeves: We only got Coker/Cornwell after the game because we couldn't find Bateman. We could have talked to him at media day but guys are less apt to talk about next year when there's still a game to play.
Would love to have gotten him for the story and I think he'll be a factor in the competition, but simply couldn't grab him before we were kicked out of the locker room.
- See more at: https://alabama.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=1722238#sthash.kibPBzEx.dpuf
