July 30, 2015
Rivals.com
In the first part of an eight-part series counting down to the beginning of fall camp for the University of Alabama football program, The Tuscaloosa News takes a closer look at Crimson Tide quarterbacks. For the second consecutive season, Alabama enters camp with a competition for the starting position.
The starter
Quite simply, there is no starter. There are five candidates, but Jake Coker has the most experience. In fact, the senior from Mobile is the only of the five quarterbacks to have attempted a pass in an actual game. Coker played in seven of 14 games in 2014, passing for 403 yards and four touchdowns while completing 38 of 59 attempts. Coker got plenty of repetitions during spring practice, but so did the others, including redshirt freshman David Cornwell, who enters fall camp with as good a chance as any other to win the starting job. Cornwell redshirted after enrolling during the spring in 2014.
The backups
Besides the Coker and Cornwell, there are three other candidates with a chance to make their marks. Junior Alec Morris, sophomore Cooper Bateman and true freshman Blake Barnett all went through spring practice. Morris, 6-foot-3, 233 pounds, has played in a game before but did not attempt a pass. He was the back-up punter a season ago. Bateman, 6-3, 220 pounds, was the team's holder on field goals last year. Barnett, 6-5, 200 pounds, is the highest rated quarterback to sign with Alabama during the Nick Saban era.
Overview
Pardon the pundits if they don't seem to make much of Alabama not having named a starting quarterback named just yet. That's the luxury of having Lane Kiffin as the Crimson Tide's offensive coordinator. Kiffin gets the benefit of the doubt because of the work he did with Blake Sims in his first and only year as a starter. The results yielded program records on offense. To that end, the coaching staff isn't particularly worried in July that there is not a starter for a game to be played in September. There will be concern, however, if a month from now, one, or even two, quarterback(s) hasn't established himself. For now, though, UA feels comfortable with where the position is headed.
- See more at: https://alabama.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=1787338#sthash.dK4AWkAY.dpuf
Rivals.com
In the first part of an eight-part series counting down to the beginning of fall camp for the University of Alabama football program, The Tuscaloosa News takes a closer look at Crimson Tide quarterbacks. For the second consecutive season, Alabama enters camp with a competition for the starting position.
The starter
Quite simply, there is no starter. There are five candidates, but Jake Coker has the most experience. In fact, the senior from Mobile is the only of the five quarterbacks to have attempted a pass in an actual game. Coker played in seven of 14 games in 2014, passing for 403 yards and four touchdowns while completing 38 of 59 attempts. Coker got plenty of repetitions during spring practice, but so did the others, including redshirt freshman David Cornwell, who enters fall camp with as good a chance as any other to win the starting job. Cornwell redshirted after enrolling during the spring in 2014.
The backups
Besides the Coker and Cornwell, there are three other candidates with a chance to make their marks. Junior Alec Morris, sophomore Cooper Bateman and true freshman Blake Barnett all went through spring practice. Morris, 6-foot-3, 233 pounds, has played in a game before but did not attempt a pass. He was the back-up punter a season ago. Bateman, 6-3, 220 pounds, was the team's holder on field goals last year. Barnett, 6-5, 200 pounds, is the highest rated quarterback to sign with Alabama during the Nick Saban era.
Overview
Pardon the pundits if they don't seem to make much of Alabama not having named a starting quarterback named just yet. That's the luxury of having Lane Kiffin as the Crimson Tide's offensive coordinator. Kiffin gets the benefit of the doubt because of the work he did with Blake Sims in his first and only year as a starter. The results yielded program records on offense. To that end, the coaching staff isn't particularly worried in July that there is not a starter for a game to be played in September. There will be concern, however, if a month from now, one, or even two, quarterback(s) hasn't established himself. For now, though, UA feels comfortable with where the position is headed.
- See more at: https://alabama.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=1787338#sthash.dK4AWkAY.dpuf
