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Alabama the outlier at QB thus far in two years of College Football Playoff
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Marcus Mariota, Jameis Winston, and Cardale Jones are all great quarterbacks who played in the inaugural College Football Playoff last season. Connor Cook, Deshaun Watson and Baker Mayfield, all among the top quarterbacks in the game today, are calling signals for three of the four teams in the 2015 playoff.
Blake Sims and Jake Coker don’t seem to fit into the same category of top quarterbacks in the country. How is it possible then that Alabama is able to make it to the playoffs in both years? The Tide is the only team to make repeat appearances in the playoff.
How can that be in such a quarterback-driven game?
How has Alabama, with the outlier at quarterback thus far in both seasons of the College Football Playoff, been able to advance to both of them, including a New Year’s Eve date with Michigan State in the Goodyear Cotton Bowl?
The reasons are simple. Although neither Sims nor Coker won many games for the Tide, they didn’t lose many either. Managing the game, taking what the defense gives him, and not making mistakes has been a winning formula for coach Nick Saban all the way back to his first national championship in 2003 at LSU.
That year Tigers QB Matt Mauck navigated LSU through the regular season and into the championship game. He made a few plays during the season and took care of the football. He wasn’t among the best quarterbacks in the country. The following year, the NFL Denver Broncos drafted him the seventh round. He never played a down for the Broncos and in his short NFL career started one game with the Tennessee Titans in 2005.
Saban’s teams have never needed a great quarterback, just one who manages the game. Saban’s teams have always won in the trenches on both sides of the football. A solid running game and fierce defense that stops the run, is a philosophy that has served him well.
Although offensive coordinator Lane Kiffin has opened up that offense and infused some excitement in it, the Tide has gone back to the basics since the emergence of Heisman Trophy winner Derrick Henry. His 236-yard game against Texas A&M in the seventh game of the season proved that Saban’s old way of doing things still has value in today’s game.
Henry rushed for 200-plus yards in four of six games, missing a fifth by 11 yards in the SEC Championship Game against the highly-touted Florida defense, and Coker’s responsibilities were lightened significantly. While leading the Tide to the playoffs, Henry led the nation in rushing with 1,986 yards on 339 carries.
It also doesn’t hurt to have what many believe will be three first-round picks along the defensive line, either. When all is said and done, stopping the run in this day of hurry-up spread attack offenses remains the objective. The Tide was No. 1 in the country against the run this season, allowing an average of just 74 yards per game, and No. 3 in the country in total defense.
It’s old-school football at a time when Watson, Baker and Cook are among the top 30 quarterbacks in the country with 3,512, 3,389, and 2,921 passing yards respectively. But it’s hard to argue with four national championships.
That’s not to say Coker can’t throw the football or couldn’t elevate himself into the ranks of the other three quarterbacks competing for a national championship this season. In fact, statistically he’s really not that far off. Coker threw for 2,489 yards this season, which ranked 49th in the country.
No, Coker and Sims played on teams that didn’t require them to be the catalyst. Now let’s see if it’s enough to bring Alabama the big prize. The Tide flamed out in the semifinals last season. Henry and the defense are what Saban and the Tide will rely on to bring back another championship to Tuscaloosa.
Glenn Sattell is an award-winning freelance writer for Saturday Down South.
