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As a former quarterback, I know what’s required to play in this conference.
People often overlook experience. We sometimes see guys that bust on the scene in their first year, like Johnny Manziel. That’s very rare, though. By the way, he still redshirted, so he wasn’t a true freshman.
Having that first year to redshirt, you get to adjust to the speed and talent of the SEC, and college football in general for that matter. Very rarely do you see a true freshman starting Week 1, or at all during the season. We did see Kyle Allen of Texas A&M start toward the end of this season, however.
There are a few different reasons we don’t usually see true freshman come in and start immediately. For one, the offensive playbook at the college level is much more advanced than the typical high school one. I will say that high school terminology is getting pretty advanced these days, but it’s still a challenge.
Second reason, obviously the speed and size of the defense. The speed of the SEC is unbelievable. I remember being a fast high school dual-threat quarterback, but when I got to South Carolina and started playing in the games, I was one of the slowest guys on the field.
Another reason is competition. These guys may be the best quarterbacks in their county, their state, or whatever, but when you go to a major college program, you have to remember that the other four or five quarterbacks were also all-state. Not only were they also highly-recruited, but they have been in the program for at least a year longer than these freshmen.
The older guys typically get the lion’s share of the reps in practice, and they know the ins and outs of everything. Every single one of those other quarterbacks wants to be on the field, so the competition is fierce.
Quarterbacks coming out of high school these days are more prepared for college football than in years past. With all the quarterback camps, quarterback coaches and “gurus,” and the year-round training that some of them do, they seem to be closer to being able to play earlier. The kids seem to just have more offered to them than when I was a senior getting ready to go to South Carolina back in 2007.
I don’t think we’ll see many true freshman come in and play quarterback any time soon, but times are changing, and these kids are more ready to play than ever before.
The Man. The Myth. The Legend.
