My take on where the QB job is at...

TiderJ said:

I don't think arm strength is an issue with any of our 5 QB's.

Click to expand...

Agree...I think all 5 of our QB's have stronger arms than BS had last year. Shouldn't be a problem.

Here is what Alec Morris' bio says on rolltide.com I noticed he did have some good rushing numbers in high school.
HIGH SCHOOL AND PERSONAL DATA: "The only quarterback in the Crimson Tide's 2012 signing class ... fits well into Alabama's pro-style offense ... 247sports.com ranked him as the nation's No. 26 pro-style passer and the No. 85 talent in Texas ... Rivals.com rated him 30th among pro-style signal-callers and 100th in Texas ... Scout.com listed him as the country's No. 37 quarterback ... ESPNU ranked him 46th among quarterbacks nationally and the No. 101 prospect in Texas ... ESPNU also ranked him 132nd in the Midlands Region ... SuperPrep slotted him as at No. 120 in Texas ... a consensus three-star prospect ... PrepStar All-Midlands Region selection ... averaged 270.7 passing yards per game (3,242 yards) in 2011 with 35 touchdowns and just six interceptions ... ran for 329 yards with nine rushing scores as a senior ... completed 202-of-329 passes (61.4 percent) as a junior in 2010 threw for 2,534 yards with 22 touchdowns ... also rushed for 216 yards and eight scores in 2010 ... coached by Tom Westerberg at Allen High School ... chose Alabama over Wake Forest, Michigan State and Virginia."

I reality, arm-strength is somewhat overrated on long balls. Last year they discussed it on the NFL Network and said that barely more than 1% of NFL throws cover more than 40 yards vertically in the air and that virtually any NFL QB can throw the ball 40 or 50 yards as long as they can step into the throw. They said that arm-strength is actually more important on cross-field throws since a cross-field pass that's 20 yards downfield (vertically) might travel 50 or more yards in the air. They said that accuracy was probably the most underrated aspect on long balls.

Greg McElroy didn't have the best arm strength. He was able to make some throws. Just weren't enough deep passes called to keep the safeties out of the box against the 2009 team.

It's more about the effectiveness. Doesn't matter how strong the QB's arm is if he can't be accurate. Doesn't matter how fast a WR is if he can't properly run a route.

As long as the defense knows the play will work when it's called, the safeties are going to stay back.

buzzman said:

Agree...I think all 5 of our QB's have stronger arms than BS had last year.

Click to expand...

GMac wasn't a strong arm guy either but he won a few games.

Arm strength won't be the issue.

russtang said:

GMac wasn't a strong arm guy either but he won a few games.

Arm strength won't be the issue.

Click to expand...

Arm strength won't be an issue but GMac (even thought it was only 5 or 6 years ago) played in a different era of football. All of the rules changes and advantages that the offense has in today's game wouldn't allow that same type of team to be effective in the present game. You just can't play it safe on offense and lean on the defense like we did in 2009..


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Sims didn't have a gifted arm either but he looked good throwing it deep to Cooper after he burnt the corner to a crisp.

rgw said:

Sims didn't have a gifted arm either but he looked good throwing it deep to Cooper after he burnt the corner to a crisp.

Click to expand...

Yeah, Cooper definitely made the deep throws look good for Sims. Blake just threw moon shots and Coop came up with it.

crimsonaudio said:

Bama scored 32.1 ppg in 2009, which is enough to win every game last year save the barn and ohio state (and only 4 ppg less than they scored last season).

Click to expand...

That's my point. It wouldn't be enough to beat the better teams. And if you take out the cupcake teams from 2009 (FIU, North Texas, Chattanooga) it's more like 27 ppg which isn't bad but there is a reason why the identity of the team has changed - the game has changed..


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Charleston said:

Of course not I was just being a smart .... I do think that a big point selling point is Bama will get you to the NFL and it would make sense that the structure is similar. Plus CNS has NFL experience and solicits input from his NFL contacts probably more than most college coaches.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Click to expand...

I don't think CNS uses that structure strictly for the reason of getting guys ready for the NFL. I personally think he does it because it's just what he's comfortable with. The issue I have is (1) college players sometimes need that extra motivation to keep improving (they're not pros) and (2) it sometimes results in having starters in a game after the outcome is decided (injury risk). Looking back, I think it's come back to bite us at times. Just my opinion though...

MobileCrimson said:

Yeah, Cooper definitely made the deep throws look good for Sims. Blake just threw moon shots and Coop came up with it.

Click to expand...

Sorry, but this is not even in the police jurisdiction of true.

CrimsonForce said:

That's my point. It wouldn't be enough to beat the better teams. And if you take out the cupcake teams from 2009 (FIU, North Texas, Chattanooga) it's more like 27 ppg which isn't bad but there is a reason why the identity of the team has changed - the game has changed..


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Click to expand...

I hear what you're saying, but offense and scoring points wasn't the reason for the OSU loss or the 44 points auburn scored.

Anyway, like you said, lack of arm strength won't be a factor for any of the current QB's.

russtang said:

I hear what your saying, but offense and scoring points wasn't the reason for the OSU loss or the 44 points auburn scored.

Anyway, like you said, lack of arm strength won't be a factor for any of the current QB's.

Click to expand...

Well, the OSU loss and the 44 points given up to AU could be attributed to a number of things. I was just pointing out that just because a past player like GMac was successful back then doesn't mean that same type player could be successful now. The game has changed a lot since 2009. CNS has said as much. In one of his recent press conferences, he talked about how a player like Terrence Cody wouldn't really have a place in today's game. It's not a knock on Cody it's just a result of the pace/spread/HUNH and the rule changes, or lack of enforcement of certain rules, that gives the offense such an advantage.

Using the same logic, I'm not sure that Bama can contend for championships with conservative QB play like we did in 2008 and 2009. You almost need a QB who can make plays on his own and takeover the game. If you look at the past 2 NC winners they both had playmakers at at the QB position (Winston and Cardale Jones). Last year all 4 QBs in the CFB were QBs who did more than just "manage" the game - Mariota, Winston, Blake Sims and Cardale Jones..


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Blake ended up making some throws I didn't think he was capable of producing coming in 2014. Still, he had moments his relative shortness for a quarterback and lack of top-end arm talent showed on the field.

I'm not really worried about whether the QB can win us games right now though to win a championship will probably require solid performances in the bigger games. I'm only worried about whether the QB is going to lose us games. Considering the way we've managed first-year starters, I'm pretty positive that the QB won't lose many games for us.

CrimsonForce said:

Well, the OSU loss and the 44 points given up to AU could be attributed to a number of things. I was just pointing out that just because a past player like GMac was successful back then doesn't mean that same type player could be successful now. The game has changed a lot since 2009. CNS has said as much. In one of his recent press conferences, he talked about how a player like Terrence Cody wouldn't really have a place in today's game. It's not a knock on Cody it's just a result of the pace/spread/HUNH and the rule changes, or lack of enforcement of certain rules, that gives the offense such an advantage.

Using the same logic, I'm not sure that Bama can contend for championships with conservative QB play like we did in 2008 and 2009. You almost need a QB who can make plays on his own and takeover the game. If you look at the past 2 NC winners they both had playmakers at at the QB position (Winston and Cardale Jones). Last year all 4 QBs in the CFB were QBs who did more than just "manage" the game - Mariota, Winston, Blake Sims and Cardale Jones..


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Click to expand...

Unless people figure out how to stop the balanced spread no-huddle w/ an athlete at QB, I'm pretty sure that the days of a game manager winning titles are over. You've simply must have either a playmaker or an extremely gifted passer at QB to keep up with the scoring pace. As good of a defense TCU has for stopping spread, they still got lit up in a few games and probably only stonewalled Ole Miss because they were below that competitive level due to injuries in the last part of the season. I'd be extremely surprised if this defensive unit can compete with the numbers set by the 2009 and 2011 units despite being right up there in pure NFL-ready talent. They may be really good for a 2015 defense, but the low numbers just aren't as likely. They're gonna give up more rushing yards due to broken plays where the QB can run. They're gonna give up more passing yards because teams are better designed to rack up yards in the air.

That is why they're emphasizing forced fumbles, turnovers, and QB pressure/sacks in the off-season. Its gotten to the point where all Saban's old metrics don't quite add up. You can play safe defense against lesser teams but the offense has such an advantage you kinda just have to go for splash plays on defense instead of the percentages.

CrimsonEyeshade said:

Sorry, but this is not even in the police jurisdiction of true.

Click to expand...

I probably took that too far. Blake did turn out to be way better than expected but Amari was spectacular. I don't exactly remember every statistic last year but it seems like when Cooper was limited Blake struggled in the passing game. He never seemed to spread the ball out when he needed to.

crimsonaudio said:

And this is why these forums exist - I contend that based on what I've heard about our OL and the defense overall, we could win it all with GM under center this year. It's a balancing act, and while GM wasn't amazing, he had his moments. That's all a well-balanced and talented team needs.

Remember, GM made it to the NFL...

Click to expand...

I totally agree. Our style of football can still win and will win big. Let's not think just some new fad is going to overthrow true winning football.

crimsonaudio said:

And this is why these forums exist - I contend that based on what I've heard about our OL and the defense overall, we could win it all with GM under center this year. It's a balancing act, and while GM wasn't amazing, he had his moments. That's all a well-balanced and talented team needs.

Remember, GM made it to the NFL...

Click to expand...

it's possible but I guess I'm jaded