Alabama QB competition article

Bamabuzzard said:

Boys, I posted this on September 24, 2017:

https://www.tidefans.com/forums/showthread.php?t=289567&p=3066891&highlight=reps#post3066891

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Ha! I wrote my last post without read this most recent post from you. Good for you! Take credit!!! When Selma does a retrospective in ten years about the Saban era, your post will be remembered as first place!

I just hope Tua heals quickly and that both he and Jalen stay healthy. I also hope both stay on the team, but if one had to transfer, I would rather it be Jalen (even though I like Jalen a lot).

I think Tua brings more to the QB position and is much better. If he does transfer at some point, his brother will not sign with Bama and neither will the recruits Tua knows well. I think Tua can be a better influence with recruiting (on offense) than Jalen, simply because he is the better QB ( but they both have great qualities).

I wonder if Jalen has practiced at any other position at all this spring other than QB when the media viewing period is over.

Lastly, I hope and pray that the players stay healthy in the A Day game and that the team has no more serious injuries this season. Last year the injury bug got the defense, and now it seems the offense has most of the injuries.

LA4Bama said:

We know we are all speculating, but you were 100% right. The fact you are a moderator bought you some leeway on this board because it was a very unpopular thing to say at that time. Even as a mod, it took some hutspa to put it out there. I appreciated it. No criticism of Jalen, whom I love and think highly of, but it was just one of those things where feelings and facts were conflicting. Your midseason post changed the conversation on this board. I personally found a lot of relief in that.

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I started singing that song too (IIRC around the time we played A&M and struggled). It was amazing how "touchy" some on the board became about it. I remember saying that playing Tua "couldn't be much worse" than us struggling in the passing game with Jalen and it was not received well.

Saban4Ever said:

I just hope Tua heals quickly and that both he and Jalen stay healthy. I also hope both stay on the team, but if one had to transfer, I would rather it be Jalen (even though I like Jalen a lot).

I think Tua brings more to the QB position and is much better. If he does transfer at some point, his brother will not sign with Bama and neither will the recruits Tua knows well. I think Tua can be a better influence with recruiting (on offense) than Jalen, simply because he is the better QB ( but they both have great qualities).

I wonder if Jalen has practiced at any other position at all this spring other than QB when the media viewing period is over.

Lastly, I hope and pray that the players stay healthy in the A Day game and that the team has no more serious injuries this season. Last year the injury bug got the defense, and now it seems the offense has most of the injuries.

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I really don't think there is much to worry about concerning Tua transferring. Even Jalen's biggest fans admit Tua is vastly better.

I realize CNS isn't going to say that and even with a healthy Tua all spring he wouldn't have named Tua the starter.

But with both of them being healthy around Sept. 1, the odds of Jalen starting over Tua is about as good as a cool summer in the south.

I just hate the reps that Tua is losing this spring. It is, however, great to see Mac Jones making strides.

Bamabuzzard said:

Boys, I posted this on September 24, 2017:

https://www.tidefans.com/forums/showthread.php?t=289567&p=3066891&highlight=reps#post3066891

Click to expand...

I was slower coming around to this line of thought. The Tennessee performance by Jalen and Tua changed my tune. For most of the season I had chalked up our passing game struggles to a young WR+TE corp and an OL that was plus unit in run blocking but kinda limited in pass protection. The UT game was watershed for me because I don't think UT was trying from the opening kick yet the offense was struggling to do things with Jalen in the air that they were executing with ease under Tua's guidance. Jalen, to his credit, followed up that game with his two best games of the season against LSU and @MSU while Tua kinda looked mediocre against Mercer in his last appearance before the CFPCG. I kinda get how Tua never got a chance after the UT game performance. The level of competition increased and Hurts played fantastic in two of the three major opponents. I can see how the staff didn't even blame Hurts much for the implosion in Jordan-Hare. Still, something happened because in the playoffs they came around to your September suggestion but only pulled the trigger in the do or die moment.

BamaMoon said:

I really don't think there is much to worry about concerning Tua transferring. Even Jalen's biggest fans admit Tua is vastly better.

I realize CNS isn't going to say that and even with a healthy Tua all spring he wouldn't have named Tua the starter.

But with both of them being healthy around Sept. 1, the odds of Jalen starting over Tua is about as good as a cool summer in the south.

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Not much doubt that Tua is the better passer. There is lots more to success at than passing, though . .

I'm in the hope for Tua camp, but see your statement in bold as assuming far too much.

bama579 said:

Not much doubt that Tua is the better passer. There is lots more to success at than passing . .

I'm in the hope for Tua camp, but see your statement in bold as assuming far too much.

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Yes. There is reading defense before and after the snap, checking down to secondary receivers, throwing receivers open, looking off the dbs, pocket presence. Tua was better at all those things, too, even in his freshman year.

BamaMoon said:

I really don't think there is much to worry about concerning Tua transferring. Even Jalen's biggest fans admit Tua is vastly better.

I realize CNS isn't going to say that and even with a healthy Tua all spring he wouldn't have named Tua the starter.

But with both of them being healthy around Sept. 1, the odds of Jalen starting over Tua is about as good as a cool summer in the south.

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Pretty much spot on. The only way I see that Tua could transfer is if he doesn't start against Louisville, but like you I don't think it happens. When people have been calling for the backup QB to play, he finally comes in and wins a NC I don't think any coach would put him in the backup role for the following game. One of the biggest concerns a coach has about a backup QB is whether he can perform in a pressure situation. That question has been answered about Tua.

I think Hurts will start the Louisville game and there will be a pre designated number of series that each will play. I think Saban will do this because of a sense of loyalty to Hurts and to let him down easy, but I don't think there is any way that Hurts will hold off Tua Tagovailoa next season, and by a few games, Tua will be the firm starting qb with Jalen backing him up, though from what we hear about Jones lately, that may not be a sure thing.

Crimson White said:

I think Hurts will start the Louisville game and there will be a pre designated number of series that each will play. I think Saban will do this because of a sense of loyalty to Hurts and to let him down easy, but I don't think there is any way that Hurts will hold off Tua Tagovailoa next season, and by a few games, Tua will be the firm starting qb with Jalen backing him up, though from what we hear about Jones lately, that may not be a sure thing.

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The one thing nearly everyone seems to ignore is Jalen's durability and smart decisions with his body in games. We've already seen Tua get hurt in practice, so I'll wait until the end of fall practice and several games before I'm comfortable calling either one a starter. There's more to being a QB than just executing plays, and some lot of that is staying healthy for a long, long, long season (other is off the field stuff that we all hate to see).

Tua's ability to see the field and get the ball out quickly is what sets him apart from Jalen.

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Not just Jalen but many other QB's. Tua has an un-coachable passing talent.

I want Hurts to stay and get plenty of playing time. If he becomes just an after thought to Tua, he could transfer as a graduate to a team that helps him more than our program. I just hate to see him leave.

It may be I want whats best for Bama more than whats best for Hurts. If it's possible I want it to be the same. I truly love both kids.

mdb-tpet said:

The one thing nearly everyone seems to ignore is Jalen's durability and smart decisions with his body in games. We've already seen Tua get hurt in practice, so I'll wait until the end of fall practice and several games before I'm comfortable calling either one a starter. There's more to being a QB than just executing plays, and some lot of that is staying healthy for a long, long, long season (other is off the field stuff that we all hate to see).

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I don't think anyone is ignoring that. But, its not like Tua is taking big hits here. He just really enjoys punching helmets.

Crimson White said:

I think Hurts will start the Louisville game and there will be a pre designated number of series that each will play. I think Saban will do this because of a sense of loyalty to Hurts and to let him down easy, but I don't think there is any way that Hurts will hold off Tua Tagovailoa next season, and by a few games, Tua will be the firm starting qb with Jalen backing him up, though from what we hear about Jones lately, that may not be a sure thing.

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I really hope not. That just sounds unnecessary unless Tua continues to punch people in the helmet.

RollTide_HTTR said:

I really hope not. That just sounds unnecessary unless Tua continues to punch people in the helmet.

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ha. I totally agree with you. I don't know why there is any question about it. I just think that's how it will be.

rgw said:

I was slower coming around to this line of thought. The Tennessee performance by Jalen and Tua changed my tune. For most of the season I had chalked up our passing game struggles to a young WR+TE corp and an OL that was plus unit in run blocking but kinda limited in pass protection. The UT game was watershed for me because I don't think UT was trying from the opening kick yet the offense was struggling to do things with Jalen in the air that they were executing with ease under Tua's guidance. Jalen, to his credit, followed up that game with his two best games of the season against LSU and @MSU while Tua kinda looked mediocre against Mercer in his last appearance before the CFPCG. I kinda get how Tua never got a chance after the UT game performance. The level of competition increased and Hurts played fantastic in two of the three major opponents. I can see how the staff didn't even blame Hurts much for the implosion in Jordan-Hare. Still, something happened because in the playoffs they came around to your September suggestion but only pulled the trigger in the do or die moment.

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I remember listening to the OD the week of the Clemson game and they had Phil Savage on. He was ask if there was a possibility of Tua playing and he said "Yes a very good possibility." I think the decision had been made at that point that if Jalen was having issues, Tua was going in.

Their spring game sure backed that up! :biggrin2: on TideFans.com

RollTide_HTTR said:

Apparently it doesn't matter who our QB is because Clemson has the 4 greatest QBs of all time on their roster.

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The Ols said:

Their spring game sure backed that up! :biggrin2: on TideFans.com

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Lawrence looked ready to play right now. Bryant needs to transfer or change positions. He looked terrible.

B1GTide said:

Lawrence looked ready to play right now. Bryant needs to transfer or change positions. He looked terrible.

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I missed parts of it but from what I saw I agree. Lawrence definitely has a cannon for an arm though it looks like he needs to work on his touch some. Hunter Johnson looked pretty good from what I saw too. I'd be pretty shocked if Bryant starts this season.

bama579 said:

Not much doubt that Tua is the better passer. There is lots more to success at than passing . .

I'm in the hope for Tua camp, but see your statement in bold as assuming far too much.

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We have 2 years worth of evidence that Jalen wins the easy games and doesn't perform well against teams that can neutralize his running skills. When those teams force us to pass we don't make first downs, don't score as many points and we struggle to win (go watch the Washington and Clemson games in 2016).

I'm not basing my assumption that Tua starts on his second half performance against Georgia alone (although if that's all we had to gone on, it's good enough). I've thought Tua was a better passer (throwing ability alone) since the first pass we saw him throw last year during his A-day performance (remember how Kirk Herbstreit was drooling over him???). Of course, we also saw how our first team neutralized him in the second half of that game and so we knew he wasn't ready right then. But last fall, over the course of the year, we saw him growing and doing the other things great QB's do. After I saw "the play" against Vandy, I knew he had something Jalen didn't (and most other qbs don't). And then when he outplayed Jalen against UT (although he had the one, freak INT that got returned), I was convinced he had pretty much passed Jalen all around.

And then Georgia happened and the whole world now knows.