Hopefully by now Alabama fans are used to the quarterback battle roller coaster. It's becoming a yearly tradition for Tide fans to ride the "who will be our quarterback?" ride every Fall camp. Last year things at the position weren't really even settled until the Ole Miss game, which could have been disastrous for Bama's season if Jake Coker hadn't been able to steer the Tide back after losing to the Rebels.
This year there are two Tide quarterbacks however that are looking to end this cycle. Freshman Jalen Hurts and redshirt freshman Blake Barnett are both turning heads in Fall camp and both are hoping to be contenders to be the starter under center for the Tide. Hurts has had the best camp of any QB, but Barnett has a better chance of being the starter with a year in the system under his belt. Barnett has also had a great camp, including throwing the best balls of any QB.
Lane Kiffin on Hurts:
"If you come in as a mid-year and you perform well at all, you're going to be pretty good because most of the guys will struggle a lot," offensive coordinator Lane Kiffin said of Hurts. "Very, very special skill set. Very strong kid. One of our top lifters in strength, 40s, vertical. He's just continuing to learn a completely new system from what he was in high school. That transition for all players, especially quarterbacks, is difficult. But he's handled it really well, and we're really excited about what he's done and some of the plays that he makes that are not in rhythm plays because of his ability to make big plays."
Kiffin on Barnett:
"When Blake first got here (last year), he was performing extremely well," Kiffin said. "And really, there were times where I think he was really in the battle last year to be the guy. And like normal when you're a freshman, kind of up and down through some practices and scrimmages. And then really, I think he would tell you too, he really did not have his best spring. He really had a great offseason. He had some health issues (last year) where he lost some weight. Gained weight back. He's bigger, stronger than he's been. And through a couple days, he's looked really good. Looks really strong. Very quick feet. Continuing to grow in the offense. We're very excited about where he's at."
Just like last year and the year before that Saban is watching and waiting for someone to rise up and win the job. These two freshmen are putting themselves right in position to do just that.
