I Hate You, John Crist: Gap between Alabama, rest of SEC continues to widen

Much has been made of the layoffs Wednesday at ESPN, which included quite a few names familiar to SEC fans.

Industry types in particular are concerned that so many reporters — even relatively low-level ones — were pink-slipped, while the personalities making major dollars remain employed. But this is the world we live in now.

Here at Saturday Down South, we break very few stories. Typically, we aggregate news from all over the conference and present it in one place for readers to consume. It’s tremendously effective in this day and age of digital utilization, not to mention much more cost-efficient than traditional print, radio and television.

In the end, fans don’t care where they get their information. They just want it, and they want it quickly. While I feel for the recently unemployed, this is Darwinism at its finest. Evolve or become instinct. It’s as simple as that.

Here are some of my favorite comments from this past week. After Saturday, spring football will have already come and gone.

If there was one thing to take away from last Saturday’s spring game in Tuscaloosa, it’s that ‘Bama isn’t going anywhere.

Despite the fact that as many as 10 members of the Crimson Tide could be chosen in the first three rounds of the NFL Draft, another crop of freshmen — many of them early enrollees — jumped off the screen while I watched the broadcast.

Quarterback Tua Tagovailoa appears to have more upside as a passer than Jalen Hurts. Running back Najee Harris is already physically mature enough to handle the between-the-tackles pounding in the SEC. Receiver Jerry Jeudy (below) was eerily reminiscent of another Miami product who starred right out of the gate, Amari Cooper.

Credit: Marvin Gentry-USA TODAY Sports

Alabama is hardly an unbeatable team. The protection up front was hit and miss at best, and defensive backs allowed wideouts to get behind them time and again. Nevertheless, coach Nick Saban has as much talent to choose from as ever.

The rest of the West hasn’t been able to keep up, plus the East is lagging behind. I’m with you. Balance is needed desperately.

Going into the spring game, the intelligence I have in Knoxville led me to believe that Jarrett Guarantano has more potential than Quinten Dormady.

As a result, I turned on my TV expecting Guarantano to have moments of brilliance that Dormady just isn’t capable of due to physical limitations. The dual-threat Guarantano was billed to be a much better athlete than the pocket-passing Dormady.

My eyes told me a different story, though. Yes, Dormady has had an extra year in the system — he’s a rising junior for 2017, while Guarantano will be a redshirt freshman — but he clearly had more command of the offense. Guarantano, on the other hand, seemed a bit frazzled at times and not as calm as he needed to be.

Dormady’s arm was impressive, too. He displayed good touch and accuracy, putting zip on the ball when necessary yet also knowing when to dial it down a bit. I didn’t see the same array of throws from Guarantano.

In the end, Guarantano may turn out to be the better player. But for now, I’d be comfortable as a Tennessee fan with Dormady as the starter.

One thing to remember is that head coaches will spin a media narrative when necessary. It’s part of the game.

That may have been the case at LSU. All spring long, we were told that the offense was ahead of the defense, which of course got Tigers fans excited about Matt Canada. He’s perhaps the most important hire in the SEC for this season.

However, once everyone gathered at Death Valley on Saturday, it was a much different story. While Danny Etling started off hot at QB, he cooled off quickly and finished the first half — lightning essentially ended the affair before intermission — with a thud. We saw some sizzle with shifts and motions, but in the end there wasn’t much steak.

Yes, the defense lost a lot of contributors who will hear their names called on draft weekend. On the other hand, plenty of 4- and 5-star signees remain. The young secondary in particular looked ready to make the leap in 2017.

Canada will no doubt modernize what the Bayou Bengals do offensively. It remains to be seen if the results are any different, though.

To reiterate, there were 97 players who left early to enter the draft, and 25 of them came from the SEC.

Thursday’s first round was littered with draft-eligible juniors. There’s no reason for a no-brainer pick in Round 1 to stay in school. He’s essentially proven everything he needs to prove in order to make a living in the NFL.

Still, too many players who thought they’d have been taken by now haven’t had their phones ring yet. Even worse, a lot of them won’t get picked at all. Of course, there are success stories here and there about dubious early entries catching on with teams as undrafted free agents — Auburn’s Peyton Barber comes to mind — but not many.

Credit: Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports

To state the obvious, college isn’t for everyone. Prospects like Georgia’s Isaiah McKenzie (above) and Texas A&M’s Speedy Noil didn’t declare for the draft because they’re ready for the pros. The campus environment simply wasn’t for them.

If you’re a first-rounder, by all means, go. And if you’re a second- or third-rounder, sure. But beyond that, stay in school and get your degree, kid.

I always use the rankings at CBS Sports because I know a couple of those guys personally and trust their evaluations as a result.

According to them, Alabama safety Eddie Jackson currently has a third-round grade. The elite prospects in the draft at his position are LSU’s Jamal Adams and Ohio State’s Malik Hooker, who are locks for Round 1 and probably Top 10 picks.

Beyond Adams and Hooker, Michigan’s Jabrill Peppers is a late first- or early second-round choice, although some scouts don’t know where to play him despite his obvious skill set. Washington’s Budda Baker, Utah’s Marcus Sanders-Williams, Florida’s Marcus Maye and N.C. State’s Josh Jones appear to be in the mix for Round 2.

While I was a fan of Jackson in the secondary last year — not to mention his punt-return savvy — the broken leg he suffered and recent surgery he endured are tough hurdles to jump. It’s a deep class of safeties, as well.

Don’t be surprised if he falls to Day 3, meaning the fourth round or later. Ultimately, Jackson will have to prove himself in the pros.