Joe Burrow put together one of the best seasons a college player has ever had in 2019, winning the Heisman Trophy and leading LSU to a national title.

However, in 2018, he was only mediocre, throwing for 2,894 yards, 16 touchdowns and 5 interceptions. To be fair, he only arrived in Baton Rouge in the summer, so he wasn’t able to have a full offseason with his new teammates.

According to a 3-part series by Jeffrey Marx in The Advocate, coach Ed Orgeron said many LSU players wanted Justin McMillan to start at QB in 2018 instead:

Guys on the team were not shy about voicing their opinions. Some wanted McMillan. Others wanted Joe. But as Coach O now describes the split: “There wasn’t a big Joe camp. There was a big Justin camp.”

Obviously, Coach O made the right choice trusting Burrow, as that decision paid off immensely in 2019 (as did hiring Joe Brady).

It’s interesting to think what might have happened if Burrow didn’t start for the Tigers in 2018, though. How would that have affected what happened this past season?