David Pollack on Jalen Hurts: He’s good enough to get Alabama to the Playoff, he’s not going to win it
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We are (thankfully) just days away from the end of the monthslong debate regarding the quarterback competition in Tuscaloosa. While nearly everyone seems to agree that Alabama is going to select Tua Tagovailoa to start over Jalen Hurts for the first time come Sept. 1 for the season opener against Louisville in Orlando, that has not stopped the talking heads from discussing it to no end this offseason.
The debate raged on during the most recent episode of ESPN’s college football program “Championship Drive,” which featured hosts Todd McShay, David Pollack and Joey Galloway breaking down the competition between the two Crimson Tide quarterbacks.
According to McShay, there was never any debate as to which quarterback Nick Saban will select to start in 2018.
“From the second (the National Championship Game) was over, Tua was the starter at Alabama,” McShay said on the program.
His co-analyst David Pollack appears to agree with that sentiment, stating that Alabama can only go so far with Hurts under center.
“First of all, Jalen Hurts has proven throughout his career, he’s good enough to get you to the College Football Playoff. I don’t think he’s the guy that can win it for you,” Pollack said. “I think when you face Clemson, when you face Georgia, he’s the guy that hasn’t been able to beat you through the air enough.”
While Galloway noted that Hurts brings the added dimension of punishing opponents with his legs and the fact he left the field against Clemson in the 2017 College Football Playoff National Championship with the lead in the game can’t be forgotten. Despite his praise of Hurts, however, Galloway noted that if he was playing for the Tide — as a receiver — he’d want Tagovailoa to start over Hurts.
McShay chimed in with this final thought on the discussion.
“Let’s be real. He limits what you can do offensively in the passing game — significantly,” he said.
It would appear all three analysts agree, Tua is the guy for the job. Regardless of those comments, the only opinion that truly matters come Sept. 1 will be Saban’s and he does not seem eager to hint which way he’s leaning at this time.
A graduate of the University of Tennessee, Michael Wayne Bratton oversees the news coverage for Saturday Down South. Michael previously worked for FOX Sports and NFL.com
