8 things I want to see in the SEC this spring
Fall might feel like a lifetime away, but spring is just around the corner.
That means before long, we’ll be breaking down quarterback battles, new coaches and everything in between. In the meantime, there are plenty of storylines and questions that have to be answered. Some of them will be answered by the time the calendar hits May, and others will not.
In my perfect world, I’d get answers to all of those things. But I won’t hold my breath.
Instead, I’ll just share the things that I’d like to see in the SEC this spring:
1. LSU’s offensive identity
The Tigers parted ways with Matt Canada after one season, which was reportedly set to happen regardless of the Citrus Bowl outcome. Despite Canada’s hefty salary, he failed to turn LSU into one of the league’s high-powered offenses. Instead, there were too many Les Miles flashbacks. Well, at least post-snap.
With Canada gone and new offensive coordinator Steve Ensminger in, the task is still the same. The question is what path LSU will try to take to get there.
In the post-Derrius Guice/Leonard Fournette era, will we finally see LSU shy away from its run-heavy offense? And with Danny Etling gone, does that mean the Tigers will try to stretch the field more?
The hope, obviously, is that Ensminger will walk right in and repeat his efforts when he was the interim offensive coordinator in 2016 (LSU averaged 32 points and 465 total yards per contest in that 8-game stretch). A lot of that will depend on Ensminger’s feel for the new personnel, most importantly at the quarterback position.
LSU could decide to name a starter at the end of spring camp and see how that fuels the offseason competition. Myles Brennan, Lowell Narcisse and Justin McMillan will all battle to win their new coordinator’s approval. That could come down to the spring game.
Ensminger hasn’t tipped his hand about which quarterback he’ll choose to build the offense around, but based on the quick trigger the Tigers had with Canada, that decision will be crucial for the new OC’s short and long-term future in Baton Rouge.
2. Emory Jones’ progression
I’m all in on the idea that a true freshman like Jones can be the Day 1 starter in Gainesville. That is, of course, assuming that he’s willing to surrender himself to Dan Mullen’s quarterback-molding ways. Jones enrolled early and said that he’s doing so with the intention of winning the starting job.
Mullen already came out and said that he thought Jones will be the future face of the program. The question is if the incoming freshman can be the present face of the program.
Jones might not have blown Florida fans away with his Under Armour All-America Game performance, but he’ll be working with a different set of circumstances throughout spring ball. He’ll get reps with the same guys, and he’ll presumably take his fair share of them against the first-team defense.
What Jones doesn’t have to be is a 70-percent passer by the time the spring closes (Nick Fitzgerald showed why that wasn’t vital in Mullen’s offense). What Jones does have to be is confident and comfortable making quick RPO decisions. His adjustment to the speed of the game is going to dictate whether he can accomplish his first goal in Gainesville.
3. Georgia’s new-look defense
Roquan Smith, Davin Bellamy, Lorenzo Carter, Reggie Carter, Trenton Thompson, John Atkins and Dominick Sanders are all gone from that dominant Georgia defense. Just replacing a guy like Smith alone will be challenging. Losing all of that speed and experience suggests that the Dawgs will look much different on that side of the ball this spring. If Natrez Patrick doesn’t return after entering a drug treatment program, that narrative will stick with Georgia throughout the offseason.
Who will become the new leaders of Georgia’s defense? Guys like J.R. Reed and Deandre Baker turned into valuable playmakers for Kirby Smart’s unit, and they’ll be expected to have even bigger roles in 2018. Jonathan Ledbetter’s stellar close to 2018 bodes well for him stepping up, too.
Jonathan Ledbetter : 6 tackles & a sack
Tyler Clark & D’Andre Walker : 5 tackles, 2 for loss & a sack each pic.twitter.com/vSPy4gcn6G— Lee Harvey (@MusikFan4Life25) January 2, 2018
Perhaps the more intriguing question is how Georgia’s top-ranked incoming freshman class will emerge this spring. Will a 5-star recruit like Brenton Cox provide an immediate impact? He’s actually the Dawgs’ only true freshman defender who enrolled early (defensive tackle Devonte Wyatt came from Hutchinson Community College), which means he has a prime opportunity to get a head start and rise on the depth chart.
The Dawgs definitely lost a lot on defense, which will make for an adjustment, but the cupboard is far from bare.
4. More Keytaon Thompson
With Nick Fitzgerald still working his way back from an ankle injury, we should see Thompson get plenty of reps with Mississippi State’s first-team offense. That’s an enticing thought considering how well played in his first career start in the TaxSlayer Bowl.
Joe Moorhead’s first project flashed his upside with his ability to make plays with his legs, and his willingness to take shots deep. He certainly made MSU fans feel optimistic about the post-Fitzgerald era. Spring ball should be another chance for Thompson to take that next step, especially with Moorhead’s tutelage.
Moorhead’s most impressive developmental accomplishment at Penn State was taking a guy like Trace McSorley, who didn’t have next-level arm strength, and turning him into one of the best deep-ball passers in America. Of course it helped that the Lions were loaded with next-level talent at the receiver position. But none of those explosive wideouts truly shined until Moorhead trusted McSorley to take those shots and let them make a play.
I’m interested to see if Moorhead can instill that same confidence in Thompson, who had no fear letting it fly against Louisville. He wasn’t quite on the same page as his wideouts on deep balls in the TaxSlayer Bowl. That takes time.
He’ll have plenty of it this spring and until Fitzgerald returns to full strength.
5. Chad Morris’ instant impact
A lot of the things that I want to see in the SEC this offseason are offensive-based because so many programs are going through transformations on that side of the ball. Arkansas is going through the most drastic transformation of them all.
About the only thing that’ll look the same for Arkansas will be the jerseys (maybe those should get a tweak, too). With Morris, the Hogs will be built on spreading teams out and throwing the ball all over the field. The offense will be up-tempo and it’ll be designed to do what Arkansas failed to do throughout 2017. That is, score lots and lots of points.
That all sounds good, but obviously that transformation won’t happen overnight. How much will it show throughout the spring? A lot of that might depend on Cole Kelley, who would need to slim down a bit (and stay out of trouble) if he wanted to take hold of the up-tempo attack. Incoming freshman Connor Noland could be the better fit for Morris, but the baseball star won’t enroll early.
Morris still has work to do on the recruiting trail to start to build the offensive foundation that he wants in Fayetteville. Lord knows he’ll dip into the Texas well of talent plenty of times to do so. That’s all for the future.
In the immediate future, all Arkansas fans want to know is how long it’ll take Morris to develop a top-15 offense like the one he built at SMU.
6. Which quarterback leaves College Station
I mean, it has to happen … right? Two talented underclassmen quarterbacks will compete for a starting job after a new coach stepped in, which is usually a lock that one will transfer.
We all know that Jimbo Fisher picks his guy and rides with him through thick and thin. Will his guy be Nick Starkel? Or will it be Kellen Mond?
In a perfect world for the Aggies, Fisher doesn’t indicate he’s leaning and both stay on the roster for the 2018 season. Fisher knows all too well how important it is to have depth at the quarterback position, especially for a program that lacks an incoming freshman at the position. In a more realistic world for the Aggies, either Mond or Starkel will see the writing on the wall and look for another opportunity elsewhere.
Conventional wisdom says that Mond will be the odd man out after Starkel nearly passed for 500 yards in the Belk Bowl. It was a solid first impression for Starkel to make on his new coach.
Christian Kirk @ChristianDavon2 with another #touchDown from Nick Starkel @NickStarkel #Aggies #AggieUp #AggieFootball #BelkBowl #BelkBowlBestBowl pic.twitter.com/BzG1JIiNbv
— @540Jason© (@540Jason) December 29, 2017
But bowl game performances aren’t everything, and for all we know, Fisher was extremely high on Mond after what he did to revive the Aggies following that embarrassing collapse at UCLA.
Whether he admits it or not, Fisher is going to have a favorite to win the job at spring’s end. If and when that happens, it seems that the runner-up will have some new plans for 2018.
7. How Kevin Steele bounces back
Maybe it’s not fair to suggest that Auburn’s defensive coordinator needs to “bounce back” after the Tigers finished with the No. 12 scoring defense in America. For the most part, Steele did what he set out to do when he took over in the start of 2016. Auburn did have an elite defense in 2017. The problem is that it didn’t finish like one.
Allowing 27 points to UCF (the Knights returned an interception for a touchdown) in the Peach Bowl loss ended the year on a sour note. Had Steele been able to close the book on 2017 after the Iron Bowl, he’d be sitting prettier than any almost any coordinator in America. But losses to Georgia and UCF stung Steele. Losing an extremely productive group of upperclassmen will sting, too.
Gone from the secondary are the likes of Carlton Davis, Tray Matthews, Stephen Roberts and Nick Ruffin. Linebackers Jeff Holland and Tre’ Williams are moving on, as well. Steele will have some experience on the defensive line to work with. One of those players, Marlon Davidson, said that Auburn will be “even bigger and better” next year.
Steele’s unit can begin to make good on that promise this spring.
8. What happens next with Jalen Hurts
Ah, therein lies the almighty question that’s going to keep the college football world on the edge of its seat throughout the offseason. Had Hurts stayed in the national championship, perhaps we’d be asking this question about Tua Tagovailoa. Instead, it’s Hurts who could be in need of a new gig.
To be clear, that’s not to say that transferring is his only option. In fact, I’ve been saying for the past couple weeks that I think Hurts is more likely to switch to receiver than he is to transfer. Braxton Miller made a wise choice by doing so, and Hurts could decide that’s the route he wants to go not only to help Alabama but to help his stock at the next level, as well.
That, however, might not happen in 2018. Keep in mind that Hurts still has 2 years of eligibility left. He could easily decide he wants to compete for the starting job that he held for the past 2 seasons. Even though Hurts handled his benching in the most mature fashion possible, he could still believe that he’s the right man for the job.
In all likelihood, he, Tagovailoa and Nick Saban will say and do everything they should in this increasingly awkward situation. Even if Hurts goes on like it’s just business as usual and both guys split reps with the first-team offense all spring, that’s still a development. It’d be a favorable development for the Tide.
That might even put a rare smile on Saban’s face. What does that look like again?
Perhaps my spring wish list is a bit too ambitious.