Prescott, Allen tied at the top of SEC QB rankings after Week 12
By Will Heath
Published:
The 2015 season of “Adventures in SEC Quarterbacking” neared its end last Saturday, with a sublime head-to-head battle, one dominant performance, one dramatic return and a lot of other stuff that was mostly inconsequential and often very hard to watch. Here’s this week’s rankings of the SEC’s top-10 quarterbacks this season:
10. PATRICK TOWLES, KENTUCKY
Didn’t play Saturday in the Wildcats’ blowout of Charlotte, and almost certainly won’t start this week vs. Louisville, based on Drew Barker’s perfectly satisfactory performance in the victory. As of right now, he remains fifth in the SEC in passing yards, which means he will probably finish in the top 10 even if he doesn’t play another snap this season.
Last week: Inactive
Season: 180-322, 2,077 yards, 9 TDs, 13 INTs
9. BRANDON HARRIS, LSU
For the past three weeks, LSU has faced defenses that were able to take away Leonard Fournette, at least partially, and the Tigers’ passing offense isn’t good enough to compensate. Which is a shame.
Last week: 26-51, 324 yards, 1 TD, 2 INTs; 6 carries, 60 yards
Season: 128-233, 1,821 yards, 12 TDs, 4 INTs; 60 carries, 172 yards, 3 TDs
8. GREYSON LAMBERT, GEORGIA
Nobody is going to make a video about what happened in Athens Saturday night. But don’t undersell it. Georgia Southern is better than you think, and Lambert stuck it out through a tough football game.
Last week: 16-25, 183 yards, 1 TD, 0 INT
Season: 134-211, 1,620 yards, 11 TDs, 2 INTs
7. TREON HARRIS, FLORIDA
Can we just skip this? It’s eerily weird that the Gators keep winning every week even though their offense continues to regress.
Last week: 8-17, 122 yards, 2 TDs, 1 INT; 11 carries, 27 yards
Season: 83-152, 1,231 yards, 8 TDs, 4 INTs; 62 carries, 199 yards
6. KYLE ALLEN, TEXAS A&M
Avoided the dreaded Vandy Game disaster by hitting a 95-yard touchdown pass to break open a 6-0 football game late in the first half. As an added bonus, he played well enough that Kevin Sumlin said he wouldn’t have to address his QB situation this week. So that’s something.
Last week: 18-36, 336 yards, 1 TD
Season: 145-255, 2,049 yards, 16 TDs, 6 INTs
5. JOSH DOBBS, TENNESSEE
The Missouri-Tennessee game went mostly unnoticed outside Columbia and Knoxville, and it was pretty ugly to watch. Still, Dobbs and the Vols deserve some credit for overcoming the circumstances — a rugged Mizzou defense, in freezing cold weather, in a jacked-up stadium that wanted to celebrate Gary Pinkel’s last home game.
Last week: 16-24, 89 yards, 0 TD, 0 INT; 10 carries, 54 yards, 1 TD
Season: 178-295, 1,985 yards, 13 TD, 5 INTs; 123 carries, 530 yards, 8 TDs
4. JAKE COKER, ALABAMA
Fun facts about Coker: Despite his weird throwing motion and uninspiring play, he’s actually fourth among SEC QBs in passing yards, third in completion percentage and fifth in passing touchdowns (he’s seventh in QBR). He’s won at Georgia, Texas A&M and Mississippi State, and led a come-from-behind drive to beat Tennessee in October, as well. Winning at Auburn is a different animal, obviously, but don’t sleep on his season so far.
Last week: 11-13, 155 yards, 2 TDs, 0 INT
Season: 187-286, 2,106 yards, 14 TDs, 8 INTs
3. CHAD KELLY, OLE MISS
The dominant player on the field in a game that also featured Leonard Fournette. Well played, sir. This week’s Egg Bowl might just be the best game of the week in any conference.
Last week: 19-34, 280 yards, 2 TDs, 0 INTs; 12 carries, 81 yards, 2 TDs
Season: 256-395, 3,504 yards, 25 TD, 12 INT; 86 carries, 353 yards, 9 TDs
1. (tie) BRANDON ALLEN, ARKANSAS
Ran stride for stride with Dak Prescott in a wildly entertaining football game Saturday night in Fayetteville. The second half of his season has sizzled, and it’s hard to penalize him solely on the basis of his field goal kicking unit.
Last week: 30-43, 406 yards, 7 TD, 0 INT
Season: 213-327, 3,023 yards, 29 TDs, 6INTs
1. (tie) DAK PRESCOTT, MISSISSIPPI STATE
Dak Prescott was on fire early and on fire down the stretch in throwing for 508 yards against Arkansas. He was fabulous, throwing for five touchdowns and running for two more. Saturday’s performance was the perfect example of a do-it-all quarterback.
Last week: 38-50, 508 yards, 5 TDs, 1 INT; 15 carries, 46 yards, 2 TDs
Season: 260-393, 3,159 yards, 23 TDs, 3 INTs; 127 carries, 478 yards, 9 TDs
Will Heath is a contributing writer for Saturday Down South. He covers SEC football.
