A lot can change in a few short months.

Coaches can make comments that make national news, players can get injured or transfer and well, opinions can change. Not every quarterback battle has a summer development, but given the importance of them, they’re always worth evaluating.

So who will start at quarterback for each SEC team heading into fall camp with a battle brewing?

I took a stab at answering that:

Alabama

The candidates: Tua Tagovailoa, Jalen Hurts

My pick: Tagovailoa

Does what Nick Saban said about Jalen Hurts’ transfer possibilities change my outlook on who wins the starting job? No. To me, Tagovailoa is still going to be QB1 because he gives the Alabama offense something Hurts doesn’t — the ability to stretch the field. That alone makes the Tide that much more dangerous, even if it means Tagovailoa will turn the ball over more than Hurts did.

Saban is absolutely going to continue to play this down the middle, and to be honest, it wouldn’t shock me if Hurts played in Week 1. But you can’t erase what happened in the national championship, and as long as Tagovailoa is healthy, he’s going to get the chance to run this offense.

Arkansas

The candidates: Cole Kelley, Connor Noland, Ty Storey

My pick: Kelley … for now

This is subject to change based on what we see from Noland after he gets into fall camp. There are some high expectations from the in-state true freshman, and if he shows that he’s ahead of the curve in understanding Chad Morris’ offense, I think there’s a fairly decent chance that he gets the start.

But if I’m betting on the most likely scenario today, I’ll still go with Kelley because he has the experience factor. He’s reportedly done and said everything he should to put himself in the right position with the new coaching staff. Morris made it a point to say that the summer development was crucial for all of them, and that he’ll name a starter as soon as one separates from the pack in fall camp. If I’m picking today, I’m going with the guy who we know can take a hit and bounce back against an SEC defense.

Florida

The candidates: Feleipe Franks, Kyle Trask, Emory Jones

My pick: Trask

I’m sticking with Trask for all the reasons I’ve been saying since the spring game. I think his understanding of Dan Mullen’s system and his ability make the quick read throws will win him this job. Even though Franks had a few highlight-reel plays in the spring game — mostly with his legs — Trask gives Florida the best chance to utilize the bevy of skill players it has.

It is worth noting that at SEC Media Days, Mullen threw out a little curveball with one comment. He said that he’s going not going to run exactly what they did at Mississippi State and that he’s going to build the offense around the quarterback’s strengths, which have surprised him. Franks does have a cannon and MSU didn’t exactly use a lot of deep routes with Nick Fitzgerald. Was that way of Mullen’s way of saying he’s favoring Franks and using more downfield looks? Maybe.

It could also mean this:

Trask is still my pick, but that’ll be an interesting comment to keep tabs on as fall camp progresses.

Kentucky

The candidates: Gunnar Hoak, Terry Wilson

My pick: Hoak

So a couple months ago, I wrote why I thought Wilson would win the job. While I still think that can happen, I switched my pick to Hoak for a reason. The more and more I think about it, Kentucky is going to squeeze all the juice it can out of Benny Snell. Pairing him with the quarterback who’s most familiar with the system might make the most sense.

Hoak’s accuracy has been praised by players this offseason, and while Wilson might have the better playmaking abilities, it might make more sense to give the veteran the first crack at the starting gig. Yes, I used the term “veteran” loosely because neither signal-caller has an FBS snap. The good news for Wilson is that it doesn’t appear Mark Stoops wants to name a starter anytime soon. That could give him some extra time to learn the system, but to start the season, my guess is Hoak.

LSU

The candidates: Joe Burrow, Myles Brennan, Lowell Narcisse, Justin McMillan

My pick: Burrow

Bet DSI actually took the LSU starting quarterback odds off the books because there was too much action on Burrow. Maybe that was the result of Ed Orgeron’s comments praising Burrow at SEC Media Days. Off the top of my head, I don’t even remember him mentioning any of the other quarterbacks during his availability.

Credit: Greg Bartram-USA TODAY Sports

Here’s the thing: Burrow didn’t leave his home state and his dream school to go be a backup at LSU. He’s a tireless worker who understands coverages and schemes because he’s the son of a longtime college defensive coordinator. Urban Meyer praised his development with his arm strength and release. Meyer also talked about how close Burrow was to replacing J.T. Barrett at Ohio State.

Yes, Burrow inexperienced in live-game situations. Yes, we’ve heard about promising LSU quarterbacks before, only to see them fall short of expectations. But I’ll be stunned if Burrow isn’t named the starter and at least moderately successful in the process.

Tennessee

The candidates: Jarrett Guarantano, Keller Chryst

My pick: Chryst

I think Gene Chizik made a great point about Guarantano having the respect of the Tennessee locker room. Anyone who could take the punishment he did last year and still want to stick it out with a new coaching staff is admirable. I absolutely agree that that’s the biggest advantage that Guarantano has.

Having said that, I can’t shake the feeling that Tyson Helton wants Chryst to be the starter. The Vols paid Helton big bucks to completely rebuild the offense. It was his relationship with Chryst that contributed to him coming to Knoxville for his final season of eligibility. Does that guarantee Chryst will be the starter? Absolutely not. He struggled with accuracy issues playing in a Stanford offense that had game-changing backfield weapons in Christian McCaffrey and Bryce Love.

Still, if nobody really separates themselves in fall camp, I’d tend to believe that Helton will go with the guy he helped bring in.

Texas A&M

The candidates: Nick Starkel, Kellen Mond

My pick: Starkel

One of the tough things about these quarterback battles now is that it seems like coaches are so worried about the runner-up transferring that they shed zero light on any actual developments. That’s Jimbo Fisher in his first season at Texas A&M. Even when he was in the booth at the Belk Bowl, he made sure he didn’t tip his hand on Starkel or Mond.

Starkel is still my pick because 2017 is still the most noteworthy piece of data we have. In 2017, Starkel was the better quarterback. When healthy, he gave the Aggies a better chance to stretch the field. Fisher can talk about toughness all he wants, but I think this will come down to which quarterback he feels like can keep teams honest to open up running lanes for Trayveon Williams. That’s Starkel until further notice.

Do I expect the loser to transfer? Absolutely. Do I expect Fisher to name a starter before the opener? Absolutely not. Shoot, he might even play both guys and then just roll with the hot hand against Clemson in Week 2.

Thoughts and prayers for whoever has to face that Clemson defensive line, though.