Alabama Fall Position Preview: Quarterbacks

By Brandon Foshee

Starting all over… again. That was the situation that Crimson Tide quarterbacks faced this past spring. A year ago at this time, Alabama fans were looking forward to the newest chapter of Alabama offensive football. John Parker Wilson, a talented young quarterback was gearing up for his junior campaign, and second full season as quarterback. Major Applewhite, a hot up and coming offensive coordinator, had sent expectations skyward as he was tapped by Nick Saban to take over the Tide’s offensive charge.

Things started off well, as the Tide raced out to a 3-0 start. Following two close back-to-back losses at the hands of Georgia and Florida State, the Tide rebounded to again win three in a row, culminating with a dominating victory over rival Tennessee, a game in which the offense clicked on all cylinders for the first time all season. However, little did Tide fans know that Saturday afternoon, that was as good as it was going to get, as Alabama limped home to a 6-6 regular season record.

Perhaps the most disappointing aspect of the late season swoon was the inconsistent play of the offense, especially at quarterback. Wilson seemed to regress after the victory over Tennessee. He lost his pocket presence, made bad decisions, and committed costly turnovers. Following the eventual loss to Auburn, rumblings started to trickle out of Tuscaloosa that Major Applewhite and Nick Saban were not on the same page. Some fans began to wonder if Wilson was the right player to lead Alabama’s offense. What started as such a promising offense was turning out to be a significant weakness.

The offense rebounded in the Independence Bowl against Colorado, but again, while Wilson showed flashes of brilliance, he also showed the lack of consistency and the ability to sustain at a high level of play that plagued him late in the season. The damage was done. While Saban defended his quarterback to the media and gave him numerous votes of confidence, behind the scenes, the same could not be said for Major Applewhite. While he was, and is, a promising young coordinator, he just did not deliver the things that Saban was wanting out of him, and a change was in store.

After the bowl game Applewhite departed, heading back to his alma mater, the University of Texas. Saban went back to the Rolodex, and for the second time in 2 years, he was searching for an offensive coordinator/quarterback coach. The search ended when Fresno State’s seasoned offensive coordinator Jim McElwain accepted the position and headed east.

This past spring, it was a fresh start. A do-over. John Parker Wilson (6-2, 213) was still the appointed man to lead the Tide offense, but he found himself starting all over in a sense, learning a new offense under a new coach. Reports from the spring were promising, and it appears that Wilson and McElwain are gelling. On the field, not only is Wilson comfortable with the playbook, but he has improved on his footwork and perhaps more importantly, his confidence.

While the new offense isn’t a total makeover, the things that the quarterback is asked to do, differs from last season. Back-up quarterback Greg McElroy described it like this, “Quarterbacks really needed to see the whole field in last year’s offense… This year, everything is isolated. You know where you’re going to look each play. It makes our progressions just a little bit easier.” While a successful spring doesn’t always translate into a successful fall, the Alabama offense appears to be in good hands, and Wilson, according to Saban, is the best player to lead it.

Last fall Wilson started all 13 games, and finished the year 255 of 462 (55%), for 2846 yards, setting Crimson Tide records for pass completions and passing yards in a season. He threw for 18 touchdowns and 12 interceptions. Heading into his senior year, he is one of the most experienced quarterbacks in the conference, and has been named to the Maxwell Award Watch List, an award given to the College Player of the Year. While Wilson certainly isn’t a favorite to take home the trophy, it says a lot about his ability and potential to be named to the pre-season watch list.

The job of backing Wilson up will likely belong to sophomore Greg McElroy (6-3, 218). McElroy didn’t see much action last year, certainly not the amount that Saban would have liked for him to see. He finished the year 8 of 9 through the air, with 1 touchdown and no interceptions, and all of that came in the first game of the season against Western Kentucky. Though he has seen only limited live game action, McElroy appears to be a serviceable back-up who could run this offense if called upon.

The third quarterback on the chart could very well be true freshman,Star Jackson (6-3, 195), out of Lake Worth, FL. It remains to be seen if Saban would burn a redshirt on Star, but he has shown in the past that he isn’t afraid to play freshmen if they earn his confidence. The key for Jackson will be proving to the coaches this August that he can learn the offense quickly, and do what is asked of him while limiting mistakes. That will be a tall order, but Jackson comes to Tuscaloosa after an impressive high school career and brings a level of athleticism to the table that none of the other quarterbacks possess. If he can pick up the offense quickly and get comfortable, being the back-up to Wilson is certainly not out of the question.

Other quarterbacks in the mix for a back-up role include sophomore Nick Fanuzzi (6-3, 201) and walk-on freshman Thomas Darrah (6-5, 190). Fanuzzi played in a mop up role against Western Carolina as a freshman, but did not attempt a pass. The Texas high school standout was recruited and signed by Saban shortly after his arrival to Tuscaloosa. He is more of a dual-threat quarterback than pro-style, and though he is still very young, he has not yet matured on the field enough to warrant significant playing time. It remains to be seen if McElwain can tap into his potential, but heading into the fall, he finds himself on the low end of the depth chart.

Thomas Darrah is a name that many Tide fans would not have recognized 6 months ago. However, after a very productive spring practice, the walk-on signal caller began to develop a bit of a following on Alabama message boards as a fan favorite. Darrah burst onto the scene in April after he wowed fans at the A-day game by connecting on 8 of 14 passes for 110 yards, including a 44 yard touchdown to wide receiver Marquis Maze. Despite the positive spring game performance, the pro-style passer is at the bottom of the depth chart, and isn’t likely to see any meaningful playing time unless a rash of injuries take a toll on those ahead of him.

One final name that will likely appear on the fall depth chart is incoming true freshman Brad Smelley (6-3, 220). Smelley, a Tuscaloosa native, is a good athlete who is coming to the Capstone with a very impressive high school résumé. Once thought to be a sure H-back in Alabama’s offense, it now appears that Smelley will at least get a shot this August to go under center if he chooses to. Most consider his final destination to be H-back, but you can’t ignore the numbers he put up in high school as a quarterback. As a senior at American Christian Academy, he threw for 3,309 yards and 33 touchdowns. He showcased his mobility by adding 659 yards and 13 touchdowns on the ground.

A wild card at quarterback is true freshman BJ Scott (5-11, 195), who is a player that could see some situational snaps under center or in the shotgun formation. Scott is a jack of all trades on the football field, and while his primary position will be wide receiver, the possibility of giving him a package at quarterback has been discussed. He played the position in high school and proved that he was a dual threat in every sense of the word. Scott would create mismatches and exploit slow defenses. While it is not a certainty that he will be utilized in that manner for the Tide, especially early on during his career, it is certainly something that is worth keeping an eye on.

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