College Football Spring Games 2012: Key Position Battles for BCS Contenders

Spring games provide coaching staffs with the first chance to sort out some of their main position battles heading into next season. The competition will likely last until the real contests begin in fall, but whichever players shine in these games get a leg up.

Let's take a look at three key battles from BCS hopefuls.

Since a single loss will likely doom the teams' chances to play for a national title, these battles will have a major impact on the college football season.

Alabama: Vinnie Sunseri vs. Ha'Sean Clinton-Dix

With Mark Barron headed to the NFL, Alabama has a big hole to fill at safety. It's always difficult to replace a player who's likely going to get selected in the first round, but Sunseri and Clinton-Dix both have the potential to do exactly that.

Based on playing time last season, Sunseri likely enters the spring game with a minor advantage that he'll look to build off. That said, Clinton-Dix has tremendous athleticism and should develop into the better playmaker of the Crimson Tide's options.

Alabama's defense continues to serve as its calling card, so whoever wins the battle must immediately starting producing. Any lapses in the defensive backfield would end the team's repeat dreams in the blink of an eye.

Georgia: Marlon Brown vs. Michael Bennett

Star quarterback Aaron Murray will return to lead an improving Georgia offense into the title picture. For him to reach his potential, however, the Bulldogs need a receiver to step up to give him another reliable target.

He'll struggle mightily without one against SEC defenses.

Tavarres King should do his fair share of damage, but there's a good battle between Brown and Bennett for the other spot. Brown has more experience as he enters his senior season. Bennett likes to do the dirty work over the middle that every team needs.

All told, both players should see their fair share of playing time throughout the season. The spring game should help decide who gets the extra snaps as the starter. It will likely come down to which player does the little things better, like blocking.

Oregon: Bryan Bennett vs. Marcus Mariota

Darron Thomas bolted for the NFL, leaving Oregon with a quarterback competition. The high-flying Ducks have no shortage of choices, but it appears that Bennett and Mariota are the two front-runners as the spring game approaches.

Bennett saw limited action replacing Thomas last season and held his own. While he threw six touchdowns and no interceptions during his time on the field, he completed just 54 percent of his passes to leave the door open for Mariota.

The redshirt freshman garnered a lot of hype coming out of Hawaii and has all the physical tools to run the team's up-tempo offense. Since Bennett wasn't immediately handed the job, it's safe to assume that Mariota will be given every opportunity to win the job.