Lane Kiffin's Dilemma: Where Is the Next Peyton Manning?

People wondered what in the world was wrong with Lane Kiffin when he told Tajh Boyd and Bryce Petty that their services would not be needed in his pro-style offense. I, on the other hand, figured that if anyone could see the kind of quarterback they need, it would be Kiffin—the man who is being paid to coach the team.

Not myself, who is just a Soldier with no qualifications of being a coach, except playing 2A high school football in Northeast Tennessee. That's also the same kind of qualifications for most of the people that were calling Kiffin crazy for telling those two talented kids thanks, but no thanks.

I can see why they would raise some eyebrows, however. Tennessee has no proven college-caliber quarterbacks. Jonathan Crompton struggled all season last year, as did Nick Stevens. The backup. B.J. Coleman, who was everyone's dark horse to win the job, has transferred to Chattanooga, stating he wasn't getting a fair chance at competing for the No. 1 spot.

We have a walk-on, Mike Rozier, who decided to come and play some football after a failed MLB stint with the Red Sox.  

Then there is Kiffin's new problem of not being able to get any of his targets in recruiting for his system to come and play for him.

Of course, the selling point is come play football for a prestigious program that has jack squat for a quarterback depth chart. That would seem to be a big lure for a kid that wants to come in and try to make a difference right away. However, these top prospects are proving otherwise.

Not saying that a kid has to be a five-star to be a great quarterback, hence Sam Bradford. The list is getting thin in top-ranked pro-style quarterbacks though. It looks like Kiffin might have to settle for a three-star and perhaps hope he has a diamond in the rough like Bradford. 

It seems that Kiffin is getting a little desperate, as he is looking at dual-threat quarterbacks now. I thought he was a pro-style guy from everything I read. Maybe he thinks he takes a run-first kid with a great arm and teaches him to stay in the pocket.

Who knows what going on with that, but I'm sure Kiffin is about to find out what coaching is all about in the quarterback position anyway. 

Below is a list of quarterbacks prospects. You will notice a trend though: All the top ones are almost gone. I believe in Kiffin and his staff, but even my non-qualified self is starting to get concerned.

PRO-STYLE
NAME	HEIGHT	WEIGHT	FROM	COMMITTED
PHILLIP SIMS	6'1"	209	CHESAPEAKE, VA	ALABAMA
JESSE SCROGGINS	6'3"	195	LAKEWOOD, CA	NO
JAKE HEAPS	6'2"	195	SAMMAMISH, WA	BYU
ANDREW HENDRIX	6'3"	220	CINCINNATI, OH	NO
NICK MONTANA	6'2"	177	WESTLAKE VILLAGE, CA	WASHINGTON
CODY BLANCHARD	6'1"	180	CENRE, AL	NO
TYLER BROSIUS	6'3"	233	WAYNEVILLE, NC	VIRGINIA
TYLER SHREVE	6'4"	210	REDLANDS, CA	NO
DAVID PYLAND	6'2"	175	SOUTHLAKE, TX	NO
MICHAEL STRAUSS	6'2"	208	MIAMI, FL	NO
CLINT TRICKETT	6'2"	175	TALLAHASSEE, FL	NO
JOSEPH BRENNAN	6'4"	178	CHERRY HILL, NJ	NO
DYLAN THOMPSON	6'3"	201	BOILING SPRINGS, SC	SOUTH CAROLINA
JONATHAN WATERS	6'4"	178	LINDALE, GA	NO
DUAL THREAT
BARRY BRUNETTI	6'0"	207	MEMPHIS, TN	WEST VIRGINIA
MUCHIE LEGAUX	6'4"	185	NEW ORLEANS, LA	NO
JAMES FRANKLIN	6'2"	218	CORINTH, TX	MISSOURI
JEFFREY GODFREY	5'11"	167	MIAMI, FL	NO
DARIAN STONE	5'11	180	CLINTON, TN	NO
TIM SMITH	6'2	190	FORT PIERCE, FL	NO
GABRIEL HENDERSON	6'0	182	RALEIGH, NC	NO