It's Time for LSU to Give QB Brandon Harris Another Shot as Starter

Brandon Harris' first foray into the world of starting at quarterback in the SEC didn't go so well. The true freshman signal-caller for LSU went 3-of-14 for 58 yards and rushed for 36 in a 41-7 loss on the road to Auburn.

It's time for Harris to get another shot.

The 7-3 Tigers will hit the road this week to Fayetteville as 2.5-point underdogs, according to OddsShark.com, to take on 4-5 Arkansas.

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Yes, that's right. The team that just took No. 4 Alabama to overtime is an underdog to a team that hasn't won an SEC game since Mitt Romney and Barack Obama were campaigning for President of the United States.

Why?

A lack of faith in current starting quarterback Anthony Jennings is a good place to start. 

The true sophomore completed just eight of 26 passes for 76 yards, one touchdown and one interception against Alabama last week, in the 20-13 overtime loss. On the season, Jennings has completed just 47.1 percent of his passes (80-of-170) for 1,266 yards, nine touchdowns and six interceptions.

Player	Comp./Att.	Comp. %	Yds	TDs	INTs
Anthony Jennings	80-of-170	47.1	1,266	9	6
Brandon Harris	25-of-45	55.6	452	6	2

Since regaining the job after the Auburn game, LSU ripped off three straight wins before the Alabama loss. During that stretch, though, Jennings didn't complete more than 50 percent of his passes in any game. While LSU's running game and defense improved, its passing game remain stagnant.

Miles said on Monday that Jennings should get more opportunities as the season closes, according to Ross Dellenger of the Baton Rouge Advocate:

Decent won't cut it. More opportunities might help, but Jennings has had plenty of them already.

Harris might be able to give the offense a boost and help the Tigers become more two-dimensional.

The former 4-star prospect and third-ranked dual-threat quarterback in the class of 2014 was thrown into the fire at Auburn, and doing the same on the road at Arkansas may seem like crazy talk.

It isn't.

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The situation for LSU is much different now. With three conference losses, there's no way for LSU to claw its way back into the SEC West or College Football Playoff hunt. Now's the time to start building for the future. Whether you think Harris will be a superstar or is nothing more than an average quarterback, Jennings has done nothing to solidify the job during his starts this season.

Head coach Les Miles and offensive coordinator Cam Cameron should make the offseason battle a fair fight, even though Miles said on Monday that he's not ready to think about the future, according to Dellenger:

Starting Harris wouldn't be focusing on the future. It'd be searching for the boost as the season comes to a close with one eye on the future.

With road games vs. Arkansas and Texas A&M left during the regular season, Harris should be given a full, fair shot to get into grooves in games, learn from his mistakes and build off of any success he enjoys. 

At that point, LSU can enter bowl practice with two quarterbacks with game experience, and the battle to win the job will not only be on, it will be as fair as it can get.

It's safe to say, given Jennings' inconsistencies, there's going to be another quarterback battle this offseason in Baton Rouge. LSU would be best-served to start it now so that it can hit the ground running during bowl practices.

Barrett Sallee is the lead SEC college football writer and video analyst for Bleacher Report as well as a co-host of the CFB Hangover on Bleacher Report Radio (Sundays, 9-11 a.m. ET) on Sirius 93, XM 208.

Quotes were obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted. All stats are courtesy of CFBStats.com and all recruiting information is courtesy of 247Sports. Follow Barrett on Twitter @BarrettSallee.