Alabama Football: 5 Toughest QBs Crimson Tide Will Face in 2015

A quick survey around the SEC shows this year won’t be the “year of the quarterback” in the league.

Half of the SEC’s 14 schools will be breaking in a new starter or don’t have a solid starter named right now. That’s good news for defenses in a league that has recently been defined by the points it’s been putting up on the scoreboard.

That’s not to say there will just be a bunch of scrubs suiting up under center, though.

Here’s a look at the top five quarterbacks Alabama will face this year. These players are either returning starters or guys who have been named starters in the offseason (sorry, whoever ends up starting for LSU).

5. Brandon Allen, Arkansas

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In head coach Bret Bielema’s punishing run-first offensive system, his quarterback really only needs to take care of the ball and make a few big plays when needed—a classic game manager.

Brandon Allen is doing just that.

Last year, he threw 20 touchdowns with just five interceptions. The Razorbacks were 1-3 when he threw for more than 200 yards, with the lone win coming against UAB. In Arkansas’ two biggest wins, against LSU and Ole Miss, he combined for 256 yards and one touchdown with no interceptions.

In 2015, he may have to do a little bit more but sounds up to the challenge, as he told ESPN.com's Sam Kahn Jr.:

"

I think a lot of people's game plan is to force us to pass. That's the mindset of a lot of coaches. Me and the receivers, we embrace that. If they want us to pass it, OK, we'll beat them passing. I thought our passing game was good last year. It wasn't great, it was good. It helped out in a lot of our games and I think it's only going to get better from here on out.

"

4. Kyle Allen, Texas A&M

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Texas A&M’s quarterback situation was unstable, to say the least, but Kyle Allen was able to right the ship and play some good football down the stretch. He should be able to carry that strong finish into 2015.

Allen led the Aggies to an upset over Auburn and a bowl game win over West Virginia. In the last four games of the season, all against Power Five opponents, Allen threw for 952 yards, 12 touchdowns and four interceptions.

Allen will still have to fend off mega-freshman Kyler Murray, though, come fall camp.

“We’re going to have two new guys in here starting June 2 to challenge him, and he’s up for that,” Aggies coach Kevin Sumlin said, per the Houston Chronicle’s Brent Zwerneman.

If he can retain that starting job, he should be much improved in year two as a starter and stabilize Texas A&M under center.

3. Josh Dobbs, Tennessee

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It’s clear who Tennessee and head coach Butch Jones think their secret weapon to finally beat Alabama for the first time since 2006 is.

Josh Dobbs’ redshirt has been burned each of the past two seasons to suit up against Alabama. That won’t be the case this year, as Dobbs will likely be the Vols’ starter under center from the get-go, but it will be his third crack at the Crimson Tide since coming to campus.

In last year’s start, Dobbs threw for 192 yards, two touchdowns and an interception while rushing for 75 more. Now, he’ll have a season’s worth of starting experience under his belt before taking the field against Alabama instead of jumping in for his first action of the year.

"Josh has really started to elevate his game," Jones told Bleacher Report’s Brad Shepherd. "He's still not a finished product. But I see tremendous strides from Year 1 and even Year 2 in his leadership.”

2. Jeremy Johnson, Auburn

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There wasn’t much drama over who the starting quarterback in Auburn would be after Nick Marshall graduated.

Before spring practice even finished, Tigers coach Gus Malzahn tweeted that it would be rising junior Jeremy Johnson.

Johnson was Marshall’s primary backup for the first two seasons and left virtually no doubt that he would be the guy for 2015. He started the 2014 opener while Marshall was suspended, completing 12 of 16 passes for 243 yards and two touchdowns in a 45-21 win over Arkansas.

"I feel like it's my team," Johnson said, according to AL.com’s Joel Erickson. "I'm just trying to become the best leader I can become."

1. Dak Prescott, Mississippi State

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One of the biggest surprises in the SEC last year was Dak Prescott’s ascension from solid SEC starter to Heisman Trophy contender.

Prescott led Mississippi State into unfamiliar territory—a No. 1 ranking well into November—and put up huge numbers in the process.

He struggled against Alabama, though, throwing three interceptions in a loss that ended the Bulldogs' perfect season and all but eliminated him from Heisman contention.

Still, he is far and away the best quarterback Alabama will face this season as it stands right now.

At Mississippi State’s spring game, he threw for 231 yards and three touchdowns on 20-of-29 passing.

"(Spring practice) had some ups, some downs,” Prescott said, according to Michael Bonner of The Clarion-Ledger. “But I came in each and every day with the mindset just to get better and make sure I allow my team the chance to reach their potential."

Marc Torrence is the Alabama lead writer for Bleacher Report. All quotes and reporting were obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted.

Follow on Twitter @marctorrence.