Texas A&M Football: 5 Toughest QBs the Aggies Will Face This Season

After a strong finish to 2014, Kyle Allen appears to have the starting quarterback job locked up for Texas A&M. However, other teams in the SEC don't seem to have the same stability under center. 

Many teams in the league will be breaking in a new signal-caller this season, and several of those schools don't know who will be leading the offense to start 2015. 

Even if the SEC isn't filled with household names at quarterback to start the season, there are still plenty of talented players at the position that SEC fans will be familiar with by October. 

New Texas A&M defensive coordinator John Chavis will have his hands full trying to revamp the Aggies defense to face a slate of capable SEC quarterbacks and an early nonconference challenge as well. 

Here are the top quarterbacks Texas A&M will face this season. 

No. 5 Jacob Coker, Alabama

Butch Dill/Associated Press

This one is subject to change as Alabama has yet to officially announce a starter for the 2015 season. 

After backing up Blake Sims in 2014 and going through spring practice without being overtaken by any of the Tide's younger quarterbacks, Jacob Coker should at least be considered the leader in the clubhouse for the starting spot.

Coker came to Alabama a year ago as a graduate transfer from Flordia State. Many expected him to win the starting job once he arrived on campus. Instead, he was beaten out by Sims, who turned out to be one of the SEC's biggest surprises in 2014. 

Coker has all the physical tools of an SEC-caliber quarterback. He stands 6'5", 232 pounds. He has a strong arm and enough athleticism to run the ball if the situation calls for it.  

In 2014, Coker mostly saw time in mop-up duty for the Crimson Tide. He completed 64 percent of his throws for 403 yards and four touchdowns. Coker did not throw an interception last season. 

Despite the loss of Amari Cooper, Coker will have plenty of weapons surrounding him in 2015. ArDarius Stewart and Robert Foster are two talented wide receivers who will look to step up this season and make the transition easier for the new starting quarterback. 

Coker and the Crimson Tide will travel to College Station on October 17, and the Aggies will look to avenge last year's 59-0 beatdown. 

No. 4 Brandon Allen, Arkansas

Associated Press

Brandon Allen doesn't put up any eye-popping stats or make any plays to wow you with his athleticism. In Bret Bielema's run-oriented offense, Allen has been given the classic "game manager" label. 

Still, Allen does exactly what is asked of him for Arkansas. He takes care of the football, avoids mistakes and puts Arkansas' best playmakers in position to succeed. 

Allen performed his duties well in 2014, throwing for 20 touchdowns and only five interceptions. Five interceptions was the fewest by any starting quarterback in the SEC in 2015. 

Arkansas still only managed a 7-6 record in 2014 while playing in the difficult SEC West. For Arkansas to compete for the SEC crown in 2015, Allen will have to take a step forward and make defenses respect the Razorbacks passing game. 

Bielema doesn't seem to have any doubts in his starting quarterback as he told ESPN's Sam Kahn Jr. 

"Any time you have a fifth-year quarterback who's a multi-year starter, it's unprecedented what can happen," Bielema said. "We're so much better around him. It's our best offensive line, two tight ends, a couple wide receivers that I think are exceptional and two great running backs. The sky's the limit."

Allen has two legitimate threats in the passing game in Keon Hatcher and Hunter Henry, who combined for over 1,000 receiving yards in 2014. 

If Allen can make more plays to take pressure off Alex Collins and Jonathan Williams in the run game, the Razorbacks offense should show great improvement in 2015. 

No. 3 Jeremy Johnson, Auburn

Butch Dill/Associated Press

Before the 2014 season ended, Auburn already knew who would be taking over for Nick Marshall at the quarterback position. Jeremy Johnson has shown flashes of his ability in spot duty the last two seasons.

Now, he'll have his chance to take control of the Auburn offense.

Johnson brings a different skill set to Auburn than Marshall. He's not nearly as elusive of a runner but has the athleticism to make plays with his feet when needed. 

Johnson is much more of a pocket presence at quarterback and has an accurate arm. 

In limited action last year, Johnson completed 28 of 37 passing attempts for 436 yards, three touchdowns and zero interceptions. 

The majority of that work came when Johnson started the Tigers' season opener against Arkansas. In that game, Johnson threw for 243 yards and two touchdowns in just the first half. 

There's been no shortage of preseason hype for Johnson, who was recently named to the preseason watch list for the Maxwell Award. 

He will have an NFL-caliber receiver to throw to in Duke Williams and should post some huge stat lines in Gus Malzahn's high-powered offense. 

Jeremy Johnson is a perfect example of a name that SEC fans will recognize soon if they don't already. 

No. 2 Mike Bercovici, Arizona State

The Aggies will open the season against Arizona State inside Houston's NRG Stadium. 

That opening test also comes with a matchup against the Sun Devils' new starting quarterback, Mike Bercovici. 

2015 will be the first full season as a starter for the fifth-year senior, but he brings much more game experience to the table than most first-year starters. 

Bercovici started three games last season in place of injured starter Taylor Kelly. He went 2-1 in those starts and also posted 488 and 510 passing yards against UCLA and USC, respectively.

In the video above, Bercovici shows off both his arm strength and flair for the dramatic, throwing a last-second touchdown to beat the Trojans. 

Bercovici has a cannon arm and can make any throw on the field. Per College Spun's Matt Hladik, he recently won the Elite 11 counselor competition, beating out names such as Tennessee's Joshua Dobbs and Penn State's Christian Hackenberg.

With Kelly graduated, Bercovici now has control of the Arizona State offense and expectations are high. 

The Sun Devils lost Jaelen Strong to the NFL draft, but D.J. Foster and Cameron Smith will serve as reliable targets for Bercovici after racking up nearly 600 receiving yards each last year. 

After back-to-back 10-win seasons, Arizona State will be hungry to get off to a fast start to 2015 against an SEC opponent. Any improvements to a Texas A&M secondary that ranked 13th in the SEC in passing defense in 2014 need to be in place to face the Sun Devils air attack. 

No. 1 Dak Prescott, Mississippi State

The No.1 spot on this list was pretty much a no-brainer. 

Dak Prescott led Mississippi State to one of the best seasons in school history last season and surprised many by choosing to return to Starkville for his senior season. 

Prescott had a big junior year under center for the Bulldogs and was a part of the Heisman Trophy discussion for most of the year. 

At 230 pounds, Prescott is a load to bring down but also has the speed to elude defenders. He may not be the most accurate pocket passer, but as seen in the video above, he is adept at extending plays to get the ball to the Bulldogs' other playmakers down field. 

The numbers from last season say it all for Prescott. He threw for 3,449 yards and also ran for 986 yards. Prescott accounted for 42 total touchdowns and threw 11 interceptions. 

One of his best games came against Texas A&M, in which Prescott completed 20 of his 26 passing attempts for two touchdowns and ran for three scores as well. 

Prescott is by far the most proven and most dangerous quarterback the Aggies will see in 2015. 

Head coach Dan Mullen seems to think that in 2015 the Bulldogs will go as Prescott goes as he told ESPN's Adam Rittenberg. "Wherever Dak sets the bar, that's the absolute highest we can go," Mullen said. "Everyone we expect to perform at a level below that. He has to pull everybody up to his bar."

There's a lot of anticipation to see if Prescott can duplicate his 2014 performance. The Aggies will get a second crack against Prescott in College Station on October 3. 

All statistics via cfbstats.com

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