The SEC football championship race could come down to a couple of quarterbacks who have never been full-time starters in college before.
And no, we're not talking about Arch Manning.
These eyes are turned toward Athens and Tuscaloosa, toward Gunner Stockton and Ty Simpson.
ESPN's Bill Connelly released a list of the most important players in college football this season (to be fair to Manning, he's at No. 1). The No. 2 player on the list is Stockton. And No. 3 is Simpson.
Stockton takes over as Georgia's quarterback for Carson Beck.
"The small-town Georgia product and former blue-chipper found himself in an impossible situation, making his first career start in the 2024 CFP quarterfinals last season against Notre Dame," Connelly wrote. "He made some fabulous throws, suffered a devastating sack-and-strip fumble and couldn't quite get the job done. Now he has gotten an entire offseason to prepare for start No. 2 and beyond. Georgia has the highest floor in the sport, but the Dawgs' ceiling will be defined by Stockton and a receiving corps that didn't do nearly enough for its QBs last season."
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Simpson is expected to take over the Alabama job that was held by Jalen Milroe.
"The Bama defense gave up only 14.4 points per game in its final seven contests, but the Tide went just 4-3 in that span because the offense disappeared, reappeared, then vanished for good," Connelly wrote. "With Ryan Grubb rejoining Kalen DeBoer as offensive coordinator and receiver Ryan Williams returning, it seems this is a great situation for a new QB. Can Simpson, a longtime backup, seize his opportunity and lead Bama through tricky early road trips to Florida State and Georgia? Or will he be supplanted by a youngster by midseason?"
The Crimson Tide have talented recruits waiting in the wings if Simpson isn't ready after ample time in reserve.
The SEC is loaded with quarterbacks, even in less-than-usual places. There's LaNorris Sellers at South Carolina, and the electric Diego Pavia at Vanderbilt. LSU is led by Garrett Nussmeier.
Florida has DJ Lagway. Oklahoma brought in the exhilarating transfer John Mateer.
It's the traditional powers, Georgia and Alabama, who have two of the biggest quarterback questions.
But if either Stockton or Simpson can turn their question mark into an exclamation point, it could send the SEC title soaring back toward the Bulldogs or Crimson Tide.
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