Alabama is giving practice reps to 5 QBs

College QB news - August 8, 2023

Photo courtesy of Alabama Athletics Photography

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COLLEGE FOOTBALL QB REPORT

Quarterback Central | Teams | Players

Alabama is giving reps to all five scholarship quarterbacks, offensive coordinator Tommy Rees said. True freshmen Eli Holstein (Stats) and Dylan Lonergan (Stats) won’t get the starting spot, but it’s difficult to get a read on who’s in the lead between Ty Simpson (Stats), Jalen Milroe (Stats) and Notre Dame transfer Tyler Buchner (Stats). This will be one of the most interesting quarterback competitions to watch down the stretch without much separation between any of the three options at this point.

Texas A&M QB Max Johnson (Stats) lined up with the first-team offense during practice, according to 247Sports’ Jeff Tarpley. Conner Weigman (Stats) is also getting plenty of work with the ones and is likely the favorite to open the season as the starting quarterback, though not by a wide margin. Johnson is in his second season with the Aggies after transferring in from LSU, while Weigman played five games as a true freshman in 2022.

Florida QB Graham Mertz (Stats) will be the Gators’ starter barring something unforeseen, according to 247Sports’ Jacob Rudner. While a starting quarterback hasn’t been announced, this has been the expected outcome ever since Mertz transferred from Wisconsin. Mertz is competing with Jack Miller III (Stats), but another notable storyline is the potential for Max Brown (Stats) to land the backup role considering the rushing threat has seen a decent amount of work with the second-team offense.

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DEPTH CHART & INJURY REPORT

Ole Miss QB Jaxson Dart (Stats) continues to get the first-team reps with Spencer Sanders (Stats) primarily working with the twos, according to 247Sports’ David Johnson. Nothing has happened that should change the idea that Dart is the favorite to beat out the Oklahoma State transfer to become the Week 1 starter. Keep an eye on whether Sanders can transfer again before the start of the season for his final year of eligibility. It never felt realistic for Walker Howard (Stats) to potentially landing the starting spot, but we’ll see how things progress over the next few weeks.