Morning reads: Nick Saban goes scorched earth, Greg Sankey on eliminating divisions and more
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Predicting playing time for the SEC transfer QBs
Eleven quarterbacks transferred to 10 SEC schools this offseason, with South Carolina’s Spencer Rattler the lone guaranteed starter of the entire group. Still, as many as five other SEC transfer quarterbacks could legitimately start this fall at Ole Miss, LSU, Auburn, Texas A&M and/or Missouri — which would represent close to half of the conference. That number jumps to eight when you add 2021 transfer quarterbacks Will Levis (Penn State) at Kentucky and Hendon Hooker (Va. Tech) at Tennessee, but for the purposes of this exercise, those guys don’t count.
Here’s what On3 Sports’ Jesse Simonton had to say about Auburn’s Robby Ashford and Zach Calzada.
On Ashford: The former two-sport star from Mobile (Ala.) had a nice A-Day showing playing behind an iffy Tigers’ offensive line, emerging as a potential X-factor in the battle with incumbent TJ Finley and fellow transfer Zach Calzada. Ashford is the best athlete in the room, and could totally win AU’s job since the Tigers lack real explosiveness at the skill positions. How well Ashford continues to improve operating Harsin’s offense will go a long way in determining where he sits in the Tigers’ pecking order though.
On Calzada: The lean here is Calzada ultimately gets the nod over Ashford and Finley thanks to experience. The former Aggies has a win over Alabama on his resume, but also 10 other career starts. Still, much like Finley, accuracy issues (56.1 completion percentage in 2021) are a real concern. Can he show a better propensity of not throwing the ball 99 miles per hour every time? Calzada may not open Week 1 as Auburn’s QB1 but he stands a strong chance of logging multiple starts in what could be a musical chairs-like competition.
Here’s the rest of the list and commentary.
Nick Saban calls out Jimbo Fisher, Texas A&M for recruiting methods
Well, here we go.
Alabama head coach Nick Saban provided harsh criticism of recruiting efforts by Texas A&M and coach Jimbo Fisher versus those of the Crimson Tide. While speaking at an event celebrating the 50-day countdown to the World Games in Birmingham, Saban reportedly claimed that Texas A&M “bought every player on their team” with NIL deals.
“I know the consequence is going to be difficult for the people who are spending tons of money to get players,” Saban said via AL.com. “You read about it, you know who they are. We were second in recruiting last year. A&M was first. A&M bought every player on their team. Made a deal for name, image and likeness.
“We didn’t buy one player. Aight? But I don’t know if we’re going to be able to sustain that in the future, because more and more people are doing it. It’s tough.”
Nick Saban also specifically mentioned Miami basketball buying players through NIL, and that Jackson State football paid Travis Hunter Jr. one million dollars through NIL to attend school there.
Deion Sanders, the head coach of Jackson State, has already taken to social media to deny that Jackson State paid Hunter Jr. and said he would be addressing the “lie” that Nick Saban told on Thursday.
SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey reveals stance on breaking conference into pods
With the incoming additions of Texas and Oklahoma into the SEC, the conference will jump to 16 teams, and rumors of four-team pods throughout the SEC have been a solution for managing the overflow of programs and eliminating the division-based format that has worked for the last few decades. SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey commented on his stance on pods three years out of the major move.
““It’s on our list. We’re not going to do it in a knee jerk way,” Sankey said. “… When we go to 16 (teams) that possibility is front and center for the SEC.”
Sankey did say that the divisions have worked for the SEC since its inception in 1992. The format has worked perfectly in terms of fairly determining the SEC Championship game, but with pods, the SEC Championship-berth criteria would have to change as well.
“Unless the sentiment of our league changes greatly, the division format works and when we go to 16, that would be the time for adjustment,” he said.
USA Today tabs Jabari Smith No. 1 in latest mock draft
Jeff Zillgitt of USA TODAY Sports released his latest 2022 NBA mock draft after Tuesday’s lottery was made official. The Orlando Magic moved into the No. 1 spot, while the Sacramento Kings shooting up the board into the top four, and the order of the first 14 selections are now set in stone.
To illustrate, the aforementioned No. 1 pick went to the Magic, and Orlando is followed by the Oklahoma City Thunder at No. 2 and Houston Rockets at No. 3. The Kings moved up to No. 4 overall as Sacramento celebrated, while the Detroit Pistons fell out of the top four with the No. 5 pick.
In their latest mock draft, USA Today has Smith going No. 1 to the Magic, which makes the second mock draft this week with that prediction, joining Jonathan Givony of ESPN. Paolo Banchero, Chet Holmgren, Jaden Ivey and Keegan Murray follow Smith in that order.
Unlike prior seasons, there is no consensus No. 1 overall pick this year, but a large group of top-level prospects could have their order determined by team needs more so than any perceived gap in talent. Thus far, Duke’s Paolo Banchero and Gonzaga’s Chet Holmgren have received the most hype entering the draft process, alongside Auburn’s Jabari Smith. Nevertheless, Purdue’s Jaden Ivey has drawn big-time comparisons which have caused his stock to rise, while Kentucky’s Shaedon Sharpe remains an outsider with little film.
