It’s almost as if Alabama football coach Nick Saban and Georgia counterpart Kirby Smart have been around the block when it comes to news conferences.
With the Crimson Tide and the Bulldogs each having to replace quarterbacks who experienced Heisman Trophy ceremonies and are now in the NFL, Saban and Smart knew the topic would be coming after Saturday’s initial preseason scrimmages in Tuscaloosa and Athens, so they handled much of it in their opening comments.
“Everybody got reps today at quarterback,” Saban said. “I’m not a stats guy, so we’re not interested in what their statistics were. We are going to be interested when we watch the film in terms of how they executed, whether they threw the ball to the right place at the right time, whether they were accurate in what they did, and if they took care of the ball so that we have a chance to play winning football at that position.
“That’s what we’ll be evaluating, and if you ask me a question, that’s the answer I’m going to give you.”
Saban and new offensive coordinator Tommy Rees have to replace Bryce Young, the top overall pick of the Carolina Panthers in April’s NFL draft, and are choosing among redshirt sophomores Jalen Milroe and Tyler Buchner and redshirt freshman Ty Simpson. Buchner is a transfer from Notre Dame, where Rees served as offensive coordinator the past three seasons.
Stetson Bennett quarterbacked the Bulldogs to the past two national championships, but his shoes will now be filled by redshirt junior Carson Beck, redshirt sophomore Brock Vandagriff or redshirt freshman Gunner Stockton. Beck played in seven of Georgia’s 15 games last season and is considered the favorite, but Smart was harping Saturday on those around the quarterbacks to play better.
“If there are seven drops during the scrimmage because of the heat and wet hands, you evaluate that,” Smart said. “I don’t think any of our quarterbacks would tell you they played their best. They know the offense and can execute the offense, but the players around them have to make plays. Our quarterbacks have to avoid catastrophes, because we have a defense that causes havoc and can be disruptive in disguise.
“There are going to be times when you have to get us to the next play. You don’t have to make a Superman play. Just get us to the next play.”
The Bulldogs scrimmaged with their share of players either limited or out altogether, with that list containing senior running back Kendall Milton (hamstring), senior safety Dan Jackson (hamstring), junior inside linebacker Smael Mondon (foot), junior cornerback Kamari Lassiter (foot), junior receiver Rara Thomas (hamstring) and freshman defensive back Chris Peal (turf toe). Another freshman, inside linebacker Raylen Wilson, sustained a hyperextended knee during the scrimmage, according to Smart, who added that his ligaments were intact and that hopefully he would be fine.
Saban mentioned in his news conference that sophomore running back Jam Miller has been limited with a thigh bruise.
Given that Saturday’s scrimmage was just Alabama’s third day in pads, Saban said the execution wasn’t what he wanted. He added that there were multiple drops from the receivers and several false-start penalties on hard counts.
“If we didn’t have a ton of things to work on, why would we have 20 more practices or whatever it is before our first game?” Saban said.
For Smart, the first scrimmage was rather revealing.
“I think we got to identify some guys who are ready to play versus some guys who want no part of it because they can’t sustain and keep their level of focus up,” he said.
Five-star catch-up
Two of Alabama’s four five-star signees in the 2023 class were Keon Keeley and Yhonzae Pierre, but those two edge rushers didn’t enroll until the summer.
“Outside linebacker is a position that not very many guys played when they were in high school,” Saban said. “They played defensive end. They rushed up the field all the time, so to teach guys how to play that is a little bit of a work in progress. How do you drop? When do you drop? How do you stand up and play and use your hands? When can you rush up the field and when can you not?
“All these things are things that those guys need to learn, but we’re happy to have them both here.”
Contact David Paschall at dpaschall@timesfreepress.com.