Alabama Hoping For Their Own Stetson Bennett

Quarterback is a touchy subject in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. The Crimson Tide hoped to have a clear answer at the position by this point, but there are still moving parts to a fascinating subplot. Ty Simpson and Jalen Milroe spent spring practice battling for the starting gig, but head coach Nick Saban didn't see enough to appoint one of them.

They turned to the transfer portal for a remedy. Saban hired Notre Dame offensive coordinator Tommy Rees this offseason to fill his own coordinator vacancy, and the pair went back to South Bend to land quarterback Tyler Buchner. Buchner spent two years with the Fighting Irish, never landing the starting position. He dominated South Carolina in the TaxSlayer Gator Bowl, flashing the talent that Alabama hopes they are tapping into.

Buchner is coming to Tuscaloosa to be the starting quarterback. There would be no reason to bring him in if the coaching staff didn't expect him to win the job. However, we don't even know if he can quarterback twelve consecutive games, meaning Alabama is walking into the season completely blind at quarterback.

Those around the program are beginning to share expectations for Buchner. On3 analyst JD Pickell shared that in recent conversations, "What I was told about this [quarterback] situation as a whole with bringing in Tyler Buchner was that Alabama is looking for their Stetson Bennett." Bennett led Georgia to two consecutive national championships after beginning his career as a walk-on and transferring to a JUCO.

There's nothing wrong with wanting to have Stetson Bennett as your starting quarterback. The Los Angeles Rams selected him in the fourth round of the NFL Draft, and he was a Heisman finalist; Bennett's got game. The problem is trying to replicate it. There's a reason it's a storybook ending; what he did at Georgia is extremely difficult, if not impossible, to replicate.

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