Everybody asks for the "other guy" when one doesn't live up to expectations...it's not about being a great guy once the season starts; it's about providing and stepping up. If he doesn't do that great then I'd expect Miles to bench him.
A great part of the Tigers success with the offense just fell into Hatch's lap. Bet, your azz he knows it too...lotta of season work gonna be goin on this year!
I've heard a good bit of predictions/guesses on how the quarterback situation will go down next season. For some reason, the one I remember most is the one that Hatch will win the starting job, and will start the first few games. Then Lee will beat him out as the starter, and Lee will continue to be our starter for the next four seasons.
Or, Clair is right shock: :grinand Hatch won't be able to hang with Lee in practice. Or, none of us realizes how good Jefferson is. Or, RP is let back on the team after a judge throws out the drug test results because of poor lab work... OK, OK. I was kidding on the last one. :grin: I'd rate it like this, most likely to least likely: 1. Lee starts 2008. Hatch gets PT. Jefferson does NOT RS (Avoid stackup in 2009) 2. Lee starts 2008. Hatch gets PT. Jefferson gets RS. 3. Hatch starts. Lee passes him before SEC play. 4. Hatch starts. Lee backs him up all year. 5. Lee/Hatch start, but Jefferson passes them up at some point. 6. Jefferson transfers (feels Shep's breath on his neck) 7. Jefferson starts and Lee transfers out.
With Jefferson coming in this year, and Sheppard next; i don't see Lee being the starter for the next four years.
Clair is right about Lee performing better than Hatch during Spring Practice but Hatch still has the Fall to battle for a spot and anything can happen. They will start from scratch and battle again. One thing that Lee struggled with during the spring game was pressure. During practice there is less pressure to deal with during drills. Therefore, if Lee can't overcome the pressure leading up to the season it might take a few games of in game experience to get over the hump. I could see Hatch starting if that is the case. From there if Hatch is running the offense smoothly then Lee might just have to play backup or if Hatch struggles he could be the one playing backup. (Hatch has a problem of locking into his WRs and telgraphing the deep ball) Either way I think both will see the field pretty evenly at the start of the season until someone seperates themselves. But I think both will see the field almost every game while Crowton's uses different packages tailored to their strenghts. JJ is not a running QB option and therefore would just be a 3rd QB doing similar packages. I think they will try to RS as long as there is no need for him to step because of poor play or injury from either Hatch and/or Lee. Give him a year to learn the offense because it will not be easy to get a grasp of or learn on the fly.
