Does anyone on this board think that there is any chance Jefferson doesn't beat out Lee for the starting job next year? I personally can't see any reason why he won't. I don't think we will have a winning season as long as Lee is the qb, but I could be wrong. I didn't see Lee make any progression at all this season from game 1 to the end of the season. I understand he is a freshman but that's not an excuse for not taking any steps in getting better throughout a whole season. The only thing he has going for him is a quick release and a very strong arm, but no poise. He made the same mistakes over and over and over all season long. If Jefferson isn't starting something is very wrong. Jefferson has already shown progress and potential in the few games we saw him in.
The answer will lie in the decision by Miles to play either JJ or Lee in the bowl game. If Lee starts, then oh well. Be prepared for Lee part II next season. It's up to Les.
Hatch, Lee, and JJ are all neck-in-neck in my book. It will be interesting to see if Shep gets in the mix.
Only reason I think he may not is because of Miles. Almost any other coach in CFB and he gets all the snaps with the ones all off season, spring, and Fall without hesitation. Miles is stubborn though, so who knows what he will do.
Miles has already stated that JJ is the starter for the Bowl game. So he has a chance to move ahead of Lee and Hatch if he has a good performance.
We had a good end-of-season discussion on next year's QB the other day that you can read here -- http://www.tigerforums.com/showthread.php?t=79197&page=4 There, my opinion was:
Of course there is a chance, the position will be wide open. Yes, you could be wrong. I blame that on poor quarterback coaching. Lee was thrown into the game and was supposed to be the 3rd string Qb this season. He did the best he could and he did get better. he gained good yardage and isn't the first freshman to throw a lot of interceptions. And he won't make them next season, if Les finds him a better QB coach. All green QB's make mistakes. Lee's are mostly behind him. Those mistakes will still be ahead of Jefferson, Sheppard, and Hatch. Experience is what Lee will bring back. And "poise' wasn't his issue--interceptions were. Lee consistently shook off bad plays and passed us back into the game. It didn't get inside his head. He still has a lot to learn about looking off his receivers and respecting SEC defensive backs, but he'll be ahead of the other quarterbacks next spring. Too few games. And we lost both those games. It is WAY too soon to annoint Jefferson.
I think that we'll see a lot of improvement over the offseason in all of our QB's. If history is an indicator, Lee will be the guy. Les seems to treat seniority as the factor when deciding who to start it seems. Maybe someone else can argue differently, but that's the vibe I get. I think the issue is moot if Crowton tries to roll out the entire playbook. You look at inexperienced QB's and the ones that are asked to do the least are usually most successful.
I've posted this on here before, but rather than looking my post up, it is easier just to go to LSU's bio page on Crowton: Crowton has coached seven quarterbacks who have gone on to be selected in the NFL Draft Among the standouts he has tutored include ... Louisiana Tech quarterback Tim Rattay, who finished 10th in balloting for the Heisman Trophy in 1999; and Boston College quarterback Glenn Foley, who finished fifth in the Heisman Trophy voting in 1993. [Crowton is a] former all-league quarterback at Orem High School [who] earned All-America acclaim at Snow Junior College before completing his football career as a quarterback Crowton served as the offensive coordinator for two years with the Chicago Bears. In his first year with the Bears in 1999, Crowton’s offense ranked No. 3 in the NFL in passing with an average of 258.5 yards per game. That year, the Bears established a franchise record with 4,136 passing yards behind a trio of quarterbacks. http://www.lsusports.net/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=5200&ATCLID=748627&Q_SEASON=2008 I think we can trust Crowton with our whole QB situation
