Nick Saban didn’t want everyone to know the worst kept secret in college football.
So after all the offseason drama and secrecy and trying to land a graduate transfer to play quarterback, we’re left with this comforting reality: the most important position on the field has become plug and play at Alabama.
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As much as we’d like to think quarterbacks Greg McElroy, AJ McCarron and Blake Sims each won their own championships and did their own things, they all played within the Alabama system that — if you play smart and don’t force throws — leads to success no matter who is under center.
Next up in the rotation is Jake Coker, last year’s graduate transfer from Florida State who couldn’t beat out the guy (Sims) who a season earlier was playing wide receiver. That long road for Coker, the player FSU coach Jimbo Fisher once said could start for every FBS program, finally led Saturday night to North Texas in a 35-17 victory over Wisconsin.
The results were typical if not comforting. Coker completed 15-of-21 passes for 213 yards and one TD. He didn’t throw an interception, and didn’t really make any glaring mistakes.
He just did what every Alabama quarterback before him under Saban did: managed and controlled the game.
Look, we knew what the Tide had with freakish tailback Derrick Henry . We saw it last year when Alabama — for some reason — refused to give Henry the ball in a College Football Playoff semifinal loss to Ohio State. But that’s another story for another day.
This day belonged to Coker.
Coker’s journey changed dramatically two years ago from the moment Jameis Winston arrived in college football with a near-perfect game against Pittsburgh. He likely knew then that he’d never play at FSU, and began looking into transferring as a graduate student during FSU’s postseason.
He chose Alabama and spent an entire offseason as the next in line, the player who would help Alabama rebound from a gut-wrenching loss to Auburn in the Iron Bowl that ended SEC and national title hopes.
He never really came close to beating out Sims in the 2014 fall camp, and only — an Iron Bowl win over Auburn — did Saban even consider pulling Sims for Coker. The journey continued this offseason when he failed to secure the starting spot in the spring, then struggled to stay healthy early in fall camp.
When he ran on the field as the starter Saturday night, it was as much of a surprise that the job was his as it was last year when he couldn’t beat out Sims. He played smart against Wisconsin, he moved well within the pocket and even showed athletic ability on scrambles.
More than anything, he didn’t make mistakes and allowed the Tide to do what they do best: control tempo by running the ball and throwing off play action.
Just like Greg McElroy, AJ McCarron and Blake Sims did. If this year ends anything like those seasons did, Coker will fall in line with the rest of the group.
As a championship quarterback.