Monday Measure: Should Georgia think about a quarterback change?

It wouldn’t be fair to completely blame Georgia’s loss to Alabama on Saturday night on quarterback Stetson Bennett. But Bennett’s lackluster play certainly played a significant part.

Bennett threw for 269 yards and two touchdowns in the 41-24 loss, but completed just 18 of his 40 attempts and tossed three costly interceptions. In fact, all three of his interceptions were followed by Alabama touchdowns on the ensuing drives.

Bennett’s first interception came less than a minute into the ballgame on his third throw. Generously listed at 5-foot-11, Bennett had his pass tipped at the line of scrimmage by Alabama’s D.J. Dale and picked off by fellow defensive lineman Justin Eboigbe. Three plays later, Alabama opened the scoring with a 40-yard touchdown pass by Mac Jones.

Bennett shook off the early turnover and hung in there for much of the first half. He made a few nice plays, including a sharp touchdown pass on third-and-goal to Jermaine Burton to give the Bulldogs the lead going into halftime.

While that third-down connection with Burton was on target, Bennett missed wide-open receivers on his two previous end-zone attempts. Those misses were a sign of things to come.

Alabama closed the first half with a field goal, cutting the Georgia lead to 24-20. And in the third quarter, the Crimson Tide’s big-play offense struck when Jones found Jaylen Waddle behind the defense for a 90-yard go-ahead touchdown.

Alabama would never relinquish the lead. Georgia’s next drive ended with Bennett’s second interception, again deep in Alabama territory. Five plays later, Alabama’s lead was up to 34-24.

At that point, the Georgia offense desperately needed points or the game was in danger of getting out of hand. It soon got out of hand. Bennett showed his better-than-advertised athleticism to evade pressure, but then forced one into traffic for his third — and worst — interception of the evening. It was a decision that pretty much spelled the end of whatever comeback hopes remained for the Bulldogs.

Saturday night’s game was just the third career start for Bennett, a former walk-on. He played solid, mistake-free football in wins over Auburn and Tennessee, but going up against Alabama was another level of competition. If Georgia wants to win a national title, that’s the level of opponent it will have to contend with again later in the year — potentially in a rematch with the Tide.

Is Bennett the caliber of player that can get the job done at the highest level of the sport? If Saturday’s performance was any indication, the answer is no. Again, it’s not all on Bennett. He doesn’t have anywhere near the collection of receiver talent that Jones did on the other sideline, but it makes you wonder if Georgia might want to take a real look at the other quarterbacks on the depth chart. J.T. Daniels, the high-profile transfer from USC, is waiting in the wings.

Many assumed Daniels would get the starting nod after Jamie Newman, another transfer, surprisingly decided to opt out. Instead, it was first D’Wan Mathis and then Bennett while Daniels continued to work back to full strength on the heels of a serious knee injury that ended his 2019 season in Week 1.

Daniels was cleared for contact a few weeks ago ahead of the Auburn game, but has not seen the field in a Georgia uniform. He has the five-star recruiting pedigree and showed flashes of potential as the true freshman starter on a mediocre USC team in 2018.

If Daniels’ health is no longer a hindrance, finding a way to get him on the field could help the Bulldogs unlock their potential as the season progresses. Bennett, when coupled with the rest of Georgia’s talent, is good enough to beat probably 95 percent of the teams in the country. And that includes top SEC East counterpart Florida.

But the goal for the Bulldogs is to win a national championship. And that requires taking its play a step further — one that may not be attainable against some of the high-flying offenses they will have to compete with to win it all without an upgrade at the quarterback position.

It’s no guarantee that Daniels will be an upgrade, either, but Georgia’s coaches at least have to ask themselves the question during the coming bye week.

- Sam Cooper

Most surprising teams so far in 2020

Arkansas (2-2): The hire of Sam Pittman has given the Arkansas program a shot of adrenaline. The Razorbacks, from the tail end of Bret Bielema’s era into the short, but disastrous Chad Morris tenure, entered 2020 on a 19-game SEC losing streak. That quickly came to an end under Pittman. Arkansas put a scare into Georgia to open the year before upsetting Mississippi State, nearly upsetting Auburn and then pulling out an impressive win over Ole Miss on Saturday. In the win, Arkansas limited the high-powered Ole Miss offense to just 21 points while forcing seven turnovers. (SC)

Boston College (3-2): Boston College fell down to earth a bit with Saturday night’s 40-14 loss to Virginia Tech, but the Eagles have opened the Jeff Hafley era on a very positive note. BC beat Duke on the road to open the year, nearly pulled off a huge upset of North Carolina and then beat a solid Pitt team in overtime. Those wins, plus a comeback win over Texas State, has Boston College firmly in that packed middle class of the ACC. A winning record is a very real possibility for the Eagles, and that’s not something many expected entering the season. (SC)

BYU (5-0): It’s not all that surprising that BYU is undefeated at this point. The Cougars haven’t played a game against a ranked team so far. But man, the way that BYU is beating opponents is what’s surprising. A 52-point win over Navy in Week 1 wasn’t much of an anomaly as BYU has won four of its games by 17 or more points. And it’s easy to write off a seven-point win over UTSA as a look-ahead to Houston. QB Zach Wilson has positioned himself as one of the best draft-eligible quarterbacks as he’s completed over 70 percent of his passes in each of BYU’s games. (NB)

Coastal Carolina (4-0): Coastal Carolina is ranked in the Associated Press Top 25 for the first time in school history. The Chanticleers are No. 25 after improving to 4-0 with an upset road win over No. 21 Louisiana. It was the first win over a ranked opponent in program history. CCU is the only undefeated team remaining in the Sun Belt and is one of the favorites to win the conference title. CCU is in just its fourth season as an FBS program and had a 13-23 (6-18 Sun Belt) record entering 2020. The team’s hot start is one of the best stories in college football. (SC)

NC State (4-1): NC State went 4-8 in 2019, winning just one ACC game in the process. The Wolfpack struggled mightily on offense, and there were offseason rumblings about Dave Doeren’s job status entering 2020. Through five games, the Wolfpack have already matched last year’s win total. NC State improved to 4-1 by beating Duke on Saturday. It was the team’s third straight victory, but it came at a cost as QB Devin Leary went down with a serious injury. That’s a significant blow headed into next Saturday’s game at No. 14 North Carolina. (SC)

Kansas State (3-1): We all figured Kansas State would be pretty good. But there were few people who didn’t go to KSU that would have guessed that Kansas State would stay undefeated in the Big 12 longer than both Oklahoma and Texas. The Wildcats have won three Big 12 games after losing to Arkansas State to open the season but will have to go the rest of the season without QB Skylar Thompson after he suffered a season-ending injury against Texas Tech. True freshman Will Howard started in his place against TCU and rushed for 86 yards and a TD. But Howard will have to improve as a passer if KSU is to contend for a spot in the Big 12 title game. (NB)

Marshall (4-0): Who’d have guessed that the Thundering Herd would have one of the best defenses in the country so far this season? Marshall is already halfway to its 2019 win total in 2020 and is outscoring opponents by over 27 points per game. Marshall hasn’t allowed a team to score more than 17 points all season and is giving up fewer than 10 points a game. Yeah, Western Kentucky and Eastern Kentucky have been two of those opponents, but Marshall still deserves some serious credit. With beatable teams on the schedule the rest of the way, there’s a decent chance Marshall could go undefeated in the regular season. (NB)

Who’s No. 3 in the ACC?

Who’s the third-best team in the ACC?

Clemson and Notre Dame have separated themselves from the rest of the conference so far. Both teams are ranked in the top three and are undefeated.

After that, it’s a cluster. Four teams behind them have just one ACC loss.

Is the third-best team North Carolina? The Tar Heels fell to No. 14 with a loss at Florida State on Saturday. UNC had moved into the top five before Saturday’s game but fell behind 31-7 to FSU before mounting a late comeback that fell short.

Is the third-best team NC State? The Wolfpack went to 4-1 in the ACC with a win over Duke on Saturday. But Leary suffered a gnarly leg injury when his left ankle got trapped underneath him as he got hit while sliding. Leary suffered a fractured fibula on the play and will be out at least four weeks. That means Bailey Hockman will get the start against the Tar Heels on Saturday.

Is the third-best team Miami? The Hurricanes beat Pitt on Saturday to bounce back after losing to Clemson. Miami is the highest-ranked team behind Clemson and Notre Dame at No. 11 in the AP poll. Each of the Hurricanes’ four wins have come by at least 12 points.

Is the third-best team Virginia Tech? The Hokies lost to UNC but easily beat Boston College on Saturday night. VT’s rushing attack was spectacular on Saturday and Kansas transfer RB Khalil Herbert has been one of the best running backs in the ACC. Virginia Tech is back at full strength after a bunch of players missed time because of COVID-19 positive tests and quarantines and could easily be 6-1 before playing Miami on Nov. 14.

If we had to make a pick right now we’d go with either Miami or North Carolina, though Virginia Tech is certainly in the mix. NC State was playing really well with Leary under center but his absence could be massive. The Wolfpack play North Carolina, Miami and Florida State over their next three games. Without Leary — and based on Florida State’s progress — NC State could be an underdog in all of those contests.

— Nick Bromberg

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