The 2013 College Football season saw a surge in offensive production in the SEC largely due to great quarterback play. The majority of those Quarterbacks are taking their talents to the NFL and many think they will take that offensive surge with them. To some extent that is true. It will be near impossible to replace Johnny Manziel’s near 10,000 career all-purpose yards or A.J. McCarron’s knack for running the play action. The truth is at least six SEC QB’s will most likely be on an NFL roster this time next year, but I believe there are some guys returning that will light up the score board in 2014 as well. Lets take a look at a few of those.
Nick Marshall - How can you not start with the guy running the offense for a play calling genius? While he still has some work to do with his accuracy, Marshall improved each week with his reads and he is every bit of the athlete it takes to run Malzahn’s spread attack. The loss of Mason to the draft will certainly have its impact but Auburn has several backs capable of filling that void (Five Star commit Racean Thomas could make a push) and Marshall’s ability to run the read option will be key in keeping that Auburn running game rolling. With an offseason to prepare and work on his passing game Marshall could make us forget about some of those QB’s moving on.
Maty Mauk - Mauk rose to the occasion when James Franklin went down with an injury. Mauk threw for over 900 yards and 10 touchdowns and Mizzou really didn’t miss a beat. In those games Mauk went 3-1 with the one loss being in double OT against South Carolina. Mauk can beat you with his arm or as he showed against Tennessee with his legs. Look for Mizzou to compete in the east again and Maty Mauk will have a great deal to do with that. That Mizzou offense may actually be better in 2014 with Mauk at QB.
Bo Wallace - It was a tale of two seasons for Wallace in 2013. When Bo is on he is spectacular but when he is off well… you get the point. There was nothing off about his final stat line though. Wallace finished 2nd in the SEC in passing yards with over 3000 all while nursing a shoulder that never completely healed from offseason surgery. Wallace isn’t the greatest running QB in the league but he is serviceable for running Hugh Freezes fast paced version of the spread. With all the young talent surrounding Bo and an offseason to heal and improve his decision-making, there is no reason to think Bo couldn’t improve upon those numbers again this year. The Sky truly is the limit for this Ole Miss Offense.
Dak Prescott - Dan Mullen says that Dak Prescott just “has that IT factor” and if you saw the 4th quarter of the annual Battle for the Golden Egg then you understand why he says that. After not having taken a snap in a practice or game for three weeks Prescott came in at the end of regulation and an offense that had sputtered for 4 quarters suddenly came alive. As a part-time starter in 2013 Dak threw for 1,940 yards with 10 TD and ran for 829 yards with 13 TD. With Tyler Russell gone and a Spring for Prescott to prepare as The Man those numbers should really jump in 2014. Some are already starting to make the Tebow comparison with Prescott, but I’m not sure those comparisons are fair… to Tebow. Prescott is already a better passer than Tebow and at 230 lbs Dak can run with the power of Tebow while displaying a great deal more speed and agility. Dak Prescott will be fun to watch in 2014.
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