Should Alabama have benched Jalen Milroe against Texas, can Miami win the ACC, more pressing questions

Unlike FOX or ESPN — both of which continue to cash in on the show that is Coach Prime and Colorado this weekend — this is a non-Deion Sanders mailbag edition. 

The ‘Do you believe questions’ can return next week when the Buffs go to Oregon. 

This Wednesday’s Ask Jesse mailbag is fairly SEC-heavy, but also, is Miami an ACC Championship contender this season?

Scroll down to find out. 

You can submit a question via my internet mailbox at [email protected] or send a DM/Tweet reply @JesseReSimonton.

Onto this week’s questions…

Jesse, how long will Texas A&M pay for these results from Jimbo Fisher? 6 years in and this is what they have to show for it? AWFUL. — Sam

Jimbo Fisher has $75 million of hot-seat armor, but we’re going to find out if that’s enough to shield Texas A&M’s coach, who now finds himself fighting battles on two fronts. 

It’s one thing for Fisher to continue to simply underachieve in College Station, where he’s 40-22 thus far. The Aggies paid him to win titles, gifting Fisher a faux national championship trophy when he was hired in 2018. The fact that six seasons in he hasn’t even won 10 games or made the SEC Championship is problematic. Only, Aggie fans’ stomachs won’t stop rumbling because of what’s happening in Austin now, too. 

Last weekend, Texas A&M got smoked by Miami, allowing 48 points at 8.3 per play. It was an embarrassing defensive performance for a group (especially at DL and DB) that has 4-and 5-stars at every position. Meanwhile, three hours later that night, Texas validated years worth of talk, emphatically beating Alabama and looking like one of the best teams in the country. 

The Longhorns being legit is always going to cause angst in Aggie Land. The Longhorns being legit just before they join the SEC at the same time Texas A&M continues to play in the sandbox of mediocrity is how we arrive at Aggie Land Agony. 

It’s too soon to make a sweeping judgment about Bobby Petrino at OC, but there’s evidence from the last two seasons to know DJ Durkin ain’t it as DC. 

Still, it’s easy for those with a keyboard or microphone to say willy-nilly: “Pay Jimbo Fisher to go away.” But that $75 million parachute is still more than 3X what Auburn paid to fire Gus Malzahn — which remains the most expensive buyout in college football history. 

The pressure is on Jimbo Fisher. But how much in 2023? Perhaps Paul Finebaum is right, and “the guys with the cowboy hats” will find the money. Or maybe, A&M’s uncomfortable Texas two-step will continue into 2024. 

Should Nick Saban have benched Jalen Milroe at quarterback against Texas? What is Alabama going do at QB the rest of the season? – Steven 

No.

Mainly because I don’t believe Alabama has a better option right now, and the way the game script unfolded, there really wasn’t a time for Saban to make a move. Milroe made a pair of brutal throws against Texas — two killer picks that led to 10 points, which was the final margin of the game. His decision-making was poor at times, and he struggled to operate Tommy Rees’ play-action passing offense. 

And yet, where would Alabama have been without Jalen Milroe against the Longhorns? The Tide couldn’t run the ball (just 3.1 yards per carry), their OL was bad (five sacks, 19 pressures allowed on 39 drop-backs) and the receivers weren’t exactly running wide-open. 

Struggles and all, Milroe still accounted for over 80% of Alabama’s yardage against Texas. He had a couple of big-time touchdown throws and converted multiple first downs with his legs. He wasn’t put in the best position to succeed, either, with just seven designed runs called all game. 

Perhaps Nick Saban will reopen Alabama’s QB1 battle Saturday against USF, giving Tyler Buchner or Ty Simpson a real look in non-garbage time. I’m not sure what all that solves for Alabama, though. 

Milroe has to cut down on his turnovers. But that’s Buchner’s biggest problem, too. Simpson is a total unknown and it seems clear the former 5-star hasn’t grabbed the opportunity by the horns. 

With all the issues surrounding Alabama’s QB, Milroe — electrifying athleticism and big-arm potential — provides the most upside. He has the ceiling to mask some of the Tide’s deficiencies — but ONLY if the Tide tweaks the offense. This version of Alabama isn’t capable of bully-ball. Milroe isn’t overly suited for a more pro-style system, either. That’s the pickle Alabama faces. Is Saban willing to go QB-run heavy and return to a more RPO-centered offense? We’ll see. 

Which home dog can pull the upset? Florida over Tennessee or Mississippi State against LSU? Jason

Both SEC matchups are two of the better games this weekend, and both home ‘dogs are absolutely live. 

Florida is between a 6.5 or 7-point underdog at home against Tennessee, while Mississippi State is catching close to 10 points (+9-9.5 depending on your favorite sports book) at home in Stark-Vegas. 

Joe Milton, who said this summer at SEC Media Days, “I don’t lose in Florida,” will be making what constitutes as reality the first real road start of his college career. In the Swamp. At night.

At Michigan, Bakooza Joe started three games on the road — all in empty stadiums because of COVID. Last season, the senior started Tennessee’s finale at Vanderbilt in front of a mostly orange-clad crowd. 

There will be plenty of orange inside Ben Hill Griffin Stadium. Just not Pantone 151. It doesn’t matter how down UF might be right now, this is a major test for Milton and the Vols. They’re the better team and should win. But that’s been the case before, and yet, Florida is riding a 20-year home winning streak against UT. Milton’s accuracy concerns have not been assuaged thus far this season (just two completions over 20 yards), so the game might come down to whether or not Tennessee can run the ball — a major strength for the Vols (No. 1 rushing offense in the SEC at 6.13 yards per carry) but also what UF does best defensively (just 2.7 yards allowed). Good on good. Let’s see it. 

As for Mississippi State, the Bulldogs were able to hold on against Arizona in OT last weekend, but it wasn’t an overly inspiring performance — four takeaways and still needing a stop to win the game. Now the challenge stiffens facing LSU on Saturday. 

The Tigers enter the matchup with the pressure (no more mulligans after the second-half no-show against Florida State), but they also have more talent and a seasoned head coach. LSU seemed to right the ship against Grambling (73 points, Jayden Daniels had five touchdowns), and last season’s comeback against the Bulldogs was Daniels’ coming-out party. 

Mississippi State led LSU 13-0, and later 16-10, before the Tigers scored 21 unanswered points in the fourth quarter to win 31-16. Daniels wasn’t efficient, yet he finished with over 300 total yards and two key touchdowns. 

Zach Arnett will have a plan to slow Daniels and LSU’s offense, but to engineer the upset, the Bulldogs must play much better offensively than they did a week ago against the Wildcats (just 307 total yards). 

The U is back baby. If we play like we did against Texas A&M, we’re gonna win the ACC this year. – Jorge

While not so much a question, I respect the confidence! Only, I don’t share the same opinion. Not yet, anyway.

It’s hard not to be impressed by Miami’s upset over Texas A&M last weekend. The Hurricanes handed the Aggies two freebee touchdowns thanks to special teams miscues and still won by two scores. Tyler Van Dyke torched TAMU’s secondary and Lance Guidry was dialing up all sorts of pressure to confuse the Aggies’ OL. 

It was a huge statement win by Mario Cristobal. His new-look coaching staff put Jimbo Fisher & Co., in a blender. TVD looked like 2021 TVD. The offensive line was as advertised. 

But let’s tap the breaks on ACC Championship contender. 

The Canes still have to prove they can run the ball against serviceable defensive lines (just 77 yards, 3.1 per carry vs. TAMU). Van Dyke looks revived in Shannon Dawson’s offense, but I need to see more than one outlier performance to confirm he’s back to his 2021 form. Miami also suffered several notable defensive injuries Saturday (in the front seven and with star safety Kamren Kitchens). How will their depth hold up over the course of the season?

I’m certainly encouraged by what I’ve seen thus far from the Canes, but we’ll find out just how good Miami is in 2023 come October. With three cupcakes the next three weeks (Bethune-Cookman, Temple and Georgia Tech), the Hurricanes should be 5-0 and ranked inside the Top 15 before a month-long slog of true tests — at North Carolina, Clemson, Virginia, at NC State and at Florida State. 

Favorite game this weekend? It’s a crap slate I know. I’m an Irish fan so I’ll be tuned in against Central Michigan, but what should be on the second screen Saturday? – Patrick

Week 3 is rough. That’s okay to admit — even as the most ardent college football fan. You don’t lose your card for a casual by admitting these games mostly stink. 

Better than no football? 100%. 

There’s not a single ranked vs. ranked matchup this weekend, though — something that last happened this early in the season since 2019. 

And yet, there are at least a few intriguing matchups that bear monitoring: I talked LSU at Mississippi State and Tennessee at Florida earlier in the mailbag. There’s also No. 15 Kansas State at Missouri (big opportunity for Eli Drinkwitz to nab a signature win). The Backyard Brawl lost some luster with Pitt losing to Cincy last weekend, but if Neal Brown can get a win against West Virginia’s archrival, that could be a huge ticket in his pocket come season’s end for a coach sitting on a simmering hot seat. 

In a total contrast of styles, Minnesota (2-0) at North Carolina (2-0) is interesting, too. Without star tailback Mo Ibrahim, the Gophers haven’t been nearly as explosive running the ball, but they’re still pounding the rock (3rd-most attempts in the Big Ten through two games). Will the Tar Heels be up to the task? After a strong defensive showing in Week 1 against South Carolina, UNC looked very UNC-ish on defense in its 40-34 win over App. State. The Tar Heels allowed 500 yards — including 219 rushing at 7.1 yards per carry. Perhaps we should tap the breaks on “Gene Chizik has fixed North Carolina.”