Nick Saban: 'Kevin Jennings may be the most underrated player in the country'
SMU quarterback Kevin Jennings got some big praise from the greatest coach to ever do it in college football. On ESPN College GameDay, analyst Nick Saban praised Rhett Lashlee’s quarterback when previewing the matchup vs. Pitt.
“I think they’re gonna get challenged today because SMU’s quarterback, Kevin Jennings, may be the most underrated player in the country,” Saban said. “This guy leads the ACC in passing efficiency. All these good quarterbacks we talk about in the ACC, he’s been the most productive and he’s a dual-threat guy and he can beat you run and pass.”
College GameDay analyst Kirk Herbstreit agreed with Saban, but also reminded the audience to give SMU’s defense the attention it deserves. In the overtime win at Duke last week, Scott Symons’ group didn’t allow a point off all the turnovers the Mustangs committed.
“It’s good to see him healthy because of that dual-threat, kind of like what we talked about earlier with Marcel Reed,” Herbstreit said. “To me, which defense can step up and make plays? It was amazing to watch how SMU had all those turnovers and their defense … nobody talks about the SMU defense, stepped up and emerged and showed what they could do. I think they could be the difference.”
Jennings will start against No. 18 Pitt on Saturday, head coach Rhett Lashlee told ESPN’s Pete Thamel Friday. He went down against Duke last week in the team’s ninth straight road win, tied for the longest active road win streak in the country.
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On the year though, Kevin Jennings is among the nation’s best passers in passing efficiency. This year, he’s gone 110-171 passing for 1,594 yards and 10 touchdowns. In addition, he has recorded 321 yards on the ground and three touchdowns. He currently leads the ACC in passing yards per completion at 14.49. The former South Oak Cliff star also has 9.32 yards per pass attempt, good for 11th nationally and second in the conference.
Jennings is undefeated in 2024 as SMU’s starting quarterback, but committed five turnovers in SMU’s win over Duke. He finished 13-of-24 for 258 yards, a touchdown and three interceptions while adding 13 carries for 41 yards and a touchdown. He lost two fumbles as well.
Saturday’s game is at 7 p.m. CT on ACC Network in a battle of undefeated teams in ACC play, which means there are huge ACC Championship tiebreaker implications at play.
