To QB or not to QB … We probably didn’t emphasize it even enough in our college football preview write-ups here and here for this weekend, but it is a really big weekend for several prime junior QB prospects later today. None is bigger, both literally and figuratively than 6-6, 245-pound Memphis junior Paxton Lynch who steps on the national stage in just a few hours when his 5-0 Tigers host 13th ranked Mississippi from the mighty SEC West in a noon start on ABC regional or ESPN2. On the one hand, Memphis has dreams of crashing the New Year’s Day bowl party and a win over a big-time opponent like Ole Miss would be a huge feather in their collective hats. At the same time, QB Lynch has quietly emerged as one of the more promising young QBs for the upcoming draft; indeed, Lynch, a 4th year junior who is in his 3rd season as a starter, is completing over 70% of his pass attempts to date this fall, while he has thrown 10 TD passes without a pick. Meanwhile, its hard to overstate how important this week could be for junior QBs Christian Hackenberg of Penn State and Ohio State’s Cardale Jones. Both entered the season rated as a top 5-10 prospects for the upcoming draft, but both have struggled through the first half of the campaign and will need to get the ship righted as early as tonight when the two go head-to-head later this evening in Columbus on national TV (ABC at 8 PM ET). Have a great day.
