It’s amazing that a league as rich in talent overall as the Southeastern Conference appears set to experience back-to-back seasons of average to below quarterback play.

Projected Georgia starting quarterback Brice Ramsey needs to have a big summer.

Look around the league and there are some proven stars, some budding stars and some players with great potential, but for the second straight offseason the position is a question mark at multiple programs.

At some places, those issues have been well-documented. At others, it is quite surprising. What's even more surprising is that with Texas (which annually produces excellent quarterback prospects by the dozens) officially part of the SEC's geographic footprint that this hasn't been at least curbed a bit in recent years through good recruiting.

Truth be told, there are a lot of bad quarterbacks out there in all levels of football. In college and the NFL, you see more bad quarterbacks than good. It takes something special, something that isn't always provided these days at the high school level, especially with the year-round, non-football type of stuff like 7-on-7, which can derail a quarterback's career quickly if he puts too much stock mentally into it (i.e. you don't get hit, so it gives you a false sense of confidence).

So perhaps it isn't an epidemic in the SEC. The league just doesn't measure up to, for example, the Pac-12 in terms of high-level quarterbacks at present.

I mean we are talking about Auburn's Jeremy Johnson, who is an excellent talent, but who has only been a backup thus far, very likely being voted at least second-team All-SEC this offseason by some analysts and coaches.

It's important for the league as a whole to have Johnson and other first-year starters make some noise this season.

â€¨â€¨So surprise, we have quarterback issues!

There are quarterback concerns at Alabama and Georgia heading into summer, which is surprising. That’s why both programs, even though it was highly unlikely either could get him in because of Southeastern Conference transfer rules, took a look at former Notre Dame signal caller Everett Golson.

Still, the safe bet is that Jacob Coker wins out for the Crimson Tide and Brice Ramsey does for the Bulldogs. Also, keep in mind that players get better with work, so it’s a matter of whoever ultimately wins the jobs at either program to dedicate himself to working his behind off under the southern sun this summer. Both programs are among the most talented in the league and have a good enough supporting cast to mask issues at that position. That being said, it is indeed the most important spot on the field and while there is no doubt both can win, can either win a championship?

It will be a storyline to watch this preseason. By the way, expect Golson to head to Florida State any day now.

Last in the SEC West?

I posed this question to Twitter during the weekend: Which team is going to finish last in the SEC West? Picking the No. 7 team in this division is far more difficult than picking who may win it. Sounds strange for sure, but there really aren’t any completely lacking teams in the division.

Some will say Mississippi State will finish last because the Bulldogs did lose a lot of personnel off last season’s Orange Bowl team. But with one of the top quarterbacks in the country returning in Dak Prescott and talent replacing talent on defense, do you really think the Bulldogs take that big of a dip? Perhaps, but it isn’t cut and dry.

LSU has quarterback issues, a new defensive coordinator and not as much depth on the defensive line as it would like to have. Still, top to bottom, the Tigers have one of the top overall talent levels in the country and a difference-maker at running back in Leonard Fournette.

Some fans mentioned Texas A&M as perhaps bringing up the rear. With the quarterback situation settled- 2014 No. 1 Kyle Allen is the starter- and loads of talent at receiver, the Aggies offense will again be formidable and explosive- perhaps even more than last season. Plus, veteran John Chavis arrives from LSU to coordinate the defense and Texas A&M has loads of young talent on that side of the ball.

Ole Miss, Arkansas, Alabama and Auburn all have too much personnel to be in the basement.

It’s a question that is akin to solving a Rubik’s Cube and I have no answer.

Quick Hits

- It seems to me like LSU would like for rising sophomore Brandon Harris to win the starting job, but the dynamic athlete and playmaker can’t seem to get the offense down, so Anthony Jennings remains in the hunt. At some point, a quarterback has to make a commitment to learning how to play the game in order to reach his full potential. If Harris does that, then there is no need to even discuss the Tigers finishing last in the SEC West. The discussion then becomes whether they can win it. It has to be frustrating for Les Miles and company at this point.

- While I am not ready to pick the order of the SEC West (besides Auburn to win it), I think the SEC East shakes out like this as of today ...

1) Georgia

2) Tennessee

3) Missouri

4) South Carolina

5) Florida

6) Kentucky

7) Vanderbilt

The Vols could win it and never count out the Tigers. In the next tier, shake up the Gamecocks, Gators and Wildcats and it could finish in any order. The Commodores have to continue to build.

- South Carolina head coach Steve Spurrier is 16 wins away from becoming the first coach to win 100 games at two different schools in the history of college football. Spurrier won 122 games at Florida (1990-2001) and is 84-45 with the Gamecocks (2005-14). Of course, if South Carolina wins eight games this coming season, it should be considered an achievement given the question marks on the roster and a tougher-than-normal schedule.

Recruiting Musings

- Darius James, who will transfer from Texas to Auburn, was among the most athletic offensive linemen coming out of high school and is a great fit for Auburn's scheme.

- Georgia quarterback commit Jacob Eason was among the standouts at The Opening Regional in Oakland, Calif., on Sunday and earned an invite to the finals. The 6-foot-5 pocket passer from the state of Washington is the No. 1 quarterback in the 2016 cycle.

No 1 QB in the nation. #UGA commit Jacob Eason. Everything looks easy for him https://t.co/AcA11FQdAV — Barton Simmons (@bartonsimmons) May 17, 2015

- Speaking of the Bulldogs, just looking at how they are recruiting, they should be in prime position to contend for a College Football Playoff berth and a National Championship in 2016 or 2017. With Eason in the fold they have a quarterback. Plus, they are loading up on the defensive line when you look at who they signed in 2015 and who they are likely to sign this cycle. It’s an incredible assembly of talent and a tough-to-recruit position.

- Don’t be surprised so see some SEC programs sniff around Virginia quarterback transfer Greyson Lambert. He’s 6-foot-5 and has some tools to work with and could be an excellent insurance policy (or perhaps starter) for some team, like LSU maybe.

- Right now, led by five-star quarterback commit Shea Patterson, Ole Miss has the No. 1 recruiting class in the league. Expect the Rebels to stay in the top third of the SEC recruiting rankings moving forward this cycle. It’s going to be another excellent class for Hugh Freeze and staff.

- Speaking of, here’s something that is underrated- Freeze and company can not only land the no-brainer prospects and win battles nobody on earth thought that they could. They are very adept at evaluating prospects. Case in point: Defensive end Marquis Haynes was an All-Freshman selection and was a raw, three-star prospect a year removed from prep school. I saw him at a camp in Jacksonville, Fla., a few years ago and wrote: “He has a chance." That was it. Those three words. Well, he has more than a chance, now. His chance at the moment consists of being All-SEC one day and perhaps playing in the NFL. He’s not the only one the Rebels have "found and developed" and that means Ole Miss has more than a staff that can recruit well. It means the Rebels have an excellent overall staff that should have a contender in Oxford for a while.

- In the "Breaking Alabama’s top class" streak watch, currently Florida State and Ohio State have the two best 2016 classes this cycle. So far so good on my prediction that the Noles and Buckeyes, the two programs that also stopped the SEC National Championship streak, would be the ones to do it if it happens. The Crimson Tide should go on a run of commitments by the time the summer is out and we will have a more clear picture then.

Three Musts

1- Alabama running back Derrick Henry, a.k.a The Freak of All Freaks, gets in a Sunday workout.

2- Quarterback situation be damned, one of LSU's top 2015 recruits is excited about the Tigers passing game this coming season.

3- Georgia head coach Mark Richt says that the Bulldogs have outstanding options at quarterback heading into the 2015 season.

Words to live by

"Losing doesn’t make me want to quit. It makes me want to fight that much harder."- Bear Bryant