GMac has seen that Heupel can't develop a young quarterback, an offensive line or a wide receiver corp all at the same time. Everybody with the exception of the Nico experiment has been an upper classman, most with 3 years of experience to take the helm under Heupel.
Heupel had no idea who Joey was until Nico upset the process and Joey was the odd man out all the way out at UCLA. Joey's fundamentals are middle of the road, he is prone to throw off his back foot on most passes, is prone to miss the wide open receiver moving out of the pressure, but gives it all that he has on every play, his limitations were fully exposed Saturday night.
Not sure GMac would want to slide into this framework next year if Heupel goes into the portal for another QB with experience, with a zero defense all the way around and nothing that would indicate next year will be any better. The 2026 schedule is infinitely more difficult next year such that there isn't much indication next year will be much of an improvement over this year. As the team regresses and worsens as the season progresses, the fans and the media are not the only ones who see the herculean challenge on the horizon known as 2026.
If Heupel can only get to 7-5 this year, it will be hard to see how 2026 would be much better.
I see our receivers as above average. No real complaints there.
For the last couple of years our O Line has been sketchy BUT Glen Elarbee is arguably Josh Heupel's best friend. He's probably not going anywhere unless someone offers him a HC position, which frankly his performance here hasn't earned him. This is a problem.
The QB issue this year has created a problem. I'm guessing but I'm assuming Heupel took Joey A and developed him so quickly as the starter because Merk nor G-Mac were going to be better than Joey A.
We were not in a good spot AT ALL after Nico left and it's likely Nico's team KNEW what we had sitting behind him when they pulled their crap. They tried to squeeze us, in part, because Merk and G-Mac weren't ready and Heupel would have to gamble on someone like Joey A.
Joey's a gamer. He's obviously bright enough to run the offense reasonably comfortably but he's lacking in fundamentals and simply in the God given gifts an SEC QB needs to be elite. He's done well and I'm thankful for him. He didn't ask for his career to go the way it has. He should be at a school like UCLA, not UT. That's not a slight but simply reality.
Neither Merk, a year in and recruited to this level, nor G-Mac, a true freshman and highly recruited at the highest levels, have been able to progress well enough to beat Joey A's grit and experience.
Merk almost certainly leaves and drops a notch to the ACC or Big 12.
If we can recruit over G-Mac, there's a strong chance he leaves too if Faizon is here and looks strong.
The $9M / yr question is becoming when does a HEUPEL SELECTED QB pan out? Heupel's resume with QBs is solid in the past but at UT:
Milton was passable but not brilliant
Nico is a head case and didn't develop well
Merk appears to not be developing
G-Mac remains a question mark at this point
If neither G-Mac nor Faizon pan out, Houston we have a problem.
