Sims-to-Virginia official

VIRGINIA FOOTBALL

Yesterday, UVa made it official: it is adding former Alabama quarterback Phillip Sims through transfer. The 6-foot-2, 215-pound strong-armed signal caller, who played in high school at Oscar Smith in Chesapeake with current Cavaliers Perry Jones and Tim Smith, redshirted at Alabama in 2010 before seeing a a few snaps last year. Sims was rated the top quarterback prospect in the nation in 2010 by some recruiting services.

Phillip Sims
rolltide.com

As I mentioned before, Sims crowds the quarterback situation at Virginia, especially if he is granted a waiver from the NCAA and is eligible to play in 2012 as a redshirt sophomore. Virginia returning starter Michael Rocco will be a true junior. He completed 222 of 366 passes (61 percent) for 2,671 yards, 13 TDs ad 12 INTs. Virginia also has David Watford, a product of Hampton High, on the roster. He will be a true sophomore. I get the feeling UVa coach Mike London really likes Watford -- he represents London making in-roads at Hampton High and the 757-Tidewater region overall. He is also the cousin of former UVa quarterback and current assistant coach Marques Hagans. Having Hagans as a coach, whether he pressures London or not, has to influence London a little bit to consider playing Watford. London was an assistant at Virginia during some of the time Hagans played. Last season, playing in 10 games, Watford completed just 30 of 74 passes (41 percent) for 346 yards, three TDs, and four INTs. London and offensive coordinator Bill Lazor said that Watford improved a lot during spring practice, but I still see Sims or Rocco to be the better option come fall. I just don't know how Watford could see the field.

In addition to Sims and Rocco, two highly regarded true freshman are entering the program to push Watford from behind. Greyson Lambert enrolled at UVa in January and saw time in the spring game. The 6-foot-5, 195-pound prospect was the top high school QB in Georgia and turned down several big-time schools for UVa. Enrolling in the fall will be Matt Johns, from Pennsylvania, another pro-style quarterback. Lambert or Johns, or maybe both, are expected to redshirt in 2012.

As you can see, the quarterback position at UVa is loaded, and with quality players. Last season at this time, Wahoo fans were wondering who would replace Marc Verica and the cupboard wasn't looking all that full. Now there appears to be a handful of guys who could step in and start in the fall. Quite the different dilemma -- a good dilemma, I suppose. The downside will be when someone gets pushed out. You would have to think one, maybe two of these guys will end up transferring. If Sims doesn't beat out Rocco for the job, he could transfer again, maybe to an FCS school like JMU or ODU, and play right away since he would be stepping down levels. If he is as good as the recruiting services said, he could still impress enough at that level to make it the NFL. If Sims beats out Rocco, will he want to hold a clipboard for his final two years? Or would he maybe want to transfer to Liberty, which is located in his hometown of Lynchburg, or Richmond, where his uncle just took over as head coach after six seasons at Liberty? And Watford -- if he thinks he can get anywhere, no way will he want to spend three more seasons roaming the sidelines.

The pressure is going to be great on London and Lazor to get this right in the coming seasons. Virginia football is coming off a successful season and appears to be close to turning the corner and becoming a consistently solid team. A botched quarterback situation could make things go south in a hurry. It will be difficult for London to balance winning now, winning in the future, and continuing to make sure he is recruiting the Tidewater area without hurting too many feelings. The challenge will be great, but the rewards could be even better.