CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. (AP) — Kevin Jennings plays quarterback away from the spotlight of the Southeastern Conference and the Big Ten. His season numbers aren’t gaudy because it took him three games to win the starting job. His SMU Mustangs haven’t played in many prime TV windows this year.
So what’s keeping Jennings from staying under the radar nationally? Former Alabama coach Nick Saban repeatedly heaps praise on him during ESPN’s “College GameDay.”
“I mean, Coach Saban talks about him every week, so it’s making it hard for him to be slept on,” SMU coach Rhett Lashlee said this week.
Lashlee made the decision to switch to Jennings early in the season. Starter Preston Stone had gone three-and-out three times in a key early season matchup against BYU, and Jennings was put into the game. He hasn’t lost since.
Now No. 13 SMU heads to Virginia on Saturday needing a victory to clinch a spot in the Atlantic Coast Conference championship game.
Because of the ACC’s overall strength this season, and because the Mustangs (9-1, 6-0, No. 14 SMU) didn’t play regular-season games against Miami or Clemson, it’s unlikely they can earn an at-large bid into the College Football Playoff, making a conference title game appearance essential.
Lashlee emphasized the importance of keeping the focus on Virginia (5-5, 3-3), noting the Cavaliers’ upset victory against Pittsburgh two weeks ago.
Still, that didn’t stop him from dreaming about Jennings’ ceiling next year, after spending an offseason as the starter.
“You think about when he gets one more offseason in the weight room, I think he’s going to really fill out even more,” Lashlee said. “He’s hard to bring down. He has a great feel for the pocket and great awareness for where it is on the field. Aside from the obvious things, you’ve got to be able to throw the ball and all that, I think awareness is one of the best intangible traits a quarterback can have.”
Jennings’ numbers this year vouch for that: He has thrown for 2,198 yards with 15 touchdowns and six interceptions since taking over for Stone.
Not bad for a player ranked 215th best in the state of Texas by recruiting site 247Sports coming out of high school.
Saban has noticed what Jennings brings to the table for the Mustangs, and if SMU keeps winning, he’ll get opportunities to show the rest of the country, as well.
After a 35-14 loss at Notre Dame, in which he threw three interceptions in the final three minutes of the first half, Anthony Colandrea is expected to start at QB for Virginia on Saturday.
Cavaliers coach Tony Elliott said first-team reps would be split between Colandrea and backup Tony Muskett this week.
“If we were to play today, obviously, AC would run out there first,” Elliott said Tuesday, referring to Colandrea. “I think that, yes, he wants three throws back, but I still think that he reserves the right to have an opportunity to show how he’s going to respond.
“But also, too, I think Tony has warranted more opportunity to prepare himself and to go compete for the job. So, we’re still looking at everything throughout the week.”
The Cavaliers need to win one of their final two games to become bowl eligible. The last time they were set to play in a postseason game was 2021 — in the inaugural Fenway Bowl against SMU. It would have been the first meeting between the teams.
However, that game was canceled because of COVID-19 issues within the Virginia program.
It was supposed to be Bronco Mendenhall’s final game as UVa coach, after which Elliott was going to take over.
“And then it was like, ‘OK, the team is yours,’” Elliott recalled. “And so I was like, ‘Oh, I’ve got to accelerate the process,’ because I thought I had another week and a half to kind of observe and make some more decisions.”
Elliott said he hasn’t revisited the canceled game this week, but playing in a bowl is a focus and goal for this year’s team.
“We’ve just talked about how, man, it’s time for us to get back to the postseason,” he said. “We’ve missed out for too many years around here. We need to make the floor the postseason, then start building towards raising the ceiling.”
___
Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here. AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-football
