By Harry King
LITTLE ROCK — Today’s Southeastern Conference championship game will be decided by a quarterback, but not the one that comes to mind when the opponents are Florida and Alabama.
The Gators’ Tim Tebow is a given. Running, throwing, exhorting, he will do everything possible to give his Gators a chance to repeat as national champions.
The qb on the spot is Alabama’s Greg McElroy. Florida will concentrate on running backs Mark Ingram and Trent Richardson to such an extent that McElroy will have a golden opportunity to extricate himself from his pigeonhole as caretaker of the offense.
The label is as much the result of Alabama’s defense and reliable running game as it is McElroy’s skills. During his senior year at national high school power Southlake Carroll High School in Texas, he threw for 4,687 yards with 56 touchdowns and nine interceptions.
Playing for the No. 2 team in the nation, McElroy has completed almost 61 percent of his passes with 16 TD passes and four interceptions. Only against Ole Miss was his completion percentage under 50.
Yet, his name never came up Sunday when the media had time with Florida coach Urban Meyer. Alabama coach Nick Saban handled only one question about Tebow, but that was probably because there is nothing left to say about No. 15.
McElroy has made plays when needed in Alabama’s biggest challenges, most recently against Auburn. Trailing 21-20 in the fourth quarter with Heisman Trophy candidate Mark Ingram on the bench, Alabama covered 79 yards in 15 plays for the winning touchdown. On the drive, McElroy completed his last seven passes for 62 yards.
There was also his bounce-back vs. LSU. In Baton Rouge, McElroy threw 25 passes in the first half without much success and his intentional grounding resulted in a safety. After that, the Tigers quickly covered 59 yards for a 15-10 lead.
McElroy’s response was a completion that Julio Jones turned into a go-ahead touchdown as Alabama wrapped up a spot in Atlanta.
Both the Gators and the Crimson Tide are stifling on defense and both units are reminders that it is the players that make the Xs and Os.
“I think the thing that makes any defense good is, first of all, they’ve got a great secondary in the back end,” Saban said. “Guys can cover. They’re great tacklers.”
Asked about preparing for Saban’s defense, Meyer said, “The personnel is the toughest part.” In other words, it’s easier to beat schemes than players.
Great defensive players do extraordinary things, whether it’s an open-field tackle on a swing pass, playing with discipline on a reverse, or something else.
Florida’s defense allowed only one touchdown play of more than 30 yards — Arkansas’ Ryan Mallett to Greg Childs for 75 — which means McElroy must be patient and wise. Alabama’s defense allowed five TD plays of 30 or more, including two by Auburn.
Arkansas gave up at least a dozen TD plays of 40 yards or more.
Nebraska is the only team among the top six in scoring defense that has lost more than two games and the 9-3 Cornhuskers are playing for the Big 12 title. By the time Nebraska-Texas begins, McElroy will have done enough to get Alabama a spot in the national title game vs. Texas.
Prior to that, Arkansas fans can catch the Conference USA championship to check out the Razorbacks’ opponent in the Liberty Bowl.
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Harry King is sports columnist for Stephens Media’s Arkansas News Bureau. His e-mail address is hking@arkansasnews.com.
