Things are certainly getting interesting, quarterback-wise, for the second-ranked team in the country.
Monday, Dabo Swinney confirmed that senior Kelly Bryant had been benched in favor of true freshman Trevor Lawrence. A day later, Swinney revealed that he and Bryant had a lengthy conversation in which the two discussed, among other things, the possibility of a transfer.
According to Swinney, he gave Bryant the day off from practice Monday to allow him to wrap his head around the demotion. Both TigerNet.com and The State are now reporting, though, that Bryant missed a second consecutive day of practice on Tuesday.
The obvious intimation from a second straight day of missing practice is that Bryant is seriously contemplating a move from the Tigers — or has already decided a move on is in his best interests. Because of the NCAA’s new redshirt rule, Bryant, who started the first four games of the 2018 season, could leave the Tigers now and retain a year of eligibility that he can use in 2019 at another school.
If he were to play another down this season, however, Bryant’s collegiate career would be over at the end of the 2018 season.
“Certainly if he walked in here today and said, ‘Hey coach, I don’t want to play the rest of the year unless you’ve got to have me,’ well ‘Ok, if that’s what you want to do I’m all for it.’ I love Kelly,” Swinney said earlier today, prior to the reports od a second missed practice surfaced. “I would be disappointed in that because we need him. But I wouldn’t judge him for that.”
Bryant has started the last 18 games under center for the Tigers, winning 16 of those contests. Lawrence was a highly-touted five-star 2018 signee who had outplayed the incumbent the first third of the regular season.
