By: JJ Lanier

TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services

I tend to like my athletes with a little bravado. Those who walk that fine between confident and cocky.

When you think about, most of the greatest athletes of all time constantly pushed those boundaries. Nobody ever confused Muhammad Ali for being humble in the ring.

Jordan was so competitive and sure of himself that for his Hall of Fame speech he flew in the guy who beat him out on his middle basketball team just to prove a point.

Harsh, right. To be successful in sports, and in just about anything really, you have to believe that you’re best. I’m not saying Chad Kelly is anywhere near that same stratosphere as Jordan or Ali when it comes to talent, but I absolutely loved it when he said he was not only the best QB in the SEC, but in all of college football.

Before I go on any further let’s go ahead and address the most obvious part of that statement: while I loved his bravado, Kelly is not the best quarterback in college football. I’m sure most Ole Miss fans are praying that I’m wrong, and I’ll write one hell of a mea culpa if that turns out to be true, but I think I’m sitting pretty on this one.

As for the best in the SEC, that’s a fairly accurate statement going into the season. In all honesty Kelly is a very good quarterback. He has better than average arm strength, mobility, and athleticism for his size.

He does tend to make some erratic throws, but so do 99% of all college quarterbacks. After a year in the SEC you would think those type of throws will be a little less frequent this season.

As good a player as Kelly is though, the other part to the “best QB in the SEC” equation is that there really aren’t any other great quarterbacks in the conference.

I know that’s a little bit of a backhanded compliment, but it kind of is what it is. When a LSU quarterback is voted Preseason All-SEC Third Team like Brandon Harris was this year (behind Kelly and Tennessee’s Joshua Dobbs) you know you are in trouble.

That’s like Christian Bale being proud he is the second best Batman behind Michael Keaton, until you realize the rest of his competition is Kilmer, Clooney, Affleck, and Adam West.

Most of the SEC either has an incumbent quarterback who is basically the starter by default, or like a few upper echelon teams, they have no idea who is actually going to be their starter.

Don’t get me wrong, I like Kelly’s game, but the lack of NFL level talent at the QB position makes him look even better.

Plus, say what you will about Hugh Freeze and certain behind the scenes activities that have taken place under his watch, but the man knows offense and how to put his players in position to succeed. Freeze will have Kelly ready mentally, and have him prepared to maximize his ability on the field.

When you’re down six, on the road, with two minutes left in the game, you don’t want a quarterback who is timid and looks shaken. You want your quarterback to exude all the confidence in the world that he is going to take you down the field and win you the game. Kelly has that confidence.

He just better hope that his body will be able to cash all those checks his mouth is writing. When you’ve announced that you’re the best at your position, that’s a pretty large check to cash.