Who is the best QB in Mississippi: Rogers or Corral?
After Mississippi State and Ole Miss leave Davis Wade Stadium on Thursday night, there might be a better sense of which of the two teams is better. The stakes are high, with bowl bid considerations for both,
But the stakes are also high for the quarterbacks on an individual level, with a chance to show which one rules Mississippi. Ole Miss' Matt Corral and Mississippi State's Will Rogers have each put together impressive seasons.
Who is the better quarterback, though?
The Clarion Ledger's Mississippi State (Andy Kostka) and Ole Miss (Nick Suss) reporters debate:
Andy Kostka: The debate over which quarterback in Mississippi is best can often be distracted by NFL draft projections and national honors such as Heisman Trophy odds. But let's distill the debate down to its roots: Between Matt Corral of Ole Miss and Will Rogers of Mississippi State, who has had the better season?
And choosing anyone but Rogers would overlook his 4,113 passing yards and 34 touchdowns — both of which broke Dak Prescott's program records. Rogers throws the ball more than most quarterbacks, but he has also taken care of the ball at a rate better than most, completing 76% of his passes with a 1.4% interception rate. His performances the last few weeks have been exemplary, too, leading a 25-point comeback victory at Auburn with a school-record six touchdown passes.
Nick Suss: It's impossible to argue production between these two. Rogers has thrown more touchdowns in his last five games than Corral has all season. If you're just looking at the passing numbers, it's a rout.
It's worth looking at the raw numbers for a second. On a pure yards per play basis, Rogers is averaging 6.49 and Corral is averaging 7.64. In other words, Ole Miss averages more than a yard per play more when Corral runs or throws than when Rogers does. Corral has 552 yards rushing compared to Rogers' minus-74.
Just as Rogers is insulated in the raw stats by his Air Raid offense, Corral is insulated by his tempo offense in the rate stats. It's an argument that comes down to usage, before we even get into the way
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