Prior to the start of fall camp for the LSU Tigers, all eyes were on the quarterbacks. Myles Brennan and Max Johnson were expected to battle it out all the way up until the week of the UCLA game for the starting nod. Just before camp opened Brennan broke his arm paving the way for Johnson to be the starter.

Johnson and freshman quarterback Garrett Nussmeier are the only two scholarship quarterbacks on the roster. Nuss is expected to be the No. 2 guy and be ready in case they have to go to him. Johnson is preparing as the No. 1 quarterback and hoping to lead LSU back to the top of the SEC West. It is a tall task but not an impossible one.

ESPN’s Bill Connelly put together the most important players in college football for the upcoming season (subscription required). Two Tigers made the list but we will start with the quarterback. Without one, your chances of having a winning program are slim to none.

Johnson is viewed as one of two quarterbacks with a potential game-changing leap in them and a shot at lots of contenders. The other being in the SEC East with J.T. Daniels of Georgia.

No. 2: Max Johnson, Quarterback

What ESPN Says…

It’s hard to know what Johnson is capable of after a scattershot half-season piloting the LSU attack (59% completion rate, 72nd in Total QBR). Is he a genuine breakthrough guy, or should he have been listed among merely the potential spoilers instead? But when you’ve got talent like Derek Stingley Jr. and Kayshon Boutte on your team, we’re going to assume the ceiling’s high. Johnson is a runner and improviser, and if the run game and defense are both more consistent, he could be in a favorable position. If not, then he could be forced to improvise a little too much.

A little further down the list, you find the top defender in Derek Stingley Jr.