All the hype in the Southeastern Conference Championship Game around quarterbacks may be surrounding Tim Tebow's all-time greatness, but the quarterback from Alabama is no slouch either.
John Parker Wilson, a senior, will be leading the Crimson Tide into Atlanta the best way he knows how - as a team manager.
Just ask one of his offensive linemen.
"I know Tebow gets a lot of (hype), which is well-deserved, he's a great football player," senior Antoine Caldwell said. "But we have a lot of confidence, the utmost confidence in the quarterback that we have."
Sure, his numbers have dropped this season as Alabama has evolved into a run-first team, but Wilson comes through when his team needs him.
In the Tide's closest game of the season, Wilson threw a 24-yard pass to start their first overtime possession against then-No. 15 LSU on Nov. 8. Alabama scored two plays later and won the game.
If he makes plays like that to save Alabama's undefeated season, he doesn't mind if his numbers are down.
"I'm taking care of the ball, making good decisions and keeping our team in a good chance to win," Wilson said. "I think I'm just going to go out there and try to do that. Let our players make plays and not try to do too much. … I think everything's going to take care of itself after that."
He's on pace for about 11 touchdowns after throwing 18 last season, and he has thrown 194 fewer passes so far in 2008 compared to 2007. But numbers more indicative of his consistency are on the rise.
His interception total this year stands at just five after throwing 12 picks in 2007. And while he completed 55.2 percent of his passes last season, that number has risen to 58.6 percent. Not exactly Heisman-caliber numbers like Tebow attains, but they're plenty for what coach Nick Saban wants from his signal-caller.
When mistakes go down and efficiency goes up, wins go up. For that, Wilson has two things on his team to thank.
First, he has a terrific offensive line and a running game that puts up 201.5 yards per contest to thank for his better efficiency numbers.
"We've done a great job running the football," Caldwell said. "He really hasn't had to make any spectacular throws or had to come from behind as much. You know, that makes it easy on the quarterback."
The addition of freshman wideout Julio Jones doesn't hurt Wilson's ability to manage a game either.
Jones, a 6-foot-4 athlete out of Foley, Ala., has 461 more receiving yards than his closest teammate and is tied for fifth in the SEC in receiving yards per game (60.2).
His yards make up almost 36 percent of Alabama's passing offense, and he was responsible for the 24-yard catch in overtime against LSU.
"He's one of the best players I've ever played with," Wilson said. "He works hard during practice, he's a good guy, he makes everybody else around him better."
