Alabama desperately copying Georgia with Stetson Bennett IV clone

Former Notre Dame quarterback Tyler Buchner joining the Alabama program could be the Crimson Tide’s response to the success Georgia had under Stetson Bennett IV’s reign of terror.

With Tyler Buchner reunited with former Notre Dame offensive coordinator Tommy Rees at Alabama, there is some belief the Crimson Tide just landed their very own version of Georgia legend Stetson Bennett IV.

Buchner played some for Marcus Freeman last year, but injuries and Drew Pyne taking over made him a prime candidate to transfer, especially with former Wake Forest star Sam Hartman coming to South Bend for one final college season. You can’t stop the slow mesh; you can only hope to contain it, just like The Mailman delivering the post daily, and twice on college football Saturdays.

But for real, Alabama tends to think it is getting something special like Bennett in Buchner. Here is what On3’s J.D. Pickell said about the new Crimson Tide quarterback they picked up in the portal.

"“What I was told about this [quarterback] situation as a whole with bringing in Tyler Buchner was that Alabama — and this is how it was described to me — is looking for their Stetson Bennett IV. Alabama Crimson Tide fans, you probably just grimaced by hearing his name. That’s fine. But the sentiment is that you want bring in a guy that is going to play mistake-free football and keep this car on the road. … Whoever plays quarterback at Alabama, you’re driving a nice car and we’re asking you not to crash it. That’s your responsibility.”"

I did compare Bennett to former Notre Dame star quarterback Ian Book for years. This is the same program Buchner and Rees used to be a part of, so I totally understand the Bennett comparison here. Alabama has more talent than pretty much anyone in the country. Though the Crimson Tide need slightly more than a game-manager at quarterback, can Buchner be the next A.J. McCarron?

I cannot wait to see him win national titles and put together one helluva chest piece monstrosity…

Alabama thinks it is getting its very own Stetson Bennett IV with Tyler Buchner

I am going to be totally honest here. This is an unreasonable expectation to put on a guy who had to transfer from his first school. Buchner could be a fine college quarterback in the SEC, but we are talking about comparing him to college football’s version of Kurt Warner. What Bennett did over his final three seasons in school may never be replicated, so we have to temper expectations a bit.

However, I think Buchner has a leg up on most Alabama quarterbacks in the building. The other guys may have had a spring to work with Rees, but Buchner had well over a year to learn the ropes of his offensive scheme. Buchner does get to use his one free transfer and could conceivably start right away. While level of comp is not a big uptick for him, he does play an SEC schedule now.

Ultimately, I believe Buchner will have success at Alabama, mostly because of the working relationship he has with Rees. What I have reservations about is Rees’ scheme translating to the SEC overnight. He will have more talent to work with than he had at any point at Notre Dame, but how does it keep up with SEC speed? If the game slows down for both, Alabama could come back.

If you don’t think the Buchner transfer is a huge deal, then I don’t think you see the bigger picture.

For more College Football news, analysis, opinion and unique coverage by FanSided, including Heisman Trophy and College Football Playoff rankings, be sure to bookmark these pages.