It's easy to sit on the sidelines and play fantasy football with some of college football's most high-profile quarterback competitions. It's just a 'start' or 'sit' conversation for us.

"Tua Tagovialoa has a big arm. Start 'em."

"Kelly Bryant lost in the playoffs. Sit 'em."

But from the head coach's chair, the decision is shaped by a depth of information that we don't have access to and it's littered with emotional land mines, team unity considerations, depth chart concerns and accounting for simple human decency. When he met with the media this week following the decision to name freshman Trevor Lawrence his starter over incumbent Kelly Bryant, Clemson coach Dabo Swinney offered a valuable reminder that this is more than a depth chart.

"It was a bad day to be a head coach," Swinney said on Tuesday. "A bad day to be a head coach. Most days it's good. It was a bad day. Because I love Kelly. It's emotional. It was a tough day. I gave him the day off. Rough afternoon…We met (Monday) afternoon, and it was emotional. Tough, tough. He's played well and as long as I've been here, there's not been a guy more committed to this program than Kelly Bryant. There's not a better leader. This guy is the epitome of what you want. He's what you want your son to be like. I love him like a son. It was a very difficult conversation."

So difficult is that conversation that it's rare when we actually see it take place. I think Swinney likely made the right decision. But now his conviction will be tested with the news that Bryant converted that day off on Monday into a decision to transfer.  

Clemson's best chance at being the best version of itself is with Lawrence under center. Swinney deserves a lot of credit for acknowledging that and committing to it. Christian Wilkins, Mitch Hyatt, Clelin Farrell and Austin Bryant didn't forgo the NFL Draft for another ACC title. They want the whole thing, and Swinney owes it to them to give them their best opportunity at it.  

This fall, Tagovailoa has been unveiled at Alabama as the quarterback many of us suspected he was and Nick Saban likely knew him to be. And yet, in an almost identical scenario last fall, with a talented, winning quarterback already in place, Saban chose to stick with the experienced option until the last possible opportunity to change. It was almost too late and it almost cost Alabama a national title.

Ohio State quarterback Dwayne Haskins has been revealed as one of the best quarterbacks in the nation. But last fall, with one of the few rosters to rival Alabama, Clemson and Georgia, Urban Meyer chose leadership, intangibles and experience in JT Barrett over a skill-set in Haskins that might have propelled the Buckeyes into national title contention.

Saban and Meyer didn't have the tough conversation that Swinney had on Monday, but they may have motivated it. While Swinney preaches the "one week at a time" rhetoric, there's no doubt what this Clemson team's aspirations are. It's a national title roster with national title expectations. Bryant may be capable of winning a title with Clemson, but Lawrence gives it the best shot, especially given the pace that has been set in Tuscaloosa and Columbus.

Through the first four weeks of the season, Ohio State has scored a touchdown on 63 percent of drives with Haskins under center. It has ended drives with a score or a field goal attempt 72 percent of the time he's running the show. Haskins has only accounted for one turnover.

Alabama under Tagovailoa is even scarier. Drives with Tagovailoa under center end in touchdowns 64 percent of the time and scoring tries 74 percent of the time. He hasn't turned the ball over yet.

"At the end of the day, I just don't feel I've gotten a fair shot," Bryant told the Greenville News on Tuesday. But the numbers say otherwise. 

At Clemson, Bryant's otherwise impressive productivity wilts when placed in comparison with Haskins and Tagovailoa. He's scoring touchdowns on 38 percent of his drives, his drives end on a score or a field goal try 47 percent of the time and punts 33 percent of the time with two turnovers to his credit.

With the true freshman at quarterback, Clemson's numbers jump up to a 58 percent touchdown rate, a score or a field goal try on 70 percent of his drives and punt rate of only 20 percent with two interceptions.

Lawrence has shown indications that he can inject the horsepower that may just be a prerequisite for this year's national champion. He's also shown that he has some growing to do. In fact, in a tough road matchup against Texas A&M, it was Bryant that piloted the decisive drives while Lawrence stalled. With Swinney's decisive move, Lawrence has time for that growth.  

The perils of a decision like this have struck. Lawrence's arrival and subsequent spring practice breakout already ran former four-star quarterback Hunter Johnson out of town. Now, he's sent Bryant packing. The deepest quarterback room in the country is down to two with Chase Brice serving as a very competent backup but no third stringer remaining. Good on Swinney for making an announcement within a timeframe that left Bryant with a transfer option. He didn't have to play it so straight and that's maybe the most commendable part of this entire process.

This is a new age dilemma starring new age quarterbacks, more prepared than ever to compete as freshmen. Saban and Meyer balked at this decision last year. Kirby Smart was spared this decision when a Jacob Eason injury cleared the path for Jake Fromm to take over at Georgia. Swinney faced it head-on and made the tough call. Now we find out if it was the right one. I suspect it was.

Cover 3

1. Former Arizona State QBs are taking college football by storm. Bryce Perkins at Virginia, Blake Barnett at USF and Brady White at Memphis were all backups to Manny Wilkins in Tempe at one point or another. Now they're all off to roaring starts at their new homes. Collectively, the three have led their teams to an 11-1 start and all three are ranked within the top 35 in passer rating.

They each bring a different style. Perkins is an athlete that has topped 100 yards rushing twice at Virginia this fall and has also had a 379-yard passing game. Barnett is a pass-first quarterback with straight-line speed that is averaging 276 yards passing per game for Charlie Strong. White is an accurate, smart distributor that has efficiently played the point man in Memphis' wide-open attack.

Several coaches get the credit for accumulating such a capable roster of quarterbacks under coach Todd Graham. Most of the credit should go to current Memphis coach Mike Norvell. He recruited Wilkins, White and Perkins to Arizona State and kicked off their development. Current Auburn offensive coordinator Chip Lindsey continued that development and also attracted Barnett to Tempe. Current Louisiana-Lafayette coach Billy Napier took over last season as OC where he still managed White, Barnett and Wilkins.

2. Napier facing a monster of his own creation on Saturday. Not entirely of course. Alabama is Saban's monster, but Napier did play a hand in making this particular version of the Tide. Before Napier left Alabama as the receivers coach to take the offensive coordinator job at Arizona State, he was instrumental in recruiting a wide receiver class in 2017 that is now one of the most dangerous in the country.

Current starters Jerry Jeudy, Henry Ruggs III and DeVonta Smith, as well as reserve Tyrell Shavers were all either committed or well on their way by the time Napier left for Tempe. It's not a rarity for Alabama to have elite talent, but the depth in this receiver room paired with Tagovailoa presents a challenge to defenses unlike anything Alabama has had before under Saban. On Saturday, Napier will experience it as a 49-point underdog.

3. Defensive tackle Javon Kinlaw key in South Carolina's win over Vandy. Kinlaw is a physical specimen. He has always been a physical specimen. As a high school prospect, he had freakish physical tools, but he was lazy on the field and his academics weren't in order. After a juco stint, he arrived at South Carolina still as a work in progress.

On Saturday, Kinlaw arrived fully by racking up five tackles, three tackles for a loss, two sacks, two forced fumbles, a pass breakup and two quarterback hurries in a win over Vanderbilt. It was the kind of performance that has been latent in Kinlaw and one that should worry SEC opponents. If a 6-foot-6, 305-pounder is bringing that kind of effort, there's not a lot you can do with him. He is a potential first round type of talent and the light is starting to turn on.