Jarrett Stidham might've had the most active offseason of any quarterback in the country and certainly logged more miles and worked out at more camps this summer than any previous signal caller under Gus Malzahn.
Auburn's starting quarterback graduated in May, after which he traveled with his now-fiancee Kennedy Brown during the NBA playoffs - her father, Tad Brown, is CEO of the Houston Rockets, was a counselor at the Elite 11 camp in early June and attended the Manning Passing Academy later that month. Stidham proposed to Kennedy Brown and got engaged in early July, represented the Tigers at SEC Media Days last Thursday and spent the weekend in Southern California at the QB Summit with Jordan Palmer.
It's made for a "summer to remember" for Stidham, a preseason second team All-SEC honoree who admitted the last 12 weeks have been "kind of crazy" but also well worth it, fulfilling a goal of being a counselor at the Elite 11 and getting to pick the brains of Peyton and Eli Manning.
"It's always been a dream of mine to go to Elite 11 finals as a camp counselor," Stidham said. "If you look at the track record of guys that have done that it's really cool list to be a part of. The Manning camp, that right there was maybe one of the top football experiences I've ever had. It's not every day you get to sit down and talk to Peyton and Eli. Those guys are Hall of Famers and some of the best to ever do it. ...
"They talked about preparation more than anything. Whether it's physically - obviously they talked a lot about mentally preparing. You know how Peyton plays the game, he just out-checks everybody pretty much and it's a chess match for him. They talked about the preparation of the game, whether it's film work, extra throwing after practice, whatever it may be. That's something I'm going to try and implement into my game a little bit more this year from a preparation standpoint."
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Malzahn said Stidham "definitely earned" the accolades and opportunities to attend the Elite 11 and Manning Academy, both of which Missouri's Drew Lock, Penn State's Trace McSorely and UCF's McKenzie Milton also attended but Stidham was the only one to also work with Palmer. The last quarterback to take part in all three camps was Southern Cal's Sam Darnold, who went on to be the No. 3 overall pick by the New York Jets in this year's NFL Draft.
Though Malzahn previously barred his quarterbacks from working with such specialists in the offseason and never had one invited to the Elite 11 or Manning Academy as a counselor, he was comfortable with Stidham traveling the country to take part in the various events because of his maturity and experience.
"We feel very good about his focus coming in," Malzahn said. "I know he's chomping at the bit for August 3rd to get here and to get out there and lead the offense and lead the team and see where it goes."
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Offensive coordinator Chip Lindsey, who is largely responsible for Malzahn relaxing his previous policy against "gurus" working with his quarterbacks, felt Stidham handled all the activity of the offseason well. It also probably helped that the redshirt-junior had a less active spring while he recovered from shoulder surgery.
"He's a pretty grounded guy anyway, but he's got a really good support system," Lindsey said. "I think for him, he's really tried to improve on continuing to learn and gain more knowledge of the offense, improve in some areas that he thought he wasn't as good last year. I think that's a sign of a guy that's really mature.
"He wants to be the best player he can be for Auburn and I think he's really focused on that. I think the experience he got last year is really valuable for him going into the season and I think he'll handle everything great."
But all the action on the field pales in comparison to the commitment Stidham made away from football.
Shortly after he graduated Stidham returned to Texas, during which time he asked for Tad Brown's blessing. For roughly two months he kept "somehow kept a secret" from Kennedy, who he proposed to on July 7 at Lake Brownwood in Texas.
"There was quite a bit of planning - more planning than I would have initially thought," Stidham said. "I lied to her and told her we were going to dinner just so she could get dressed up and then proposed and everything. Her family and friends were there and my family and friends were there. So it was a cool experience and something we'll always remember."
Now Auburn hopes Stidham makes the rest of 2018 unforgettable as well.
James Crepea is an Auburn beat reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter @JamesCrepea.
from Auburn Sports Impact http://www.al.com/auburnfootball/index.ssf/2018/07/how_jarrett_stidhams_handled_a.html
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