College Football

The Mac Attack

Updated Nov. 7, 2020 7:13 p.m. ET

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Plainly put, Alabama Crimson Tide quarterback Mac Jones torched Mississippi State last weekend.

And as the leader of college football's most potent offense, Jones was named Playmaker of the Week by FOX Sports college football analyst and former USC superstar Matt Leinart.

It's fitting that the former Heisman-winner Leinart honored Jones, who is among the current frontrunners for the prestigious award this year, according to FOX Bet (+130).

Alabama sits at 6-0 after its fifth 40-plus-point game this season, and Jones has 16 touchdown passes to just two interceptions, while completing 78.5 percent of his passes. He also has three games of more than 400 yards through the air.

But Jones isn't doing it all on his own, and he credits the Crimson Tide as a whole for his ability to rack up yardage and touchdowns each week.

"I know one of our strengths is we have great skill players. You have to understand as a quarterback, when you're on a team like that, you just have to get them the ball."

Last week, Jones and receiver DeVonta Smith put on a show, as Jones connected with Smith for all four touchdowns passes against Mississippi State. Not to mention, 203 of Jones' 291 passing yards went to Smith.

Jones didn't just impress through the air, as he added a few yards on the ground, which stood out to Leinart, considering he wasn't the most mobile quarterback in college.

Leinart discussed his time working with Steve Sarksian – Alabama's offensive coordinator who was previously Leinart's quarterback coach at USC – and reflected on Sarksian's attempt to teach him how to slide.

Leinart went on to break down some of Jones' big-time plays, including a run-and-slide to pick up a first down.

Jones not only credited his coaches, but also the quarterbacks that came before him for teaching him how to face adversity.

"You go back and think how Jalen [Hurts] or Tua [Tagovailoa] ... didn't let anything get under their skin. I use them every day to try and emulate what they did in that part of the game."

The Tide are favored to win the SEC this year, despite a difficult 10-game conference schedule (-400). And with tougher in-conference opponents each week, Jones reflected on how the team has prepared for the grind of the shortened 2020 season.

"We've never been through something like this where we play six games in a row ... It's really a challenge we've accepted. Preparation has to be heightened because every week you can lose the game, and it's a lot easier to lose this year when you're playing against teams that will give you their best shot every week."

Lucky for Alabama, they are headed into a bye week, which will presumably help them regroup before traveling to Death Valley to take on the LSU Tigers.

Check out the entire interview below:

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