Believe or not to believe: Just let Jarrett Stidham hype be what it is as opener nears

Entering last season, first-year Auburn quarterback Jarrett Stidham received a lot of preseason praise. Some of it was justified, some of it wasn’t.

Stidham had one of the best passing seasons in Auburn history. The former Baylor QB threw for 3,158 yards with 18 touchdown passes and 6 interceptions. He completed 66.5 percent of his passes in helping the Tigers win the SEC West and finish with a 10-4 record.

As just the second Auburn quarterback to throw for 3,000 yards and the first to return the season after throwing for 3,000, it’s understandable why Stidham would be getting a lot of preseason love this time around.

Stidham finds himself on about every preseason watch list that a quarterback is eligible to be listed on as well as receiving Heisman odds. The media named him to the All-SEC second-team at SEC Media Days although other outlets thought better of that.

As we count down the days until the Sept. 1 kickoff against Washington, more acknowledgement arrives for Stidham.

On Tuesday, SEC Network analyst Cole Cubelic tweeted this:

Honestly, that’s about right. You have to elevate Stidham and Alabama QB Tua Tagovailoa to the top of the list right off the bat because they play on two of the three best teams in the SEC and expect to be in the College Football Playoff conversation until the final week of the regular season. Drew Lock likely throws for more yards and TDs than either, but Missouri won’t win enough to be considered. Deebo Samuel is dynamic, but will the Gamecocks be good enough and can he make enough of a difference in South Carolina’s big games? Maybe. As for Nick Fitzgerald, there’s no denying his talent, but if he can’t carry Mississippi State to at least a split in the games against Alabama and Auburn (and the Bulldogs won’t be expected to win either game), he has zero shot.

We also recently saw this:

The key here is to be in the conversation. You’d expect Will Grier, Khalil Tate and Lock to put up bigger numbers than Stidham. But as long as Stidham is consistent and avoids the duds that plagued him in 2017 (Clemson, LSU, Georgia in SEC title game, UCF), he’ll remain high on this list.

And it wouldn’t be a preseason without Heisman odds. You can find them everywhere. Here are the latest:

My biggest takeaway here is that it’s a slap in the face to consider Shea Patterson having the same Heisman odds as Stidham and Trace McSorley and better than Grier, Jake Fromm and Jake Browning.

This offseason for Stidham has been about getting healthy (he’s 100 percent after offseason surgery on his left shoulder) and building better rapport with his receivers and offensive coordinator after his first season.

He’s on magazine covers, represented Auburn at SEC Media Days and even tossed a perfectly placed TD pass to new Auburn AD Allen Greene.

What else has Stidham done this summer? He’s gotten engaged. And he’s stayed out of trouble. He’s done everything you’d want from your starting quarterback in a high-profile program.

Another thing you should like: Stidham isn’t concerned about the preseason hype. Not one bit.

“With time you learn about not reading things and not taking things too much to heart. I like to stay true to myself,” he told AuburnTigers.com.

The next step: Producing results on the field.

“I think he wants to lead us to a championship,” Auburn OC Chip Lindsey told AuburnTigers.com. “I think that is something that is driving him and important to him.”

Like we said, that’s exactly what you want in your starting quarterback.