Since spring practice, the leader of the Alabama football quarterback competition has remained the same. As preseason training got underway on Wednesday, Ty Simpson was still leading the pack after spring ball.
Kalen DeBoer, the head coach of UA, was naturally questioned about the status of the quarterback battle following the Crimson Tide’s first session. He expressed his admiration for the group.
DeBoer stated, “You can see they’re definitely more comfortable with the install after they’ve all taken steps through the summer.” The repetitions players receive with their play principles are important, but so is their footwork and general confidence. A some of the recent additions that we have made.
Simpson received particular commendation from the coach in one particular area. During drills that media watched during a viewing time on Wednesday, Simpson appeared to be toward the front of the quarterback line.
According to DeBoer, only the elite, the ones who are just, should be at 100% and consistently make those plays. And I thought he actually did that. The way those plays evolved to include more of those gimmes likely gave him more opportunities, and those gimmes pile up.
Gimmes are five-yard gains that can occasionally be explosive and grow into 15 and 20 yards. They maintain the chains’ motion. Therefore, I appreciate our quarterbacks’ mentality because, as a playcaller, you can call a lot more balls down the field knowing that it won’t just be an incomplete pass or an explosive play when you can trust your quarterback to go through his progression and be comfortable with checking it down and not forcing anything. There must be some sort of growth.
There is fierce competition for Simpson, a redshirt junior who has been Tuscaloosa’s main backup for Jalen Milroe for the last two seasons. Five-star true freshman Keelon Russell and fellow returnee Austin Mack, the only player in the group whose main recruiter out of high school was offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb, are also interested in the position.
Due in large part to his lack of offensive experience, Russell had significantly less reps with the first team in the spring. But according to DeBoer, his employees were hoping for better work from him.
Naturally, DeBoer stated that Keelon would most likely be the one to make the largest leap. And that seemed wonderful to me. I mean, he’s not sitting there thinking too much; he’s making decisions quickly.
A week and a half prior to UA’s season opener against Florida State, DeBoer stated earlier in the offseason that he would prefer to have a starter in place. Tallahassee will host that game on August 30.
On Tuesday, Alabama will resume their practice. ABC will broadcast UA’s first game on August 30 at 2:30 p.m. CT.
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