Now, short quarterback Jalen Milroe, the Alabama Crimson Tide, and head coach Kalen DeBoer are in search of their new starter at the game’s most important position.
Milroe started two full seasons for Alabama, leading them to an SEC Championship in 2023 and a 9-4 record in 2024. He was drafted in the 3rd round, 92nd overall by the Seattle Seahawks in the 2025 NFL Draft. Now, Ty Simpson, Austin Mack, and Keelon Russell will duke it out to replace him.
Alabama Will Name Starting QB In August
DeBoer hopped on “Always College Football” with ESPN’s Greg McElroy to discuss the Alabama quarterback competition.
“There’s been roughly a similar kind of timeframe throughout fall camp. The last week-and-a-half,” DeBoer said. “We usually have a little bit longer phase of bonus practices leading up to Week 1. There’s a weekend before and a few days before that.
“That’s kind of when you really for sure like to have the starter named and him to be able to start really being in sync with his receiving corps, gelling that way, and really piling on the reps. But if you feel like you’re at that point earlier, maybe a week earlier.”
The Crimson Tide kicks off 2025 with a matchup against Florida State, putting the timeline for DeBoer to name a starter around mid-August.
Alabama is coming off its first season of the DeBoer era. They finished 9-4, the most losses since Nick Saban’s inaugural season at the helm in 2007. Now, they’ll look to return to the College Football Playoff for the first time since losing to Michigan in the 2023 Rose Bowl.
The quarterback competition won’t be easy. Simpson is entering his fourth year in Tuscaloosa and has been the backup for two years. Mack is a former four-star recruit, following DeBoer from Washington, and Russell is a five-star freshman ranked the No. 2 quarterback in the 2025 cycle by On3.
KEEP READING: Kalen DeBoer Plans To Keep Alabama’s Offense Lethal Without Jalen Milroe’s Unique Spark
“I’ve had a lot of this kind of competition over the years,” he said. “When you do it for 25 years, I don’t know if it’s three, four, five, but there’s been a handful of competitions to some level where there’s two guys, three guys, a guy coming in that’s a transfer and all that. You’ve really got to be thorough.
“I think in the end, it’s who can move the ball down the field. People sometimes get caught up in who’s great now, who had the best completion percentage, and all those things. Those are all important. But I think in the end it’s who’s moving the ball down the field for the ones and the twos most consistently when you’re here in practice each and every day.”
It certainly won’t be an easy decision.
College Sports Network has you covered with the latest news, analysis, insights, and trending stories in college football, men’s college basketball, women’s college basketball, and college baseball!
