College football QB battles: Alabama settled, others still open
Alabama’s QB race is settled, but Ohio State, Notre Dame, and Tennessee still have battles ahead.
Alabama starting quarterback Ty Simpson will draw Mac Jones comparisons, but Jake Coker makes for a better comp.Ty Simpson will be a bridge quarterback for Alabama, with Keelon Russell waiting on the other side.Coach Kalen DeBoer improved Alabama’s supporting cast to support Ty Simpson.
Officially, Alabama settled its quarterback competition on Monday, tapping Ty Simpson as its starter. Unofficially, this conclusion seemed inevitable for months.
Simpson has thrown only 50 passes during a career that includes three seasons as a backup, but that’s 47 more pass attempts than any other quarterback on Alabama’s roster.
When Alabama did not add a transfer quarterback in the winter free agency period, it signaled Simpson would make his first career start in the opener against Florida State.
Optimists will say Simpson could become the next Mac Jones, a backup turned star who threw for 4,500 yards in 2020. Sure, it’s possible, and maybe I’ll be selected as the next James Bond.
By the time Jones became Alabama’s full-time starter, he’d already proven himself after filling in as starter for an injured Tua Tagovailoa the previous season and delivering four standout performances.
Simpson has neither Jones’ experience nor his inimitable supporting cast that included DeVonta Smith, Najee Harris and John Metchie III to warrant 2020 comparisons.
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Smarter comparisons would include Blake Sims and Jake Coker, who were longtime backups before starting for Alabama in their final seasons. Coker won a national championship as a steadyhanded guide for the 2015 Crimson Tide. He enjoyed the luxury of handing the ball to…
Source link : https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/ncaaf/sec/2025/08/14/ty-simpson-alabama-starting-quarterback/85615680007/
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Publish date : 2025-08-14 10:06:00
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