Alabama QB1 battle update: Ryan Williams spills beans on frontrunner for Kalen DeBoer's starting QB
Ty Simpson, Austin Mack and Keelon Russell are competing for the starting quarterback job at Alabama. After the departure of Jalen Milroe to the NFL, Kalen DeBoer needs to decide on who among these three will help him qualify for the College Football Playoff after missing it out last season.
During Thursday's episode of ESPN's "College GameDay Podcast," wide receiver Ryan Williams spoke about the battle while dropping a hint on who could be the one under center come the first week of college football action.
"The tape speaks for itself,” Williams said. “We have three very good quarterbacks. Either way that it goes, I’m comfortable and confident in any of those guys just because I’ve seen the work that they put in. They all have different tendencies.
"Like you said, Ty (Simpson) is the frontrunner right now, just trying to build a relationship with not only him but the rest of them of course, just get prepared for this season. We’re super excited.”
This past spring, Williams has been catching passes from all three of them. He feels confident that any one of them will be able to lead the Crimson Tide.
Ty Simpson gets huge acknowledgment from Kalen DeBoer ahead of next season
It won't be until Aug. 30 when the Alabama Crimson Tide takes the field to start the 2025 season with high hopes. However, if it were to start this week, Kalen DeBoer is confident that Ty Simpson is the man for the job.
“If you had to play right now, go with the veteran in Ty (Simpson),” DeBoer said Wednesday on The Paul Finebaum Show. “Did a nice job this spring. As for the others, we just need to keep the competition going. They know that that’s their expectation because they know where they’re at right now isn’t good enough for where we need to be to have the success we want to have as a football team.”
While Simpson might be leading the race, it's not over for either Austin Mack or Keelon Russell as summer workouts are about to begin in Tuscaloosa.
Simpson was Alabama's backup quarterback when Jalen Milroe was leading the unit. In limited action, he attempted 25 passes for 168 yards. While Simpson is a veteran from the Class of 2022, Mack and Russell barely have any experience. Russell is a freshman and Mack is just finding his footing in college football after being transferred.
DeBoer wants results in his second year and so the job won't be easy for anyone to take.