Nick Saban details progress of Dylan Lonergan, ability to self-assess

Yes — Tyler Buchner, Jalen Milroe, and Ty Simpson are considered the three competing for the starting job at Alabama. There is an outside guy who has been generating buzz in recent weeks in Dylan Lonergan, though. It’s hard to imagine a true freshman winning out for head coach Nick Saban but there is a reason the competition is still ongoing.

The theme of the entire quarterback battle from Saban has been development. Nothing changes when talking about Lonergan and it’s beginning to show. Saban believes what Lonergan is missing more than anything is some experience.

“He’s done really well,” Saban said. “He shows great ability, great potential. I think the thing that he needs is experience… He’s a talented guy. Certainly, a guy that we want to try to continue to develop. But he’s done a nice job so far in camp.”

Not too long ago, he was playing Georgia high school football. Lonergan was an early enrollee though and apparently has hit the ground running. But at the end of the day, Lonergan is still a young quarterback and Saban believes he needs experience.

“Everybody says ‘What’s experience? What’s your ability to self-assess?’ I have better ability to self-assess right now than when I was 18,” Saban said. “So, how do you learn to do that? Through experience. You have experiences, you make mistakes, you mess up… That’s how you learn and progress.”

Lonergan played high school football at Snellville (GA) Brookwood, where he was a four-star prospect. He was the No. 162 overall recruit in the 2023 cycle, according to the On3 Industry Rankings, a weighted average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies.

Alabama took two quarterbacks during the 2023 class, with Lonergan being the lower-rated one. Eli Holstein is on campus was a top-100 overall player in the cycle and was considered a huge recruiting win for Saban. But to this point, Lonergan is the young quarterback standing out more.

The last time Alabama started a true freshman quarterback, Jalen Hurts got the nod ahead of the 2016 season. He wound up being a legendary figure inside of the program, leading the Crimson Tide to two national championships.

For now, Lonergan still might be on the outside looking in with the quarterback competition. However, progress is being made throughout fall camp. If there is a sneaky outside to wind up winning the job, look no further than Lonergan.