Nick Saban gives glowing review of Joe Milton, how Alabama will prepare for Tennessee QB

Nick Saban didn’t mince words about the challenge of stopping Joe Milton when Alabama takes on Tennessee this coming weekend.

In a matchup of top 20 teams in Tuscaloosa, Milton will look to personally bounce back and light up the Crimson Tide secondary. Saban knows his defense will have to be prepared.

It’s nothing Saban hasn’t seen before though.

“Well, I don’t see Joe a whole lot different than, you know what we played against in the past,” Saban said. “When Hendon Hooker was there. The guy can throw the ball, he’s accurate. He’s got a strong arm, can make plays down the field, which, you know, they take a lot of vertical shots and he certainly has the capability of making those plays. But he’s also athletic enough to extend plays in the pocket and run if necessary.”

Saban made sure to give a good review of Milton, but noted his defense shouldn’t treat him any different when Tennessee comes to town.

“I don’t tell them anything different than any other time you’re playing a quarterback,” Saban said. “You can’t get pushed by the quarterback. You got to keep the guy in front of you, got to have discipline in pass rush lanes and got to try to make the guy throw the ball on time, you know from the pocket and hopefully we can cover them well enough to make it work in the back end.”

Joe Milton has Nick Saban preparing for Tennessee game

So far this season, Milton has 1,264 yards, 10 touchdowns, four interceptions and a 61.5% completion percentage. He also has 173 rushing yards and four touchdowns on the ground.

As a member of the Class of 2018, Milton was a four-star recruit out of Orlando (Fla.) Olympia, according to the On3 Industry Ranking, a weighted average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies. He was the No. 42 overall prospect in the state, the No. 17 quarterback in the class and the No. 242 overall prospect in the class.

Milton’s outing against Texas A&M was, statistically, the worst of his season through six games. He posted season lows across the board in completions (11), attempts (22), percentage (50%), and yards (100).

He also tied a season-low with only one touchdown pass and, against a stout defensive line from A&M, took the most sacks he had all fall with three. Many of Milton’s issues are forgivable considering they came in a seven-point win for the Volunteers, the fifth of the season for the nation’s nineteenth-ranked team. Still, Josh Heupel expects more from him and his offense as a whole as they enter the back half of their slate.