Kalen DeBoer commends Ty Simpson for dedication to Alabama

In his first season as the head coach of the Alabama Crimson Tide, Kalen DeBoer inherited a good quarterback situation with Jalen Milroe returning as the starter. Now, as he prepares for his second season, DeBoer is going to need to find a new quarterback.

One of the quarterbacks already in place at Alabama is Ty Simpson. The backup last season, Simpson now looks ready to compete for the starting job this offseason. While at the Senior Bowl in Mobile, DeBoer shared some of his thoughts on Simpson, commending him for his dedication to the program.

“You certainly appreciate what he’s done,” DeBoer said. “Just continue to work on what he can control, and that’s himself. Continue to build relationships to get ready for this chance that he has right in front of him. To not just step up as a leader because I think he’s been doing that but to have that opportunity to step in and be the quarterback.”

Simpson first came to Alabama as a five-star recruit in the Class of 2022, according to the On3 Industry Ranking. He was the second-ranked quarterback and the 25th-ranked player nationally in that recruiting cycle. Since that time, he has largely operated as a backup quarterback.

For many quarterbacks, there would have been an opportunity to transfer in the modern game. Given his pedigree, he may have looked for a new spot with more immediate playing time. In other cases, the change from Nick Saban as head coach to DeBoer may have sparked a transfer. However, he has stuck by the program.

Simpson has made appearances in 16 career games, taking a redshirt in 2022. He has completed 29 of 50 career attempts for a 58% completion percentage. He’s also thrown for 381 career yards. On top of that, Simpson has 130 rushing yards and three rushing touchdowns.

While Simpson seems like the logical next option at quarterback, Kalen DeBoer will presumably oversee a quarterback battle at Alabama. That will be between a group of quarterbacks that DeBoer thinks very highly of moving forward.

“Probably the biggest thing is there’s just not a lot of snaps that have been taken on a college football field,” DeBoer said. “But I also feel like the skillset’s there, there’s very strong strengths that we have and excited about them being similar in a lot of ways. Of course, everyone’s different. They’ve got the things that they bring to the table. But they all three just work together, and that’s really led to workouts already that they’re running that sound like they’ve been very efficient and got a lot of work done. But I’m excited about what they all bring to the table. Can’t wait to get back on campus here in February and work with them.”

Fans will get a look at Simpson and all of the quarterbacks on Saturday, April 12th, for the annual A-Day Game.