Nick Saban says QB signees have 'really good potential'

Nick Saban and his staff brought in another haul during this year’s National Signing Day as they signed yet another No. 1 class. With all new talent set to come to Tuscaloosa, one of the hottest positions to talk about was naturally quarterback and Saban addressed their pair of signees at the position yesterday.

During his signing day press conference on Wednesday, Saban said both Eli Holstein and Dylan Lonergan are exactly what the Tide look for in their quarterback prospects.

“We’re obviously happy with both guys. They’ve both been in successful programs. We know a lot about them. They’re great people (and) I think they have really good potential,” said Saban. “Other than that, they’re the kind of guys we want. And I think they fit the profile of what we need at the position.”

Holstein, who comes from Zachary, Louisiana, is a Top-75 player in the On3 Consensus Rankings. He finished his high school career as the No. 8 quarterback in the 2022 class. Meanwhile, Lonergan is coming out Snellville, Georgia as a Top-150 player and the No. 11 QB in the On3 Consensus.

The biggest thing Saban says he looked for with these two is commitment. With the transfer portal alive and well, he wanted players at all positions that bought into their own development. He wanted prospects who wouldn’t run at the first sign of trouble. Things can obviously change down the line but, with Holstein and Lonergan, Saban believes he found what he was looking for in these two QBs.

“I think, in this day and age, you really want to make sure when, basically, guys can leave your team whenever they want that you have enough guys at each position. And that they want to be the kind of guys that want to develop at that position,” Saban said. “I think both of these guys are very much committed to that.”

Saban has turned out some phenomenal quarterback prospects over the last few seasons between Jalen Hurts, Tua Tagovailoa, Mac Jones, and now Bryce Young. With Young likely off to the NFL now, their war chest in the quarterback room needed to be restocked. Alabama feels they did just that by signing Holstein and Lonergan. Now it’s all about development for those two as they await their turn to hit the field for the Tide.