Alabama staffer jokes they will 'loan' 5-star signee Keelon Russell to SMU for ACC Championship

Keelon Russell made things official Wednesday morning, signing with the Alabama Crimson Tide. The Five-Star Plus+ quarterback was a huge get for Kalen DeBoer during his first full cycle as head coach. Russell now projects to be the quarterback of the future in Tuscaloosa.

Alabama might be willing to let him play one game in another uniform, though.

When Russell committed to Alabama, it was a flip from his hometown program, SMU. A lot of Alabama eyeballs will be on the ACC Championship game where the Mustangs face off vs. Clemson. An SMU win likely sends Bama to the College Football Playoff.

So, Alabama Director of Player Personnel Bob Welton joked SMU could have Russell for Saturday’s game.

“We’re going to let him play Saturday for SMU,” Welton said. “We’ll loan him out for a game.”

Unfortunately, this is not European soccer and there is no loan system. Rhett Lashlee will have to roll with the quarterback he currently has, another Dallas product. Kevin Jennings has been great for SMU since taking over as the starter, sporting a 9-0 record. One more win will put the program at heights it has not reached in quite some time.

Everyone involved with Alabama will be cheering for SMU to help them out for a CFP spot. Who knows, maybe the Keelon Russell Bowl will even take place later in the bracket.

Alabama GM Courtney Morgan explains process of landing Keelon Russell

SMU was early in their evaluation of Russell, getting him committed before the recruitment took off. Madness ensued this past summer as top programs were going after the quarterback, even before a massive bump in the recruiting rankings.

Alabama GM Courtney Morgan explained the process of finding Russell, explaining some of the staff were all over him while at Washington. One summer workout seemingly changed who Alabama wanted to target. And the rest is history.

“At the time, Keelon was committed to SMU and I wouldn’t say he was a three-star but he was under the radar,” Morgan said. We had other high-ranked guys on our board Jerret McElwain and Jatavis Sanders were always bringing up Keelon Russell, Keelon Russell. We went ahead of really dug into him. Coach (Nick) Sheridan watched him throw and he lit it up this summer.”

Russell plays high school football at Duncanville (TX) High School, where he was a Five-Star Plus+ prospect. He was the No. 2 overall recruit in the 2025 cycle, according to the On3 Industry Ranking, a weighted average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies.