First look at Notre Dame transfer QB Tyler Buchner in an Alabama uniform

Notre Dame transfer Tyler Buchner committed to Alabama two months ago, and on Wednesday night, the new Crimson Tide quarterback provided the first glimpse of him in a UA uniform.

Thanks to his latest Instagram post, Buchner will sport jersey No. 8 for the Tide this fall.

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A post shared by Tyler Buchner (@tylerbuchner)

The 6-foot-1, 215-pound quarterback played in 10 games as a true freshman in 2021, including eight of the final nine. Buchner scored six touchdowns (3 passing, 3 rushing) and accounted for 634 total yards of offense (298 passing, 336 rushing) while completing 60 percent of his passes and throwing three interceptions – all of this occurring after no senior high school season.

Following Jack Coan’s departure, Buchner stepped into the starting quarterback role in South Bend, Ind., as a sophomore last season but sustained a shoulder injury that kept him out 10 games before returning for the TaxSlayer Bowl against South Carolina, where he was named MVP. He threw for 651 yards, three scores and five picks on 46-of-83 passing (55.4%) in 2022 before transferring after the spring and reuniting with former play-caller, Tommy Rees.

In Tuscaloosa, Ala., Buchner will compete with Jalen Milroe and Ty Simpson for the first-team quarterback role ahead of the 2023 season. Milroe and Simpson battled for the starting spot in the spring, but head coach Nick Saban felt the need to add another signal-caller this summer.

“We wanted to give our quarterbacks in our program every opportunity to win the job in spring practice,” said Saban prior to the 2023 NFL Draft. “We felt like we needed to add some competition in the room, and Tyler was certainly a guy that was gonna be the starter last year at Notre Dame, got injured, played in the bowl game, played really well. So we thought he would add a lot of competition, and we think he’s got the right kind of character and attitude to be a positive influence on our team.”

Another transfer shares his jersey number

In addition to Buchner, defensive back Jaylen Key also shared photos from UA’s recent photo shoots, and the UAB transfer announced he will sport No. 22 this fall. That jersey number was left vacant after another Tide defensive back, Tre’Quon Fegans, entered the transfer portal.

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A post shared by Jaylen Key (@_.jaykey)

Key brings needed experience to Alabama, having spent the past five seasons in Birmingham with the Blazers. The Tallahassee, Fla., native played in 43 games over the last four years after he redshirted in 2018, and Key had a breakout season in 2022. He ranked third on the team with 60 tackles, registering a career-high 12 against LSU, and also recorded three interceptions, 4.5 tackles for loss and two forced fumbles for a UAB team that was ranked 21st in the nation in passing defense (194.9 ypg). For comparison, that was just four spots below UA.

The 6-foot-2, 210-pound safety, who was an honorable mention All-Conference USA honoree, earned a defensive grade of 72.9 from Pro Football Focus, which ranked sixth among C-USA safeties, in his first full year as a starter. Key also graded well as both a tackler (81.1) and in coverage (72.6) during the 2022 season before choosing to enter the transfer portal.

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