Alabama football coach Kalen DeBoer made it clear Thursday that the Crimson Tide’s quarterback competition will remain open past spring practice and Saturday’s A-Day festivities.
In an appearance on Tide 100.9 FM in Tuscaloosa, DeBoer gave the latest on the battle between QBs Ty Simpson, Austin Mack and 17-year-old freshman Keelon Russell.
“The biggest thing is, all of them are getting better, which is just what you hope and expect. For us, people want to know a decision and things like that. You don’t feel like they’re to a point where there is separation, where there’s a ceiling that they’ve hit.
“I think it would be pretty foolish for us to make a decision right now. We have plenty of time still to work through it and let these guys continue to work through the summer.”
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The battle will continue into fall camp in August.
“They’re all three very talented, love the direction they’re going,” DeBoer said. “Similar in being able to pass and that kind of being the priority as far as what they do, but also different in a few things and how they get the ball moved down the field sometimes and what their favorite throws are and so forth.
“That keeps us from having to — because they are so similar — worry about changing who we are, what our philosophy is. So we’re just going to let these continue to compete. They do it in a healthy way. They’re there for each other, but they’re also competing. Love what they’re doing. A lot of positives.”
Simpson was a five-star recruit who was ranked the No. 2 QB in the nation and the No. 25 overall player in the class of 2022 by On3. He saw action in four games his freshman season in 2022, completing 5-of-9 passes for 73 yards in Alabama‘s ugly 17-3 win at South Florida in Week 3 of 2023 with Jalen Milroe on the bench.
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Simpson has played in six games each of the past two seasons and is 14-of-25 for 167 yards across three sesaons at Alabama.
Mack, a redshirt sophomore, committed to Washington in 2023 when DeBoer was the Huskies‘ coach and was a four-star prospect out of Folsom, Calif. 247Sports ranked Mack as the ninth best quarterback in the nation. He played in Alabama’s 52-7 win over Mercer last November, a game where the Crimson Tide emptied its QB depth chart. Mack completed 2-of-3 passes, including a 31-yard touchdown pass to Rico Scott in the fourth quarter.
Russell is a consensus 5-star recruit out of Duncanville (Texas) and was ranked the No. 2 overall player in the 2025 recruiting class behind only Michigan’s Bryce Underwood by both On3 and 247Sports.
“A lot of it is, we want that playmaker,” DeBoer said. “I don’t just want a game manager out there. If we’re going to win at the level we want to win at, we want a guy who’s going to produce and make the big plays. Obviously there’s a piece where you can’t make the big mistakes. Especially in critical moments, whether it’s in the red zone, end of game, end of halves, things like that.
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“We’re just doing a lot of teaching. Nick Sheridan and Ryan Grubb do an amazing job working together, guiding these guys in the right direction.”
Alabama’s A-Day event is scheduled for noon Saturday at Bryant-Denny Stadium.
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This article originally appeared on Roll Tide Wire: Alabama football QB competition update from Kalen DeBoer
