Last week, Alabama football reporters rushed to the podium inside the Naylor Stone Room of the Mal Moore Athletic Facility to hear someone that had not heard from since the Rose Bowl matchup against Michigan.
Jalen Milroe, who rocked a new hairstyle of cornrows, smiled when cameras and tape recorders came to him.
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The junior quarterback surprised many last season. He made exponential growth in each game, finishing the 2023 campaign with 2,834 passing yards and 35 total touchdowns to six interceptions. Milroe, a native Texan, led Crimson Tide to a Southeastern Conference Championship victory over Georgia. He returned the program to the College Football Playoff and came close to playing in the CFP National Championship matchup. Milroe was voted a permanent team captain by his peers at the Tide’s annual awards banquet, but he could have exited stage left in January. Nick Saban shocked the world on Jan. 10, when he announced his retirement from coaching at the University of Alabama. A 30-day transfer window opened for any Tide players that wanted to leave the school. Several names took the opportunity to go elsewhere, but Milroe stayed planted in Tuscaloosa.
He will be forever appreciated by Alabama fans for staying, but Milroe said there was ‘100 percent sharks in the water of programs trying to lure him away from the Tide.’
Alabama QB Jalen Milroe said there were “100 percent sharks in the water” of schools trying to take him from Alabama.
He remained loyal to the Crimson Tide to get his degree, and he’s excited about this coaching staff.@TDAlabamaMag pic.twitter.com/hkb5Ji00uX
— Stephen M. Smith (@CoachingMSmith) March 9, 2024
“Before I came to the University of Alabama, I gave my parents a commitment,” Milroe said.
“I told them I am going to get my degree from the University of Alabama no matter what, and that is something that stayed with me. No matter how hard it was, I gave that commitment to my parents. The biggest thing was not to lean on emotions, but trust the process. That is what I tried to do. Now that we are here, I am excited because it was all about trusting the process.”
Milroe said the players that stayed with him are all locked in.
Alabama QB Jalen Milroe is proud of the guys that remained with the Crimson Tide in Nick Saban’s retirement:
“They are locked in. The guys that are here, it is all about living up to the standard.”@TDAlabamaMag pic.twitter.com/VPVPbNV6h3
— Stephen M. Smith (@CoachingMSmith) March 9, 2024
“The guys that are here, it is all about living up to the standard,” he said. “It is about improving, getting better, and having short-term and long-terms goals. The guys here are making abnormal things normal, and that’s very important. The biggest thing for us is to be a sponge for our coaching staff because they are going to put us in a situation to be successful.”
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Milroe and the players are out for spring break this week, but they will return to practice next week.
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Stephen M. Smith is the senior writer for Touchdown Alabama Magazine. You can “like” him on Facebook or “follow” him on Twitter, via @CoachingMSmith.
