In a recent interview with ESPN’s Chris Low, Alabama offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb provided an update on the current quarterback battle and revealed that no quarterback has separated themselves from the rest of the room.
“I think we’ve got three really, really good quarterbacks, and I mean that,” Grubb said. “I don’t think anybody has separated. They’re all playing good, but they’re not playing great yet. You’re looking for the guy that’s going to be consistent, that can show up the same and make the same plays all the time.”
Grubb did not assume that the quarterback competition would be resolved quickly either.
“But I wasn’t expecting that either. I wasn’t going into this thinking, ‘Oh, I bet by practice 11 this will be done,'” Grubb said. “I didn’t think that at all, and I didn’t think that because I thought all three of them were good players.”
The three quarterbacks that are vying for the starting role are redshirt junior Ty Simpson, redshirt sophomore Austin Mack, and true freshman Keelon Russell. Grubb noted that members of the staff have tracked the number of reps that the quarterbacks have received. Mack and Simpson have received the majority of the work in team drills with Simpson receiving 158 reps and Mack receiving 162 reps. Russell’s reps were not listed in the interview.
Thus, one would infer that Mack and Simpson headline the quarterback competition leading up to A-Day. That does not mean that Russell is completely out of the race, however. There is time for Russell to make up some ground with a solid showing in Alabama’s third scrimmage as well as during fall camp. The chances of the quarterback battle being resolved at the end of the spring are very slim.
Each of the three quarterbacks have similar skillsets and the potential to win the starting job. One of the three quarterbacks will need to eventually separate themselves from the rest of the pack, but that does not seem to be happening anytime soon at this point in time.
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Brody Smoot is a team reporter for Touchdown Alabama Magazine. You can “follow” him on X, via @brodysmoot.
