Ty Simpson opens up on doubters ahead of Iron Bowl

Alabama Crimson Tide quarterback Ty Simpson (15) takes the field before a game against the Eastern Illinois Panthers at Saban Field at Bryant-Denny Stadium. Mandatory Credit: David Leong-Imagn Images

Ty Simpson keeps hearing the same question, and he’s getting tired of answering it. 

“Everybody likes to say, ‘What happened to the old Ty? What happened to him?’” Simpson said following Alabama’s practice on Tuesday. “Just gotta go 1-for-1. You know what I mean? Everybody’s wondering what’s going on. Nothing’s going on, we’ve just got to go play our ball.” 

Simpson is coming off his second straight multi-turnover game of the season after completing 11 of 16 passes for 147 yards and two interceptions during Alabama’s 56-0 win over FCS opponent Eastern Illinois. That came after the starting quarterback threw a pick-six interception and coughed up a costly fumble during the Crimson Tide’s 23-21 loss to Oklahoma the week before. 

Once projected as the Heisman Trophy favorite, Simpson is no longer listed among the top contenders for the award following his recent performances. While the quarterback is trying his best to block out the noise, the doubt is creating a bit of a chip on his shoulder. 

“I always got something to prove,” Simpson said. “Everybody’s asking me what’s up, so it’s in the back of my mind. But I’m just going to do my job. What a great week to do it against a really great team and a really great defense.” 

Simpson said the recent criticism takes him back to the fallout from Alabama’s season-opening loss to Florida State. Making his first career start, Simpson completed 23 of 43 passes for 254 yards and two touchdowns without an interception against the Seminoles but took three sacks and failed to move the Tide’s offense in a 31-17 defeat. 

“It takes me back to the first game of the year and all the doubt everybody had,” Simpson said. “It takes me back to doing the little things and what got me here. Just trusting God, trusting my process and understanding that I’ve done this before. There’s games that I’ve done it, and nothing’s wrong. I’m just happy to be out here and got better today.” 

Simpson bounced back from his poor performance against Florida State by completing 41 of 46 passes (89.1%) for 608 yards and seven touchdowns without an interception in his next two games of the season against Louisiana-Monroe and Wisconsin. Even with his downturn in production, the redshirt junior has completed 66.9% of his passes for 2,934 yards and 22 touchdowns over 11 games.  This week, Simpson will face an Auburn pass defense that ranks 100th nationally, allowing 239.6 yards per game through the air.

“I wouldn’t even say things are going bad,” Simpson said. “There’s just one play here or there that if we clean up, then we’re not even talking about this. I think people are blowing it out of proportion, and we’re just going to go play our ball.” 

No. 10 Alabama (9-2, 6-1) will wrap up its regular season against Auburn (5-6, 1-6) at 6:30 p.m. CT on Saturday inside Jordan-Hare Stadium. The game will be televised on ABC.