The Alabama Crimson Tide have yet to name a starting quarterback prior to kickoff of the 2026 campaign in September.
The Tide find themselves with a highly competitive quarterback battle on their hands, as junior Austin Mack has been battling sophomore Keelon Russell for the starting role throughout fall camp. Each quarterback flashed potential on a handful of occasions last year, and the duo will more than likely continue fighting for the role throughout the remainder of the offseason.
Former Alabama quarterback AJ McCarron recently shared his thoughts on the Tide’s quarterback battle, as McCarron believes Mack should have additional freedom over Russell considering his experience.
“Austin Mack is going to have a lot more freedom and leeway to kind of see the bigger picture and do what he wants.” McCarron said. “Keelon I understand is going into his second year, but not being thrown into the fire a ton, when you’re playing under those lights against SEC competition, it’s different. The speed is different, your processing has to be different. Everything is just sped up tremendously. I don’t know how much freedom Grubb is giving these guys, I’d like to spend time with Grubb and talk to him and kind of see what his mindset is with these guys. But I would think just from my experience, it’s got to be two different thought processes for these quarterbacks. Austin Mack’s got to be able to have more freedom, I mean he’s been in that system for a long time, dating back to Washington.”
McCarron is widely regarded as one of the greatest quarterbacks in Crimson Tide history. Both Mack and Russell would prove to be excellent starting options, but Mack may have the upper hand on the sophomore due to his experience playing under DeBoer over the past three seasons.
Mack and Russell will continue receiving first team reps throughout the remainder of fall camp, and an official announcement in regard to the starting quarterback should be made in the near future.
