Ryan Grubb tells when Alabama will announce starting quarterback for 2026

Alabama football is close to name a starting quarterback ahead of the 2026 season.

The Crimson Tide’s offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb said Alabama will have to make a decision soon on Monday.

“We’re close. I mean, we’re getting close to game week,” Grubb said. “So I would say, you know, by next week, we’ll have to make that call.”

Austin Mack and Keelon Russell are competing for the role.

Grubb detailed how each of them played in the Tide’s scrimmage on Thursday.

“Thursday scrimmage, oh my God, like a lifetime ago,” Grubb said. “Two tip picks were the low point. I thought that they built momentum after the first couple series. First two series were just kind of honestly just clumsy initially. Operationally weren’t very good and that affected how we were executing some plays and it was quarterback driven. So once we got them over that, we moved the ball effectively, I think four straight drives. So that was encouraging to see them pop themselves out of a hole, especially to happen quick. But, you know, the last two practices have been two our best days. Not maybe, they definitely have been. So I thought we really have built on some packages there the last couple days and had a really nice— just got done with a great move-the-ball session. Had a touchdown and a field goal with the ones on two drives, which was awesome.”

Alabama opens the season on Sept. 5 against East Carolina at home.