Ryan Grubb tells what makes Keelon Russell special after one year with Tide

Photo by Kent Gidley - Alabama Athletics

Alabama football’s quarterback battle officially got rolling the moment Ty Simpson declared for the NFL Draft.

The competition is in its infant stages, but it continues to gain interest with Kalen DeBoer and the Crimson Tide’s offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb speaking with media members in recent days. Grubb was recently asked about his thoughts on Keelon Russell.

“Key is a special kid,” Grubb said, according to WAKA Action 8 News TV sports reporter, Julianna Reichenbach. “Keelon’s special. He’s got incredible vision, mindset and just his intelligence on the field is special.”

The Alabama offensive coordinator feels the Tide has two of the best signal callers in the country in Russell and Austin Mack.

“I think a lot of people are waiting to see what we do in the portal, and with Austin Mack and Keelon Russell,” Grubb said. “We got exactly who we need. They’re two of the best quarterbacks in the country.”

Russell signed with Alabama as a five-star recruit out of Duncanville High School in Texas. He served as a backup to Ty Simpson during the 2025 season as primarily Alabama’s third string quarterback, but he was never officially listed there on Alabama’s depth chart. He and Mack were both listed as second-string quarterbacks behind Simpson with ‘or’ separating them on Alabama’s official depth chart.

The former five-star played in two games during his true freshman season. He managed to throw for 143 yards and two touchdowns in the limited action late in games against ULM and Eastern Illinois.

Simpson recently expressed his excitement about the future of the Tide’s quarterback room with Mack and Russell set to lead it.

“Being in the room with Austin for two years, I really just saw him grow, coming in and learning from Jalen (Milroe) and me,” Simpson told Touchdown Alabama. “I’m really excited about his growth. And then Keelon just coming in being eager, always wanting to work, always asking questions. Really excited about those two and their future.”

Alabama’s quarterback competition is sure to be one of the hottest topics in college football throughout the off-season.