Thanksgiving came early in Tuscaloosa this year because Alabama HC Kalen DeBoer’s got a lot on his plate. Year 2 succeeding the greatest coach of all time at a blueblood after an underwhelming introductory season is daunting enough. But he’s got a quarterback conundrum to resolve as well. Coach DeBoer’s gone from a seasoned vet in Michael Penix Jr. to an untamed beast in Jalen Milroe over the last 2 years across as many programs. Now, he’s got another extremity on the spectrum to deal with- inexperience. A grand total of zero collegiate starts inside Bama’s QB room means making this pivotal choice isn’t an enviable task. However, some external help could ease DeBoer’s big dilemma.

On a surface level, the choice should be pretty straightforward. Conventional wisdom suggests former 5-star prospect Ty Simpson gets the nod. He’s been at the program the longest and paid his dues. Staying ten toes down despite being shunned to the backup role thus far. Simpson has shown flashes of it both in his limited playing time as well as in practice. In fact, the latest out of Alabama’s spring camp suggests Ty Simpson was particularly impressive during their team scrimmage. He’s consistently been progressing with time, per reports. But this is far from a one-horse race. Two contemporaries, much discussed and revered, are competing with Simpson. Albeit one Alabama fan/insider reckons people are glossing over one very key facet baked into this QB battle.

Former 4-star Austin Mack is an intriguing contender. He came to Bama alongside Kalen DeBoer from Washington via the transfer portal, which implies he’s got the coach’s co-sign as a potential contributor to his team. Also, Mack has been around the new OC Ryan Grubb while at the Huskies. Although he didn’t play, being part of the QB room with Grubb and Penix is bound to be an advantage. He has a pre-existing idea of the offensive system and schematics. But these wrinkles in the race against Ty Simpson are already accounted for. Over the Locked on Bama podcast, Jimmy Stein echoed a fresher one. In theory, Austin Mack is a year 3 QB on the CFB level. Whereas Simpson’s entering year 4 – not much of a gulf. But look deeper, and this isn’t as linear as it seems. 

“I’m an Austin Mack fan. Yes, he’s entering year 3, but really he’s entering year 2. Because he reclassified,” stated Jimmy Stein. He mentioned how there’s a reason this isn’t the norm and that Bama’s WR prodigy Ryan Williams is an exception to the rule. Young players, historically, aren’t as dependable and ready to pick up the mantle as the more seasoned ones. “I think Austin Mack is still a very young quarterback. And here we are talking about Ty Simpson arriving in year 4, and didn’t reclassify. It’s a normal year 4 for him… So I think people need to be patient with Austin Mack.” Well, patience is a precious commodity when you’re a quarterback who’s failed to ascend through the depth chart repeatedly. Ty Simpson showed restraint and will seemingly reap the rewards. However, it’s a prevailing notion that Austin Mack may hit the portal if, indeed, he loses the race. Stein actually fanned the flames of this notion when he spoke about the 3rd contender, Keelon Russell.

If Ryan Williams is an exception to the norm, so is Keelon Russell. The Gatorade National POTY comes into Bama as one of the hottest prospects in recent years across the sport. Even Stein, who’s preaching the sheer years Simpson has over Mack, thinks Russell’s good enough to get the QB1 shirt off the jump. In fact, his stance on Russell strongly suggests that Mack’s unceremonious stint in Tuscaloosa may be coming to a close after all.

Austin Mack was seemingly leapfrogged by true freshman Keelon Russell

Jimmy Stein’s podcast co-host Luke Robinson alluded to reports that Austin Mack “did not look great” during Alabama’s team scrimmage. Delving into these reports, Stein said, “[They] just sort of put an exclamation mark on what we’ve heard so far. Wouldn’t everyone have guessed that Ty Simpson would be the starter? And if he’s not, what he’s got to watch out for is Keelon Russell? That’s sort of what the scrimmage apparently tended to indicate, right?… This should be what we expect.” If Russell is trending towards being QB2 and has leapfrogged Mack, the writing is basically on the wall for the latter.

Mack is still a caliber of talent that would start games for programs at the FBS level. If that’s not how things transpire at Bama, it’s far from a death nail. Sure, he can continue plugging away and hope to win the job. But the imminent spring portal affords him a shot at starting over. Yes, he’s young, as Stein reinforced. But you’d have to think the arrival of Keelon Russell means there’s no way back in for Mack if things don’t materialize in his favor this off-season.

Ty Simpson’s triumph isn’t exactly a foregone conclusion yet, and neither is Austin Mack’s peril. All 3 of them have received equal reps and opportunity through camp to prove their skill and mettle. But the reports and general discourse stemming from camp don’t bode well for Mack. Alas, Kalen DeBoer will hope he can come to the correct conclusion at the end of this process. He needs it to be so because the discontent around him will only grow louder if he fails to make the CFP a second time running.