The quarterback position in Alabama for the 2025 season will be up for contention with the squad losing starting quarterback Jalen Milroe to the NFL Draft. The three players holding the highest odds in the competition at the starting gig would be Ty Simpson, Austin Mack, and Keelon Russell. Simpson is the most experienced among the lot. Simpson wasn’t the starter in his first year in the DeBoer system, but he was working with the playbook, play calls, and more in practice and some game action. So a second season in the system could still lead to a strong year.

As for Mack, he could start at some point in his career, but it might still be too early. He probably has the longest odds to win the starting job with just under eight months until the 2025 season. But if any name is coming up strongly that is Russell who is a powerhouse of raw talent. He mounted a stupendous high school career with Duncanville High School, tallying over 4,100 yards, 55 touchdowns, and only four interceptions in his senior year. So is he the one?

It’s not impossible, but true freshmen don’t exactly start every day at quarterback for a program such as Alabama. Even one as talented as Russell. He has the tremendous ability to disperse the ball, make quick decisions, and lead the offense under pressure and his future is incredibly bright, but it’s still no small task for a true freshman to come in and lead an offense right away. In fact, National analysts former Georgia QB Aaron Murray and LSU Center T-Bob Hebert don’t have him on the helm at this point.

”You are not gonna put your eggs in on a freshman, maybe, they are all in on Keelon. You don’t know how he is going to react, you can’t go into spring saying we are going to go all in on a freshman,” said Aaron, during a recent episode of the Snaps podcast. “Who would you bet your money on for at least the first season?” Aaron asked. ”Yeah, I mean Ty Simpson starts but maybe it feels almost like a placeholder for Keelon Russell if he ends up being that good,’‘ T-Bob answered.

Notably, DeBoer only has good things to say about Russell. “It’s like, wow, this guy is what we think,” DeBoer had said last year when he spoke for the first time after Russell flipped from SMU. “And these little nuances we think are special definitely are.” DeBoer had also pointed out that as the summer went along, everyone else started to see what Alabama saw as well. Then Russell had a fall that “was on another level.” “Then there’s the leadership piece,” DeBoer said. “And the personality. There’s a swagger about him. There’s a confidence about him.”

DeBoer said Russell also played a “major part” in bringing in and keeping this recruiting class together for Alabama. “Which is what you want out of any leader,” DeBoer said. “Especially these key guys. But especially your quarterback.” Leadership is key, but DeBoer said he’s also excited about what Russell brings to the field. “He’s got the arm talent, is accurate, can throw different arm slots,” DeBoer said. “Then also the ability as an athlete to make plays with his feet too.” Amid this speculation about the QB, Aaron and T-Bob reaffirmed what Alabama lacks in their portal activities.

Sure, Kalen DeBoer gained back a lot of stars who left after Nick Saban’s departure, but it’s still not enough. ‘‘They didn’t go into the portal, and they both lost project future first-round, second-round quarterbacks, but they are a kind of saying that hey we trust the guys that we have on the roster,” Aaron shed light on a major concern brewing under the root. This is alarming for Alabama because it is the success of recruiting that defined the Nick Saban era. The legend himself spoke of its exponential importance.

“Everything we do is about recruiting. Everything we do,” Saban had said in his very first meeting with his Alabama staff. But, concerns surrounding this foundation Saban built is now standing rather precariously under the tenancy of DeBoer, considering Bama’s activity in the transfer portal hasn’t done anything to quell these concerns. After a relatively poor season (9-4) by their high standards, this offseason was pivotal. Somehow, they’ve gone further backward. So there has been question if Bama is deploying all its resources. Days back an Alabama alum expressed doubt about it.

Mick Gillispie of the “Bama Tailgate” YouTube channel relayed an interesting bit of information. He shared a list of the top 5 most valuable college athletic programs. Ohio State is atop the list with a gaudy $1.32B valuation. They’re followed by the two Lone Star rivals, Texas and Texas A&M, with $1.28B and $1.26B, respectively. Michigan comes in at #4 with 1.02B. Lastly, Alabama closes out the list with a $978 million valuation cumulative of their different sports. Most of this number, though, is certainly a result of their football program. Mick Gillispie voiced his disdain over how this money isn’t translating to roster quality and performance for Kalen DeBoer to work with.

“I’ve always felt like some of that money is not showing up where it should be,” remarked Gillispie. “The bottom line is this…these schools can take advantage of this system. That includes Alabama…I think that’s what we’re seeing right now obviously with Ohio State.” The Buckeyes deploy the most expensive roster in the history of CFB, but are clearly reaping the rewards of this investment.

“You cannot let Ohio State, Texas, Michigan and Texas A&M, and the schools below you, have better rosters than you. Because there’s the resources there to do something about it,” said Gillespie. So what went wrong?

Players couldn’t get rid of the mystic of a Nick Saban-era

It’s largely on the fans who didn’t adjust their hope after Nick Saban left. They wanted it all according to their lofty benchmark at Alabama for DeBoer’s debut year. Quite inevitably, they get doomed by their own expectation. It wouldn’t be easy for any head coach to take the Saban-like pace at one shot, especially when all he got is a shaky system after the GOAT left it half-chewed.

A chunk of players couldn’t trust their new mentor and they chose to follow suit with Saban and the rest who stayed had a severe jelling problem with DeBoer. A mass exodus of 5-star recruits out of Alabama ensued. Within hours of Saban’s announcement, Ryan Williams, a five-star recruit and the No. 9-ranked prospect (No. 3 wideout) on ESPN’s 300 2024, recommitted. Just two days after it, another 5-star wide receiver Jaime Ffrench followed suit. This, in tandem with them losing key players like Jihaad Campbell, Jalen Milroe, and Tyler Booker to the NFL, shook up the entire picture.

The former Washington head coach stepped into the Bama locker room with a nervous yet subtly confident face and tried his best to motivate players for their new ride, but most of them weren’t in a place to pay even heed. They were too busy to recapitulate whatever Saban brought than to embrace what DeBoer had to offer. In those circumstances, it was remarkable that the DeBoer era started with a winning streak; all got halted against Vanderbilt, and then it ended on a bad note against the Sooners. Even the bowl game couldn’t help DeBoer’s first year. However, the legend himself believes tides will turn for DeBoer, but he has to do it his ways.

“I do think this is a tough transition for Kalen,” Nick Saban said on the October 18, 2024 edition of The Pat McAfee Show. “Any time you take over a successful program — I don’t want to be judgmental about what they do, because I feel like he has to do what he does his way. He can’t be me. He can’t try to be somebody that he isn’t. I think there’s more than one way to skin a cat, and I actually the guy has been successful and I think his way will work.”

“I think it’s an adjustment for a lot of fans and the people. But I think he’ll win them over because he’s a good guy and he’s a good coach. He’s got a good system, a good organization. I’m just trying to be supportive and helpful any way that I can so he can make a smooth transition.” With first-year nerves behind him, the fans would hope for a better outing from DeBoer’s team in the 2025 season.