Alabama fans are begging Jalen Milroe to turn pro after disastrous Reliaquest Bowl start

With quarterback Jalen Milroe suiting up for the Alabama Crimson Tide in Tuesday's Reliaquest Bowl and facing a Michigan Wolverines defense without Mason Graham, Will Johnson, Kenneth Grant and more after opt-outs, it seemed like the signal-caller's potential final act for Bama might be a big one.

That, however, could not be farther from what Milroe showed to open up the Tide's bowl game after fans spent weeks campaigning that Alabama should've been in the College Football Playoff.

Playing at a wet and sloppy Raymond James Stadium field in Tampa, Milroe got things started by eating a sack on fourth down to end the Crimson Tide's first drive, which Michigan took the short field and got a field goal from. But that somehow was just the start of the disaster for Kalen DeBoer's team and quarterback.

Down 3-0, Milroe mishandled the first snap of Alabama's next drive to give Michigan the ball at the 19-yard line, setting up another field goal. On the next drive, he ran for no gain and then had his pass intercepted, this time setting up an even shorter field and a Michigan touchdown. Back out again, Milroe lost the ball again on a fumble on the slick field, giving the Wolverines another kick and a 16-0 lead.

You wouldn't expect this bad of a start from just about anyone, but certainly not a player like Milroe regarded as one of the best quarterbacks in college football.

Jalen Milroe has Alabama fans begging him to leave after Reliaquest Bowl

Again, Milroe has not yet made his decision on the NFL Draft and whether he'll turn pro or return to Tuscaloosa for another season. But if Alabama fans hae their way after seeing this start in the bowl game, they'll have him on an NFL team as soon as possible.

Beyond that, there were also a plentiful number of Alabama bettors who voiced their displeasure, albeit humorously, with Milroe's awful performance.

For a quarterback who, after the win over Georgia, looked like he might potentially be in the conversation for QB1 in the 2025 NFL Draft. That stock has since fallen and, based on this game, might keep doing so precipitously. Of course, that brings into question whether or not he'll turn pro or not.

Reports in mid-December indicated that Milroe was leaning toward declaring for the draft but would make his final decision after the Reliaquest Bowl. So we'll have to wait for definitive clarity but, based on what we saw early on in this game with one of the worst performances of the Crimson Tide quarterback's career, it feels safe to say that Alabama fans would welcome a change moving forward at the position.