I offer both good news and bad news when it comes to the state of the Alabama football program. The good news is the Crimson Tide may already know who their starting quarterback for the season could be. According to new offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb, he believes it would be Ty Simpson. As far as the bad news is concerned, news of this runs counter to what has made Kalen DeBoer special.
I have said this before, and I will say it again. This is the biggest reason why I still have great skepticism about DeBoer being able to work out long-term in Tuscaloosa. It has nothing to do with his acumen as a head coach, nor that he is from a different part of the country. Winning is the quickest way to find common ground among sports fans. My concern is he cannot win with Washington's kind of guys...
In time, the promising five-star quarterback that is Keelon Russell could make this all a moot point. However, Grubb saying that Simpson is the clear front-runner at this time just goes to show that DeBoer put too much trust and faith in his fellow Washington recruit Austin Mack. Simpson has always been more of an idea than a quarterback, but he may be closer to Alabama's type of guy.
How DeBoer handles the quarterback race could decide how long of a runway he has at Alabama.
Ryan Grubb: "If we're playing a football game tomorrow, Ty Simpson would start."
— Charlie Potter (@Charlie_Potter) April 14, 2025
It may not be up to him, but I feel DeBoer has to make the College Football Playoff by 2027 or else.
What Kalen DeBoer cannot afford to happen in year two leading Alabama
There is a lot to unpack here, but I will try my best. The first has to do with Grubb. What you have to remember is that he did not initially follow DeBoer to Tuscaloosa. Prior to last season starting, he was hired by Mike Macdonald to be his first offensive coordinator on his Seattle Seahawks staff. Geno Smith played well at times, but Grubb was relieved from his duties there after only one NFL season.
What I am getting at is Grubb has not been around Simpson as long as DeBoer has. He may have played a big part in getting Russell to commit to Alabama, but he also knew Mack from their time together at Washington. For Grubb to have essentially pivoted in the direction of the longest-tenured quarterback on the Alabama roster, that certainly speaks volumes. Will DeBoer echo his sentiment?
The other big thing is Mack was supposed to have a size advantage over the other two quarterbacks prospects. That did not seem to matter at A-Day when Simpson took over in a big way. Again, there were reasons why Simpson was so sought-after coming out of high school. Frankly, I am kind of stunned to see him supposedly finally put it all together. He lost out to Milroe after Bryce Young left...
To tie a bow on this, DeBoer needs to make a confident decision at quarterback out of fall camp, and never look back, only if he absolutely has to... If he is wishy-washy around the subject, he will lose the locker room, lose more games and then lose the fan base. He is being tasked with the impossible of replacing the legend that is Nick Saban, but there is no reason for DeBoer to make this any harder.
Simply, Washington's kind of guys are not Alabama's kind of guys, and DeBoer must figure it out fast.