Ty Simpson is an anomaly.
Perhaps even the biggest anomaly in the history of big-time quarterback recruiting.
In this current era of college football, former five-star quarterbacks like Simpson just don’t stay at a school this long if they aren’t the starter. In fact, no five-star QB has done what Simpson has done in the history of the 247Sports recruiting era from 2010 until now.
Alabama expected to name Ty Simpson starting QB: Veteran earns long-awaited chance to run Crimson Tide offense
Brad Crawford
And given the lofty amount of NIL money that could be made, you couldn’t blame anyone for leaving for greener pastures. For a touted backup like Simpson, there would be seven-figure opportunities elsewhere.
And yet Simpson stayed in Tuscaloosa rather than transferring to Vanderbilt (as was once heavily rumored) or any of the other opportunities that would have popped up if he entered the transfer portal. He doubled down on getting better, on working with private QB tutor Thomas Morris to take his arm talent to the next level and making sure he didn’t let this opportunity slip through his hands again.
It all paid off Monday when Alabama coach Kalen DeBoer announced to the team Simpson would be the Crimson Tide’s starter. That wasn’t a surprise to anyone who has paid any attention to Alabama this offseason — everyone involved with the program has said Simpson would be the guy — but it still marked a pot of gold at the end of the journey few are willing to do these days.
And if Simpson does what he’s capable of doing, Alabama’s journey in Year 2 of the DeBoer era will go smoother than the first iteration. Alabama fans haven’t seen much of Simpson during his time in Tuscaloosa so it’s understandable if there is skepticism around him. But paired with new offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb, this Alabama offense should actually be better with Simpson than it was a year ago with Jalen Milroe, who is now with the Seattle Seahawks. With Simpson leading the way, Alabama should be a playoff team in 2025.
“He loves pressure,” Jarod Neal, Simpson’s high school coach, told CBS Sports. “He loves to be the man when things are on the line, he wants the ball. When we had games on the line, I said, ‘Ty, it’s yours, you have to make something happen here,’ and he would.”
Simpson isn’t the dynamic athlete Milroe is, but Neal says he’s more athletic than people give him credit for, “When he runs, he’s very quick and agile.” Simpson has a better arm than Milroe and his skillset should better fit what DeBoer and Grubb want to do. It was clear last season Milroe was an imperfect fit in DeBoer’s offense, and while there will surely be growing pains with a new starter, Simpson should give Alabama’s offense a higher ceiling.
In many ways Alabama’s surrounding talent dictated the need for Milroe over Simpson, especially in 2023 in the final year of Nick Saban’s tenure. Simpson was actually the prohibitive favorite to win the job entering spring practice that season, but couldn’t stay consistent enough to fully pull away. Milroe did a better job of winning over the locker room — an accomplishment Saban always highly valued — and proved to be the right guy for the moment, even if his propensity to make mistakes made the Alabama coach want to pull his hair out at times.
Simpson came in relief of Tyler Buchner to win a sloppy game at South Florida, but with an offensive line that was less than the sum of its parts, Saban and Co. realized they needed to stick with Milroe and the game-breaking dynamic he brought with his legs. It was the right decision as Alabama won the SEC Championship over Georgia and were a play or two away from playing for a national championship.
Knowing Milroe was likely to start again the following season after guiding the Tide to the College Football Playoff, Simpson could have easily left. There were starting opportunities with his name on it and a chance to earn major money elsewhere. The harder path was to stay, but when he really thought about it, it’s where he felt he had to be.
“I’m not gonna sit here and say it wasn’t hard, because there were some days where I felt like God wasn’t on my side and I didn’t really understand his plan,” Simpson told Crescent City Sports in June. “But I prayed about it, and at the end of the day, there wasn’t anywhere else where I wanted to play. I felt that God had put me in Tuscaloosa for a reason. I always felt like I could accomplish everything that I could, still to this day, with winning a national championship and being a first-round pick there at the University of Alabama.”
Simpson opted to bet on himself and his ability to eventually win the job. He watched as other Alabama quarterbacks Julian Sayin, Eli Holstein and Dylan Lonergan left for other opportunities. He saw Alabama bring in Austin Mack, who followed DeBoer from Washington, and five-star freshman Keelon Russell to make it a true competition. He didn’t collapse under the outside pressure, didn’t let it derail him from achieving his long-desired goal.
It helped that his dad, Jason Simpson, is UT Martin’s football coach. The elder Simpson knows the realities of college football better than anyone and offered a good sounding board for Ty when weighing his options. He instilled in him a tremendous football IQ, according to those who have worked with Ty, and an ability to see the big picture of his situation.
“They were able to have very in-depth football conversations that most people coming out of high school don’t ever have,” Neal said about the father-son connection. “(Ty) being able to have those conversations has definitely allowed him mentally to handle a lot of things and process a lot of things very quickly.”
Simpson is now Alabama’s starting quarterback and Crimson Tide fans will be feeling awfully thankful in November that Ty chose patience and resilience over leaving.
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