After three weeks of questions and speculation, Nick Saban finally named his starting quarterback.
Monday during his weekly press conference, Saban announced that Jalen Milroe would be the starter against Ole Miss on Saturday.
Milroe started the first two games for the Crimson Tide, but last week against South Florida, he didn’t see a single snap. Instead of hanging his head, Milroe stayed positive, supporting his teammates and celebrating with them after big plays.
“Jalen really showed the leadership that I was looking for during the game in terms of supporting his teammates and doing the things that he needed to do,” Saban said. “He’s had the opportunity to play. So has the other guys. Jalen played the best of all those guys. So I think he’s earned the opportunity to be the quarterback.”
Against South Florida, Tyler Buchner made his first start in place of Milroe. Buchner led Alabama in the first five drives, all leading to punts. He completed 5 of 14 passes for only 34 yards. Buchner’s lack of generating any offense led to him getting replaced by Ty Simpson in the second quarter. Simpson went 5-for-9 passing for 73 yards to lead the Crimson Tide back from trailing by three to a 17-3 victory.
After seeing all three quarterbacks play, Saban and his staff decided Milroe gave the team the best chance to win. Milroe threw for 255 yards and two touchdowns against Texas but also threw two interceptions. Ball security, or lack thereof, has kept Milroe from separating himself from the other two quarterbacks.
Milroe may be the starter going into the Ole Miss game, but more poor decisions with the football, and Simpson could be thrown right back into the mix for the Tide.
Alabama opens up SEC play on Saturday by hosting Ole Miss at 2:30 p.m. CT at Bryant-Denny Stadium.
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