Alabama Football: With Tyler Buchner in, who is out of Tide QB room?

What has quickly become a post-spring drama for Alabama Football is expected to continue. With former Notre Dame quarterback, Tyler Buchner announcing a transfer to the Crimson Tide, Alabama has five scholarship QBs on its roster.

By Sunday, will the Crimson Tide still have five? Or will the number be four or perhaps even three? On a day when the NFL Draft is supposed to provide the most excitement, that the Crimson Tide appears to have a quarterback dilemma is of more interest to Alabama football fans.

Crimson Tide fans have been reluctant to warm to the idea of adding Buchner. What is now clear is that Nick Saban and Tommy Rees saw something in Buchner that most fans have missed. There is no way Buchner comes in with any guarantees about his role. He will have to earn it.

As a 2021 recruit, Tyler Buchner was rated a 4-Star, No. 11 QB, and No. 71 player overall. As a backup, Buchner played in 10 games in 2021. He was a starter for the Irish in 2022, but due to injury, played in only three games. His stats from the 13 games are unimpressive. The brightest spot in his Notre Dame career came in his last game. Buchner was the MVP of last year’s Gator Bowl. He passed for 273 yards and rushed for 63 yards more in the Irish win over South Carolina.

Alabama Football and too many QBs?

Is there a chance Jalen Milroe and Ty Simpson stay in Tuscaloosa to compete with each other and Buchner? If they choose to make a transfer move, it must come quickly. The Transfer Portal window closes after Sunday. At this point, SEC rules do not allow immediate eligibility transfer to another SEC team.

On the basis of stats, Buchner does not present a better starting QB option than Jalen Milroe. The sample for Buchner is bigger with him throwing 118 passes in his Notre Dame career to just 60 for Milroe. The completion rates are almost identical; 56.8% for Buchner and 56.7% for Milroe. Milroe has rushed for a 7-yard average; Buchner’s average is 5.6 yards. A troubling difference is Buchner has thrown eight interceptions and six TD passes. Milroe has five touchdown passes and three interceptions.

What happens next leads to broad conjecture. At this point, Alabama football fans can absorb the clear indication that what Tommy Rees sees in Tyler Buchner surpasses his college stats. And one more thing – Nick Saban agrees with his new Offensive Coordinator.