Alabama Football: QB competition not over till it’s over

The quarterback controversy that has swirled around the Alabama Football program since Bryce Young took his last snap in last season’s Sugar Bowl could be coming to a close soon. But when is the QB competition truly decided? It may take longer than some anticipate.

Redshirt sophomore Jalen Milroe backed up Young last season. Milroe got valuable playing time in the process, including his first career start. An incredible athlete, it seems as though Milroe is close to locking down the starting quarterback job for Alabama’s first game against Middle Tennessee State.

However, there is still hope for the other signal-callers. Sophomore Ty Simpson is quietly working, but has yet to live up to the 5-star billing he earned coming out of high school. Notre Dame transfer Tyler Buchner seems like a long shot to win the job, but he has the most starting experience in the room, as well as the greatest familiarity with offensive coordinator Tommy Rees.

As if the Alabama QB battle hasn’t been complicated enough, true freshman Dylan Lonergan played well in the spring and has been surging as of late.

Alabama Football will have its second fall scrimmage on Saturday, from which we could learn a lot. The fan base is anxiously awaiting the answers to several questions, the most pressing of which is the quarterback situation. Perhaps we will finally get some convincing evidence as to where each of these players stand on the depth chart.

At this point, it would probably take a dramatic shift for anyone other than Jalen Milroe to start in week one. Even then, however, the quarterback competition will be far from over.

Assuming Bama beats MTSU handily, it will be interesting to see how long Coach Nick Saban keeps his starters in with Texas rolling into town the following week. Who will be QB2, and how much time will they get?

All of this could depend largely on Milroe’s performance, but the first game of the season could be the best opportunity yet for another candidate to emerge and prove their competence in running the offense.

Depending on how that first game goes, Alabama could continue to play more than one quarterback into week two and beyond. The bottom line is the Bama QB battle won’t be over until somebody definitively seizes the job.

As much as we all want immediate answers regarding the Alabama Football quarterback situation, we won’t know anything for sure until the lights come on and the reps count.