Tomorrow, Ty Simpson will make his first career start at Alabama, nearly four years after he signed a National Letter of Intent as a 5-star recruit out of Tennessee.
It has been a long time coming. He was patient, biding his time. That patience pays off in 24 hours when he leads the Crimson Tide onto the field in Tallahassee to face Florida State. Simpson holds the keys, his loyalty rewarded. He's the guy tasked with bringing the standard back to Tuscaloosa.
Simpson's loyalty gets talked about a lot. And for good reason. In the Transfer Portal era, not many players, particularly QBs who were as highly recruited as Simpson was, stick around as backups for three seasons.
Following the 2023 season, Simpson's future was momentarily in doubt. He lost the QB battle prior to that season to Jalen Milroe. Milroe, a redshirt sophomore, led the Crimson Tide to an SEC Championship and to the College Football Playoff, where they fell in overtime to the eventual National Champion Michigan Wolverines.
Simpson and his father, Jason, the head coach at FCS UT Martin, knew that with Milroe returning that it meant another season of being a backup. The portal loomed as an option. Directly after the season, the elder Simpson sat down with Nick Saban to discuss his son's future.
In an interview with AL.com's Mark Heim, Jason Simpson talked about his conversation with Saban.
Simpson asked Saban directly if he thought his son was good enough to play at Alabama, or if he needed to find somewhere else to go.
“Coach Saban said, ‘No, Jason. I think he needs to stay right here," Simpson recalled. "It gives him the best opportunity to be a higher draft pick. We’ll surround him with good players. I think he needs to stay here. I feel like we can accomplish the same things when he gets an opportunity to play.’
After Saban's retirement, Kalen DeBoer immiediately made Ty Simpson comfortable
That advice from Saban was all well and good, but just nine days after Alabama's loss to Michigan in the Rose Bowl, the legendary coach abruptly retired. It didn't take long for the new coach - Kalen DeBoer - to make Simpson and his family comfortable.
When he decided not to enter the portal right after the season, Simpson knew he was going to spend the following season as Milroe's backup. That was inevitable, regardless of the coach leading the Tide.
As much as some Crimson Tide fans wanted DeBoer to make the QB change last season and bench Milroe, the locker room would have folded. Milroe was the leader of the team last season, the guy who held everyone together in the uncertainty following Saban's retirement.
But now it's Simpson's turn. It's his locker room now. He's a captain, sitting in the driver's seat. He's tasked with not just keeping the season on track, but putting the pedal to the floor and surging the Alabama offense ahead.