Ty Simpson, Alabama’s first-year starting quarterback, has shaken off his ugly Week 1 debut in a loss to Florida State, and suddenly, Alabama’s SEC Championship hopes feel alive. Simpson was perfect in a 73-0 Week 2 drubbing of Louisiana Monroe, completing all 17 of his passes for 226 yards and three touchdowns, yet his encore in Week 3 against Wisconsin may have been more impressive.
In the Crimson Tide’s 38-14 win at Bryant-Denny Stadium on Saturday, to get to 2-1 on the season heading into a bye week, Simpson finished 24-for-29 passing for 382 yards and four touchdowns. That stat line made him just the second quarterback in program history with consecutive games with an 80 percent completion rate and 3+ touchdowns, joining Mac Jones.
Ty Simpson is doing his best Mac Jones impression for the Crimson Tide
Jones isn’t the best quarterback in Alabama history, but he’s a national champion and the perfect company for Simpson to keep. Jones took over as the starting role late in his career, after sitting and learning in Tuscaloosa behind other great QBs. Then, when it was finally his turn, Nick Saban handed him the keys to a souped-up Ferrari and just asked him not to crash it.
Jones spent the 2020 season throwing to Devonta Smith, the eventual Heisman Trophy winner, John Metchie, Jaylen Waddle, and handing it off to Najee Harris. The Crimson Tide went 13-0, steamrolled Ohio State for the national title, and Jones became one of six Alabama players to be selected in the first round of the NFL Draft.
This Alabama roster isn’t quite as talented as that group was; not many teams in history have been. Still, the philosophy is the same. With Ryan Williams, Germie Bernard, and Isaiah Horton at wide receiver, and Kadyn Proctor at left tackle, Kalen DeBoer and offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb have assembled a unit that requires a quarterback who is decisive, accurate, and gets the ball out to his playmakers on time. That was Jones, and after the past two weeks, that might be Simpson, too.
The biggest difference between the two offenses is on the ground. In 2020, Harris ran for 1,466 yards and 26 touchdowns while Brian Robinson Jr. added nearly 500 and six more scores. So far this season, Alabama has boasted one of the least efficient run games in the country.
In Week 3, Alabama ran the ball for just 72 yards on 22 carries, and Simpson was the team’s leading rusher with 25 yards. Now, Simpson is a more mobile quarterback than many expected when he took over in his redshirt junior season. Still, if he continues to lead the Tide on the ground, they’ll be in trouble against better defenses.
DeBoer, Grubb, and Simpson, most of all, will have to hope that the run game improves when Jam Miller, last season’s second-leading rusher, returns from a dislocated collarbone he suffered in the Tide’s second scrimmage of fall camp. Alabama may not need Harris, but it does need a competent run game for Simpson to continue replicating Jones’s success.