Through his first three seasons in Tuscaloosa, Ty Simpson had never started a game for the Crimson Tide. So, when he entered the 2024 season as the full-time starting QB, beating out five-star freshman Keelon Russell, there was trepidation about whether or not he could help this talented Alabama roster reach its ceiling.
Now, six games into the season, it’s the redshirt junior is a Heisman Trophy candidate, and it’s clear that Kalen DeBoer’s team only goes as far as its superstar quarterback can take it. On the field, Simpson has been a pinpoint passer, seemingly impervious to pressure, navigating muddy pockets and pushing the ball downfield with the aggressiveness of a seasoned veteran. However, that’s not what has impressed two-time Alabama national champion Damien Harris the most.
“What has he done?” Harris posed to himself when asked about the Tide’s first-year starting quarterback in an exclusive interview with FanSided to promote his partnership with Dr. Pepper. “He has blocked out the noise. He has been consistent. He has shown up every day to Mal M. Moore Athletic Facility, focused on being the best version of Ty Simpson that he can be. That way, he can elevate the guys around him to play better. That way, he can lead the guys and grab the hands of those who maybe don't understand how to do it the right way.”
Ty Simpson keeps Alabama tethered to Nick Saban’s championship mindset
Harris knows what it takes to win it all at Alabama and is intimately familiar with the standard that Nick Saban set before retiring to cede the position to DeBoer. A holdover from one of Saban’s final recruiting classes, Simpson may not have the championship ring on his finger, but he spent two years up close and personal with the man who needs both hands to wear all seven of his.
“Starting with Ty Simpson, starting with the route that he's had to becoming the starting quarterback, the mental toughness, the consistency, the determination that he showed,” Harris said. “well, it's no surprise to me that Alabama has started blocking out this noise as a team, and they're getting better each and every single week.”
“Yes, a lot of that has to do with the stats, the numbers, the way that Ty Simpson is playing, but deep down in my heart of hearts, I have to believe that the way that he is as a leader, the way that he's blocked out external noise, not listen to the rat poison like Nick Saban loves to say.”
Last season, with Jalen Milroe as the starting quarterback, Simpson witnessed the Crimson Tide ride the highs of an SEC-opening win over Georgia that catapulted them to No. 1 in the country, before sinking out of the College Football Playoff with upset losses to Vanderbilt and Oklahoma, along with a rivalry loss to Tennessee.
So far, after a Week 1 loss to Florida State that could have sent the entire program spiraling, Simpson held it all together. That is just one of the reasons why Harris believes that his alma mater is the best team in the SEC.