What Kalen DeBoer wants to see from Jalen Milroe this summer
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – Kalen DeBoer and the Alabama coaches had 15 practices to evaluate the roster in the spring. In that time, DeBoer was complimentary of several positions, including the Crimson Tide quarterback room, which featured four scholarship signal-callers.
Quarterback was actually one of four groups that impressed the new head coach the most over two months of spring ball, and he praised the entire unit for things like their accuracy, reads and competitiveness. The group is led by Jalen Milroe, who DeBoer routinely praised.
Milroe is back after starting 13 games last season and leading Alabama to an SEC title and a College Football Playoff berth. He threw for 2,834 yards and 23 touchdowns while completing 65.8 percent of his passes in 2023. The dual-threat quarterback also ran for 531 yards and 12 touchdowns on 161 carries, leading all SEC signal-callers in rushing scores.
Milroe capped the spring by throwing for 100 yards on 3-of-9 passing in the A-Day Game as the offense defeated the defense 34-28. After taking in 14 practices and the spring game with Milroe as the No. 1 quarterback, DeBoer was asked on Wednesday where he wants to see Milroe grow this summer as he gets set to be the Tide starter for a second straight year.
“He really came a long ways in processing, playing the game, moving the chains,” said DeBoer before teeing off at the Regions Tradition Pro-Am. “So just when he hits fall camp, I think just having 100 percent confidence in every concept we put in, especially in the first week or two that he’s had rep after rep after rep and can not just execute but also run the whole show.
“Just telling every guy what their responsibility is. And so it goes beyond your position, it goes on to leading the rest of the offense.”
During the spring, Milroe himself discussed his approach to improving this offseason.
“The biggest thing for me is constantly improving because I’m nowhere near a finished product,” Milroe said. “Every time I enter the building, all I want to do is improve and get better.
“And one thing as a quarterback, you’re throwing the ball, so that’s one thing now that we’re in the offseason is I try to, be the best passer I can be, the best passer in the country. That’s the ultimate goal, and that’s what we’re gonna continue to do now that we’re in the offseason.
“Coach Mitch (Dahlen), Coach (Nick) Sheridan do a really good job with me, and Coach DeBoer is putting me in the direction to be the best quarterback in the country.”
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