Ryan Grubb breaks down how Ty Simpson earned starting job

On Monday, Alabama officially named Ty Simpson its starting quarterback for the upcoming season. After the Crimson Tide’s practice on Tuesday, Alabama offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb explained the staff’s decision to name Simpson the team’s QB1.

“Ty did a really nice job of taking care of the football, No. 1,” Grubb said. “Ty is an incredible playmaker on the move, and I think from there, guys like that, you worry are they gonna be able to train themselves to be able to take care of the football. And even the room in general, Ty led that charge. Ty didn’t throw any picks last week. He’s thrown one all camp.

“We’ve thrown like four total this camp. And this spring, I think at this time, we had thrown like 15. So I think, in general, the guys are understanding the concepts and control of the offense a lot better as a room, and Ty was the best at that.  His ability to command and create out of the pocket, I thought, was the best. Made great decisions. And yeah, he’s just much cleaner on some of the things that you expect an older quarterback ability to do.”

Simpson is entering his redshirt junior season and has 16 career appearances. However, he’s been limited in those appearances, only amassing 29 total completions for 381 yards without throwing a touchdown or an interception.

Simpson defeated Austin Mack and Keelon Russell for the starting job. Mack followed head coach Kalen DeBoer from Washington to Alabama ahead of the 2024 season. Mack only saw action in one game last season.

As a true freshman, Russell has the least experience of anyone in Alabama’s quarterback room. However, he was the No. 2 quarterback in the 2025 recruiting cycle and will likely be the Crimson Tide’s QB1 at some point in the future.

Alas, for now, Ty Simpson owns the claim to Alabama’s coveted starting spot behind center. Of course, that doesn’t mean the redshirt junior can lose focus.

“Just don’t change anything,” Grubb said when asked about his message to Simpson. “We’ve still got a lot of stuff to clean up. Remember what got you the job. Things that you’re challenged to improve on after spring and that you did do to this point in camp, nothing has to change.

“So I think he’s just gotta keep improving on things that he knows he has to work on. And this is just, it’s an announcement, it’s a starting point. If you have any kind of finality to this announcement, whether you’re the backup or the starter, I think they’re gonna rob themselves of some really good opportunities.”