Ty Simpson not returning to Alabama in 2026, declaring for NFL Draft

Ty Simpson will not return to Alabama for the 2026 season and will enter the NFL Draft, per On3’s Pete Nakos. His decision comes following Nakos’ report that Simpson has been evaluating his future since the end of the Crimson Tide’s 2025-26 season.

Simpson had a strong redshirt junior season with the Crimson Tide. He finished the year with 3,567 passing yards, 28 touchdowns and five interceptions during his first season as the Crimson Tide’s starting quarterback. He helped lead Alabama to its first College Football Playoff under head coach Kalen DeBoer this past season, which ended in the Rose Bowl vs. Indiana.

Simpson was injured during the matchup, suffering a cracked rib in the first half. He said the injury occurred after he took a helmet to the rib while scrambling late in the first half. He finished the loss by completing 12-16 passes for 67 yards, as backup Austin Mack threw for 103 in his absence.

He was impressive in the first round of the College Football Playoff against Oklahoma. He threw for 232 yards and two touchdowns as Alabama came back to take down the Sooners and advance to the quarterfinals. The Crimson Tide completed a 17-point comeback — the largest in CFP history — against Oklahoma in the first round. However, they had no answers for Indiana in the national quarterfinal, losing 38-3.

Alabama finished the 2025 season with an 11-4 season. Along the way, they become the first team with three regular season losses to secure an at-large bid into the College Football Playoff. Clemson had previously qualified as a top five-ranked conference champion during the 2024 season.

Before college, Simpson was a five-star recruit, per the Rivals Industry Rankings, which is a proprietary algorithm that compiles ratings and rankings from all four primary recruiting media services. He was the No. 25 recruit overall in the 2022 recruiting class and No. 2 quarterback during the cycle.

Now, Simpson will step into the next stage in his career. He leaves Tuscaloosa behind, having spent four seasons with the program, but with just one as the team’s main starter. He was a part of the end of the Nick Saban era and the first two seasons of Kalen DeBoer’s tenure, sitting behind Jalen Milroe for the past two seasons.