In a significant shift for Alabama Crimson Tide football, the team will need to find a new starting quarterback for the 2025 season following the departure of Jalen Milroe. The 6-foot-2, 225-pound standout quarterback has made his mark over the past two seasons, but he will now take his talents to the NFL. As Alabama looks to the future, all eyes are on the next potential leader of their offense.
According to ESPN, the starting quarterback job for the 2025 season will likely go to Ty Simpson, a redshirt junior. Simpson, who was a five-star recruit in the 2022 class, chose to play for the Crimson Tide over offers from more than 30 other schools. He has been part of Alabama since 2022, and despite some competition, it looks as though he will have the opportunity to take over under center next season.
Simpson, hailing from Martin, Tennessee, is the only player remaining from the 2022 to 2024 recruiting classes, with notable departures including Eli Holstein (Pitt), Julian Sayin (Ohio State), and Dylan Lonergan (Boston College). Over three seasons at Alabama, Simpson has completed 29 of 50 passes for 381 yards. His experience could be key in securing the starting role.
However, Keelon Russell, a highly anticipated 2025 recruit and the No. 2 player in 247Sports’ rankings, will also be a player to watch. Russell, a quarterback from Duncanville, Texas, has a standout high school career, leading his team to back-to-back state championships and passing for over 10,000 yards, 115 touchdowns, and 17 interceptions in three seasons. His dual-threat ability also includes 882 rushing yards and 12 touchdowns.
While Simpson’s experience may give him an early edge, Alabama’s head coach Kalen DeBoer will have to make the call on who starts. It will be Simpson’s job to lose, but Russell’s talent could force a fierce competition for the role as the 2025 season progresses. It’s clear that the battle for the starting job will be one of the key storylines for Alabama in the coming year.
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Oddsmakers more optimistic about Alabama football in 2025 than the media
As the clock ticks down to next week’s National Championship game between Ohio State and Notre Dame, oddsmakers have already begun projecting the odds for next season’s title contender. Early numbers suggest that, despite recent narratives, Alabama still holds strong favor among betting circles, even if the media sees things differently.
The prevailing storyline in the media has been that the Crimson Tide’s dynasty is officially over. This narrative, fueled by constant roster turnover in today’s college football era, argues that it’s increasingly difficult for any team to sustain a dominant run like Alabama’s in the past.
However, after a solid 9-4 season in Kalen DeBoer’s first year at the helm in Tuscaloosa, the media narrative seems to be shifting too far in the opposite direction. Notably, Andy Staples of On3 excluded Alabama from his Way Too Early Top 10 rankings, released just a couple of weeks ago. Similarly, our sister site, Saturday Blitz, placed the Crimson Tide shockingly low at No. 16 in their early Top 25 for next season.
Despite this, the oddsmakers remain much more optimistic about Alabama’s prospects. According to FanDuel, the Tide hold the sixth-highest odds at +1400 to win the national title, placing them third among SEC teams, trailing only Texas and Georgia. Meanwhile, Bet Online also gives them the sixth-highest odds at +1600, tied with Notre Dame, and again ranking behind Texas and Georgia.
While it may seem surprising not to see Alabama among the top two or three teams for national title odds, the confidence from oddsmakers in Kalen DeBoer’s second year suggests that they are far from ready to count out the Tide.
