Alabama’s crash course in learning Kalen DeBoer’s system begins next week as the Crimson Tide will hold the first of 15 spring practices on Monday. Fortunately for Washington transfer quarterback Austin Mack, he’s already a year ahead in his studies.
Mack reclassified to enroll early at Washington last season where he spent his first year learning DeBoer’s offense while studying under Heisman Trophy runner-up Michael Penix Jr. While the 17-year-old has yet to take a snap at the college level, he’s currently the Crimson Tide’s most experienced option with its current setup.
Will that give him a leg up in a potential quarterback competition at Alabama? During a radio appearance on Tide 100.9’s "The Game with Ryan Fowler" on Tuesday, Alabama co-offensive coordinator/receivers coach JaMarcus Shephard said familiarity will certainly play a big role in Mack’s transition to the Tide.
“Just the small little details, getting the motion right, getting the shift right, making sure we’re in the right formation. He sees and understands that,” said Shephard, who served as Washington’s wide receivers coach/passing game coordinator the past two seasons. “Some of our really high-level thinking ideas that he’s been exposed to because of being behind Mike Penix over this last year, he’ll at least have some familiarity with those things and be able to say, ‘Hey I saw this from Mike. I saw Mike maybe do this or that within the offense.’"
During Senior Bowl practices in Mobile, Alabama last month, DeBoer praised Mack for his football knowledge, commending him for how much he was able to soak up in his first season of college.
“He’s just got a really great head on his shoulders,” DeBoer said at the time. “He’s young, and for him to do what he did with us this last year, he reclassified and really learned the offense as fast as anyone I’ve ever seen at that age.”
On top of his football IQ, Mack is also capable of slinging the ball downfield. The 6-foot-6, 226-pound pocket passer has a rocket right arm and displays good ball placement on his throws. He showed off both of those traits during his junior season at northern California powerhouse Folsom High School, completing 70.4 of his passes for 3,498 yards and 40 touchdowns with just five interceptions.
“The great part about it is, he can throw it,” Shephard said. “He can throw the ball really well, and he can operate it himself.”
During a radio appearance on Tide 100.9 last week Kalen DeBoer spoke about what he wanted in a quarterback, stating he’s looking for a passer who can deliver the ball across the field as well as someone who can remain poised in big moments and serve as a leader in the locker room.
While Mack is capable of doing all those things, so is returning starter and team captain Jalen Milroe. The redshirt junior is the top returning Heisman Trophy vote-getter from last season where he completed 65.8% of his passes for 2.834 yards and 23 touchdowns with six interceptions while adding 531 yards and 12 scores on the ground.
Milroe is set to enter Alabama’s spring camp as the clear favorite to retain his starting role behind center. However, he’ll need to pick up the Tide’s scheme quickly with Mack seemingly nipping at his heels.
“I think the competition that is going to be created across our entire football team including Austin being in those types of competitions is really gonna push the envelope for us,” Shephard said. “You’re going to have to learn at a high level pretty rapidly because you’ve got guys in the room who already know the offense pretty well.”
