TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Tommy Rees’ relationship with Notre Dame transfer Tyler Buchner is well-documented, but when it comes to managing Alabama’s quarterbacks this season the first-year offensive coordinator isn’t playing favorites.
After coaching Buchner the past two seasons at Notre Dame, Rees was reunited with his former passer in late April as Alabama nabbed the redshirt sophomore from the transfer portal. That move came as somewhat of a surprise as the Crimson Tide’s quarterback room already featured four members, including redshirt sophomore Jalen Milroe and redshirt freshman Ty Simpson who spent spring camp competing for the starting job.
During his first interview since joining Alabama, Rees shed some light on that decision Sunday.
“When [Buchner] went into the portal, we looked at an opportunity to add competition to the room,” Rees said. “I think competition at all positions is going to bring out the best in individuals. It's going to add an extra layer of development. It's going to allow people to rise with the competition.
“I think one thing we're trying to get the whole quarterback group to understand is, when one guy has success, first of all, we need to look at it as shared success. We need to look at it as the group. We want to leave practice saying, the quarterback position, the quarterback group had a good day. The other thing we want to see is when one quarterback has success, it's going to challenge the rest of the group. And when we can do that, it's going to raise the level of play in the room. And so we don't want to look at it and shy away from it, we want to look at it as an opportunity to improve for the entire group.”
While competition generally breeds success, the addition of Buchner was a risky move in today’s college football landscape where quarterbacks are prone to transfer once their path to starting is challenged. Sunday, Rees commended Milroe and Simpson while stating both passers have “improved greatly from the spring.”
“I think it shows, first of all, a great amount of character, a great amount of competitiveness for those two guys. But it also shows a love for their teammates and a love for being here. And honestly, it speaks volumes about the program that guys want to stay here. And so I think it's really special that in this age of college football, especially at the quarterback position when guys are so eager to leave, that two guys looked at an opportunity to stay here, to care about their teammates, to continue to improve.”
“Ultimately, we’re trying to build as healthy of a room as we can. They understood that competition can bring out the best in them. They’ve been great the entire process throughout, and I don’t expect that to change.”
Navigating the awkwardness of adding another passer to the quarterback battle is just the first step. With three players competing for the starting job, Alabama is now facing challenges in making sure Buchner, Milroe and Simpson all get equal reps with the first team offense. That requires a bit of patience from all parties.
“The thing I’m fortunate for is our quarterbacks understand it and they don’t have egos,” Rees said. “We’re trying to tell them, ‘Hey, when you’re in there, you’re the guy,’ and we want them to own those opportunities and own those reps. They’ve bought into that. They’ve been supportive of one another.”
In addition to the three starting contenders, Rees said the team is also working in reps for true freshmen Eli Holstein and Dylan Lonergan, stating each of Alabama’s five scholarship passers has been given the opportunity to take part in longer chunks of plays in order to get into a rhythm.
“Sometimes it’s a little choppier,” Rees said. “But we want to make sure we’re mixing up how we’re rotating, we’re mixing up different periods that guys get so they’re exposed to different situational football. Again, our players have made it easy for me because they’ve been receptive to it. They just want to make the most of every opportunity they get.”
Nick Saban has remained adamant he isn’t rushing his quarterback decision, continuing to compare it to baking a cake. Sunday, the head coach stated that he expects the competition to roll on even after he names his starter.
“I told our quarterbacks, ‘You know, fall camp is not the beginning of the end,’” Saban said. “You got an opportunity to separate yourself you can play with consistency and play winning football at the position, but that competition goes on and on and on and we need all our quarterbacks to continue to improve and continue to compete, compete far beyond even the time that we name a starter.”
