Jalen Milroe opens up about initial conversations with Kalen DeBoer
TUSCALOOSA — Due to a lighting malfunction, it took a while for Alabama basketball’s game against Auburn to get underway Wednesday night. During the delay, Crimson Tide quarterback Jalen Milroe sat down with ESPN to discuss his early conversations with first-year head coach Kalen DeBoer as well as what it’s like to be Alabama’s starting quarterback.
Milroe, who was voted a permanent team captain by his teammates last season, has been one of the Crimson Tide’s most outspoken players when it comes to standing behind DeBoer following Nick Saban’s retirement. Wednesday, he didn’t change his tune one bit.
"It’s two things: trust the process, and believe," Milroe said. "That’s something that we’re going to do right now. Right now, we’re just in January. It’s everything about being where your feet are. We’re not looking at the end goal, we’re not looking at the top of the mountain— we’re looking at where we’re at right now. And right now it’s about the relationship aspect of this where it’s knowing our teammates and then knowing our coach. That’s something we have to have in our locker room is constantly trying to grow our relationship and constantly trying to believe in everything that the coaching staff is giving us."
Milroe finished sixth in the Heisman voting during his first year as a starter last season. The dual-threat quarterback completed 65.8% of his passes for 2,834 yards and 23 touchdowns with six interceptions while adding 531 yards and 12 more scores on the ground. Now he’ll be a part of a DeBoer offense that ranked top-two nationally in passing yards the past two seasons while turning quarterback Michael Penix Jr. into a Heisman finalist.
When asked Wednesday about his progression as a passer, Milroe said the biggest thing he’s focused on this season is looking at his strengths and weaknesses and improving on them.
“All I want to do is grow and be the best quarterback I can be for the University of Alabama and state of Alabama,” Milroe said. “So right now, the biggest thing right now is turning all weaknesses into a strength and making all strengths even stronger. So by the time it’s Game 1, I’ll be ready to go. And it’s going to come from the offseason grind. Right now it’s all about maximizing all opportunities, so every time I come in the building I’m going to try to be the best Jalen Milroe I can be.”
Until then, Milroe says he’s enjoying Alabama’s starting quarterback and will continue to represent the university the best way he can moving forward.
"Being able to be the quarterback at the University of Alabama is a true blessing, and I feel proud of it," Milroe said. "That doesn’t go unnoticed, and that’s something I try to harp on with the guys in the locker room is, realize where you’re at and don’t take it for granted because we’re blessed to be in the situation we’re in right now. So for me to be a quarterback here, I enjoy it every single day."