TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Once a hidden gem, Keelon Russell is now the crown jewel of Alabama’s recruiting class. The five-star quarterback signed with the Crimson Tide on Wednesday, joining the team as the top pro-style passer and No. 3 overall player in the current cycle. However, the process of bringing the Duncanville, Texas native to Tuscaloosa began long before he was a household name.
Alabama first showed interest in Russell in April. At the time, the 6-foot-3, 175-pound quarterback was an overlooked SMU commit without much other strong Power Four interest. That changed after Kalen DeBoer and Alabama’s staff saw him stand out on film.
“It’s really cool when you think about the recruiting process with him,” DeBoer said of Russell during his Early Signing Day press conference. “I continue to think of it as, there’s eyes that we have and feelings that we have when you watch the film that are one thing and jump out at you. But I think there are other details we saw on the film that when we saw him in person were verified.”
While Russell’s arm talent piqued Alabama’s interest, the Tide still had other high-ranked quarterbacks on its board. But the conversation always came back to the lanky Texas gunslinger. After seeing Russell throw in person over the spring, the Tide decided to dig in.
“The coaching staff went up in the spring to see him, and it’s like,’Wow, this guy is what we think, and these little nuances that we think are special definitely are,’” DeBoer said. “You can see as the summer went along, everyone else started to see that as well. Now you see the production this fall, it’s on another level.”
By the time Russell flipped to Alabama in early June, he was already rising up the recruiting boards. That stock only rose when he won the Elite Eleven competition in Los Angeles, beating out several of the nation’s other top passers.
This fall, Russell has only made Alabama's decision to pursue early look even better. He's completed 71.5% of his passes for 3,652 yards and 52 touchdowns with just two interceptions while adding 254 yards and a pair of scores on the ground. Russell will have a chance to add to those numbers this weekend as he looks to lead Ducanville to its second straight Texas 6A title.
“He’s got the arm talent,” DeBoer said. “Just accurate, can throw with different arm slots and all that kind of stuff. And then also just the ability as an athlete to make plays with his feet too, just an added dimension.”
Some might have questioned Alabama for its initial pursuit of a SMU quarterback commit, but both Russell and DeBoer proved those doubters wrong. Alabama is keen on what Russell has to offer on the field, and as far as locker room presence goes, DeBoer says Russell is bringing a five-star attitude to Tuscaloosa as well.
“There’s a swagger about him,” DeBoer said. “There’s a confidence about him. He’s helped become a major part of bringing and keeping this class together which is what you want out of any leader, especially these key guys but especially your quarterback.”
With two-year starter Jalen Milroe projected as an early-round selection in next year’s draft, Russell could get an opportunity to compete right away at Alabama. Along with Milroe, the five-star freshman joins a quarterback room that currently features redshirt sophomore Ty Simpson as well as redshirt freshmen Dylan Lonergan and Austin Mack.
