Paul Finebaum drops his verdict on Alabama QB battle before Kalen DeBoer makes his pick for 2025 season 

Kalen DeBoer was brought in as the new head coach of the Alabama Crimson Tide after Nick Saban's retirement. Following his success with the Huskies, fans expected him to be successful in Tuscaloosa.

However, DeBoer had an underwhelming debut with Alabama. He led them to a 9-4 record and a bowl game loss to Michigan, which is disappointing according to the team's standards.

As DeBoer prepares for Year 2 in Tuscaloosa, he also needs to finalize the team's new starting quarterback. Jalen Milroe, who was Alabama's QB1 for the past two seasons, departed in this year's NFL draft. Currently, it is a three-way contest between Julian Sayin, Austin Mack and five-star true freshman Keelon Russell for the starting quarterback job.

In May, DeBoer said Ty Simpson was the frontrunner to land the starting quarterback job. However, Paul Finebaum came forward with his perspective on Alabama's quarterback situation. He also shared his thoughts on "The Paul Finebaum Show" whether Simpson could be the key to leading the team to success:

"I think initially it will be Ty Simpson. So that's all you can really do, guess the starter for the opening weekend against Florida State. Is he capable, yes. I've seen a couple of quarterbacks. I can think of two or three, that probably were below him on the talent level who led Alabama to a national championship."

Simpson joined the Crimson Tide in 2022. So far in three seasons, he has seen time in 16 games and recorded 381 passing yards for the team. The other option is Austin Mack, who followed DeBoer from Washington after redshirting his freshman campaign.

DeBoer could also decide to put his faith in five-star freshman Keelon Russell. During his high school career with Duncanville, he led the team to back-to-back 6A Division 1 state championships.

---

When will Kalen DeBoer name Alabama's 2025 starting quarterback?

In May, Kalen DeBoer appeared for an interview on Greg McElroy's "Always College Football" podcast. When questioned about the timeline to finalize the team's starting quarterback, he replied that they should find their starter a few days before their season opener.

"We usually have a little longer of a phase of game (week), we call them bonus practices leading up to Week 1, and there's a weekend before that and then a few days before that," DeBoer said. "That's kind of when you really for sure like to have a starter named and him be able to start really being in sync with his receiving corps, gelling that way and really dialing in on the reps," he added.

The Crimson Tide begin their 2025 campaign with a showdown against Florida State on Aug. 30 at Doak Campbell Stadium.

Edited by Veer Badani