Alabama football backups got some long-awaited time to shine in a 52-7 win over Mercer on Saturday.
Quarterback Jalen Milroe had a field day back home in Bryant-Denny Stadium, going 11-for-16 for 186 yards and two touchdowns in the air with 43 yards on the ground, averaging 7.2 yards per carry.
The 6-foot-2, 225 pound redshirt junior's 3-yard punch into the end zone for his third touchdown put Alabama up 38-7 coming out the locker room from halftime. It also signaled the beginning of the end of Milroe's fun against the Bears .
Coach Kalen DeBoer called for the reserves with 8:56 in the third quarter, bringing in redshirt sophomore Ty Simpson to replace UA's dual-threat Heisman candidate. Earlier in the week, DeBoer said Simpson and fellow scholarship backups Dylan Lonergan and Austin Mack weren't just wishing and hoping for their name to be called, but planning for their opportunities.
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Since the Nick Saban era began, the earliest that Alabama football has removed a starting quarterback when facing a non-FCS opponent came against none other than Mercer on Nov. 18, 2017.
Then-backup Tua Tagovailoa entered the game against the Bears with 11:27 to go in the second quarter.
When Alabama defeated Mercer 48-14 in September 2021, Paul Tyson entered with 3:40 left in third quarter. When the Crimson Tide took a 45-14 lead, a freshman Milroe entered the game with 11:15 to go.
"For the guys to play a quarter-and-a-half, essentially get a lot of guys on the football field, it was fun to see them get out there and play and work on their execution," DeBoer said.
If Bryant-Denny Stadium had a lid, Simpson would've torn it off with his 43-yard deep ball to redshirt junior Josh Cuevas.
One more yard and Simpson would've had his first passing touchdown in three years on the roster. He's only scored rushing touchdowns so far, having scored two in 2023 and one this season against Western Kentucky.
"Everyone gets tied up on Jalen's running ability, but Ty is tough to handle when it comes to running the football, too," DeBoer said.
Simpson has appeared in five total games this season, also including Wisconsin , Missouri and LSU , and has registered 126 total yards, completing 64% of passes. On Saturday, he went 5-for-10 for 71 passing yards with two scrambling rushes for 14 yards.
Lonergan entered with 11:19 left in the fourth quarter and completed four consecutive passes for 18 before a short attempt up the middle to Bubba Hampton was broken up by Mercer's Marques Thomas.
The redshirt freshman was unrattled and found Ty Lockwood to convert on fourth-and-3. He finished going 5-for-6 on 28 yards before Mack entered tand answered his initial misfire with back-to-back completions, highlighted by a 31-yard touchdown pass to Rico Scott that put UA up 52-7 with 3:36 to go.
"I was proud of the way they just handled everything, from the execution to just even the procedural things. They were making sure guys were lined up before we motion, all that stuff," DeBoer said. "It was a good day."
Emilee Smarr covers Alabama basketball and Crimson Tide athletics for the Tuscaloosa News. She can be reached via email at esmarr@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on The Tuscaloosa News: Alabama football HC Kalen DeBoer 'proud' of backup QBs vs. Mercer
