With Bryce Young NFL-bound, Jalen Milroe is seemingly next in line for the Alabama football starting quarterback position given that he’s got the most experience in the room — but Bleacher Report’s Brad Shepard believes there’s a chance the dual-threat could actually take to the transfer portal to join a 2022 College Football Playoff in TCU.
The presence of incoming Crimson Tide offensive coordinator Tommy Rees could make Ty Simpson the favorite to land the starting quarterback job according to Shepard. “While the Crimson Tide are almost certain to get back to showcasing the run under Rees, they need a vertical presence, so lean Simpson in that race,” Shepard wrote.
In that case, Milroe would be a flight-risk to head back to his home state to play for the only Lone Star State school to make the College Football Playoff. “If that happens, Milroe has an ideal opportunity awaiting him in his home state of Texas, where he can go play for national runner-up Sonny Dykes and the TCU Horned Frogs.”
Jalen Milroe’s QB Ability a Questionable Alabama Football Fit
Shepard believes Milroe has the athletic abilities to have his choice to play at any program in the country he deserves, but he may not exactly have the chops to be the starting quarterback for Alabama football.
“Jalen Milroe is a supreme athlete who could play anywhere in the nation,” Shepard wrote. “But the question for him—and the Alabama Crimson Tide—is can he play quarterback anywhere in the nation? Because, if he can’t, coach Nick Saban is going to go with Ty Simpson in the competition to replace Bryce Young. Milroe had moments a season ago playing when Young was injured, but he may not be a consistent enough passer to be the man in Tuscaloosa.”
While Jalen Hurts proved to be a great fit for Alabama football as a passer with the ability to run during his three seasons in Tuscaloosa from 2016-2018, Milroe profiles more as a scramble-first big-play threat. That may not work for a Crimson Tide offense that is looking to set up the big pass by grinding out first downs through a traditional ground game.
The Case for Jalen Milroe on the TCU Horned Frogs
With 2022 Heisman finalist Max Duggan heading to the NFL, the TCU Horned Frogs have a major hole to fill under center. As Shepard explains, TCU head coach Sonny Dykes and co. didn’t land his replacement in the transfer portal, opening up the door for a quarterback like Milroe to be featured on the College Football Playoff runner-ups.
“Considering their failure to sign a quarterback in the ’23 class or in the portal, the shot to start for a high-value program awaits,” Shepard wrote. “All Milroe would have to do is beat out Chandler Morris and he can be a dynamic force for the Frogs.”
As Shepard points out, TCU already has several former teammates of Milroe already on the roster. “He also could join former teammates WR JoJo Earle, RB Trey Sanders and OT Tommy Brockermeyer at the school,” he wrote. “It just makes sense if he doesn’t win the Tide job.”
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Alabama QB Jalen Milroe Projected to Transfer to 2022 Playoff Team