Nick Saban Lands Alabama’s Likely Successor to Ty Simpson on Recruiting Trail

Nick Saban and Bill O'Brien landed the likely successor to Ty Simpson as Alabama Crimson Tide starting quarterback in the 2024 recruiting class (Photo by Wesley Hitt/Getty Images)

On November 2, Alabama landed the No. 2 quarterback recruit, and the No. 14 recruit overall, in the 2024 cycle. Julian Sayin, a 4-star out of Carlsbad, California, becomes the likely successor to Class of 2022 5-star quarterback Ty Simpson as the Crimson Tide starter under center.

Sayin detailed to 247Sports’ Greg Biggins the relationship he made with both Bill O’Brien and Nick Saban during his recruitment. “Coach O’Brien has an NFL background and he’s someone I respect a lot,” Sayin said of the Crimson Tide offensive coordinator. “We’ve been talking for awhile but I felt like we really connected well on my recent visit and he made it very clear to me that I was a high priority for them in the ’24 class.”

As for the Tide’s 6-time national championship head coach, Sayin spoke of Saban like a high school kid, who grew up watching the 70-year-old send quarterback after quarterback to the NFL throughout his life, would. “Talking with coach Saban is always kind of surreal,” Sayin said. “He’s a legend and all but he’s very easy to talk with as well and I’m really comfortable with him.”

Ty Simpson Likely to Usurp Jalen Milroe as Starter in 2023

Ty Simpson, the freshman out of Westview, Tennessee, has a chance to take over the starting quarterback role from Jalen Milroe in 2023 when Bryce Young becomes a pro. Milroe’s audition to be Young’s successor next season didn’t go swimmingly, with the dual-threat opting to call his own number on the ground just 2 less times than he attempted to move the chains through the air against Texas A&M October 8. Alabama won by 4 despite going into the game as a 3-touchdown favorite.

Nick Saban’s offensive schemes, regardless of the offensive coordinator, have typically lent to pro-style quarterbacks over rush-happy play-callers. Jalen Hurts serves as an outlier, having thrived with over 800 rushing yards in his 2 seasons as a starter in Tuscaloosa. Ultimately, though, he was replaced by Tua Tagovailoa.

Simpson was never going to start over Young in year 1, but he proved in his social media activity — where he liked a series of tweets from Tide fans hoping to see him play instead of Milroe — that  he is looking to start as soon as he can. Expect Simpson to win the starting job next summer.

Julian Sayin Excited to Play for Alabama

Julian Sayin sounds like a member of the Alabama football marketing team in the way he talked about the team to the press following his decision on November 2 to make way to Tuscaloosa in 2024.

The high school junior wants to start the moment he puts on a Crimson Tide jersey. “I’m very confident in my ability to get in there and compete and the coaches made it very clear that the quarterback position is going to be wide open when I get there and the best man always plays there no matter what year he is in the program.”

He also spoke glowingly of the program in the aftermath of his announcement. “It’s all part of that of development you get at Alabama,” Sayin said. “It’s really the best of everything there, from how they train the players, the strength and nutrition program and the great coaching. You compete against the best of the best every day in practice and that’s why they’re always so successful every year.”