Getty Jalen Milroe during his starting debut on September 1, 2023.
The focus in Tuscaloosa involving Alabama Crimson Tide football before Saturday, September 1 was how Jalen Milroe would handle the offense in his first season-opening start.
Five touchdown passes later, the focus after the 56-7 rout of Middle Tennessee State shifted over to the team Milroe nearly played for.
Next on deck? The huge Week 2 tilt against Texas…the same Longhorns team that the Katy, Texas native was once committed to before flipping to Alabama. Already, the question was asked to Milroe his early thoughts and if he had any reaction to facing the school he could’ve played QB before.
In six words, Milroe gave this honest answer via ESPN’s Alex Scarborough: “Just another opponent on the schedule.”
Milroe Gave Another Response, Plus Gave Personal Evaluation
Texas is indeed another opponent, but not like MTSU.
These Longhorns come in No. 11 overall, plus feature a past Nick Saban assistant in Steve Sarkisian coaching UT — the same “Coach Sark” who guided the Tide to their last national title of 2021. And, it was one year ago ‘Bama escaped with the 20-19 win…during a time Milroe watched Bryce Young throw for 213 yards but was held to one touchdown throw.
It’s a highly anticipated rematch. And now it involves a former prized Longhorns QB commit before signing the Letter of Intent to Alabama. Still, though, Milroe is choosing to keep himself calm heading into the next home game.
“Saturday, our success on that day is gonna come from our preparation throughout the week,” Milroe added. “So no matter what the opponent is, we’re just gonna take it on one day at a time.”
Milroe, even with three touchdown throws that stretched between 29 to 48 yards, ended up being his own worse critic following his strong debut.
“I need to be better overall at what I’m doing,” Milroe said.
His goal moving forward? “I just want to continue to build and be the best version of myself when I take the field. So there’s some things that I’m gonna look at with the coaching staff and with my teammates.”
Saban Reacts, Including Holding Coke Bottle
Saban had a prop handy when he was explaining the performance of the first-time season opening starter: A Coca-Cola bottle, which is often next to him during press conferences.
He first addressed the performance of his newest passer.
“Jalen did a good job,” Saban said to reporters. “I think he’s had a good fall camp. I thought he played well in both scrimmages. I think he’s more confident and doing a good job in the passing game.”
What did Saban believe assisted in Milroe’s performance versus the Blue Raiders?
“His athleticism helps him. You know, he’s a threat to pull the ball, which he scored a touchdown on that. And I thought he threw the ball effectively. So I thought they played well,” Saban said.
But here’s when the Coke bottle entered the pictured: When Saban got asked what he foresaw into the future involving his passer and how it could help him in later games.
“You’re asking me to speculate and answer a question about how some guy’s going to perform in the future?” he said. “I don’t really know. I love him. I think he’s doing well. I know he’s working hard to try to improve. He’s a good competitor. He’ll do everything he can to play his best.”
That’s when Saban grabbed the soda.
“This is a Coke bottle,” he said, “it’s not a crystal ball. It’s hard to know.”