A strong showing against Wisconsin wasn’t enough to fully quiet the noise, though it did provide Kalen DeBoer with something to build on. The conversation around Alabama’s quarterback situation hasn’t cooled. In fact, it has only intensified. Current starter Ty Simpson is carrying the debate squarely on his shoulders, his play scrutinized by both the ugly loss against FSU, and the bounce-back wins afterwards.

The biggest concern isn’t Simpson’s arm. It’s what the Crimson Tide don’t have on the ground. That was the warning sounded by former Alabama QB AJ McCarron, who sees trouble ahead if the Tide can’t generate a balanced run attack. “When you look at a lot of their explosive past plays have come from play action. And when you face these better teams, when we go into this gauntlet of SEC play that we’re about to hit for about six, seven weeks straight, you’ve got to be able to run the football. And especially when you’re playing on the road and we’re going to have some big road games coming up. I mean, in two weeks you play in Athens. You’ve got to be able to run the football.” McCarron’s point was tactical: without a rushing threat, SEC defenses can sit back in shell coverage and erase the wide-open throws Simpson has been hitting against softer looks.

The Wisconsin win showcased both sides of that coin. Simpson was electric through the air: 382 yards and four touchdowns. But Alabama’s ground game was nonexistent. Running back Kevin Riley, carried just seven times for 20 yards. Simpson himself was the leading rusher with 25 yards on six scrambles. But that’s not sustainable, nor is it his job. As McCarron put it, “When we get into this gauntlet and it’s only going to help because you’re going to run into these issues of playing these really good defenses to where if you don’t have a run game and they can play shell coverage against you, these past plays versus good teams and these dudes running wide open there, it very rarely happens. Right. And then when it does happen, you got to be able to take advantage of it.” For Bama, getting the win is not going to be enough anymore. They need to build up that run game if they are to survive in the SEC.

That’s where the larger structural issue appears. Alabama is leaning on QB play to mask an offensive line that has struggled to establish a push. McCarron noted that backup options aren’t ready to provide relief. “Listen, you talk to anybody in the program, Keelon Russell is not ready.” His conversations with Tide staffers reinforced that the freshman hasn’t yet mastered the decision-making or grasp of the system necessary to command the offense. Even QB2 Austin Mack saw brief action, but the reality is clear: this is Simpson’s team for now, for better or worse.

The memory of Florida State lingers precisely because it revealed the cracks. “We as a team are soft up front on both sides of the football,” McCarron said bluntly about that opener. The Seminoles dominated the line of scrimmage, holding Alabama to just 87 rushing yards. What made it more frustrating was how promising the start looked. On the opening possession, the Tide marched 75 yards for a touchdown, 55 of those yards coming on the ground. They went up 7-0 with a blend of power runs and tempo, then promptly abandoned the formula. The fire that lit that drive needs to be the foundation, not the exception, if Alabama wants to save their season.

Tide getting key reinforcements back just in time for Georgia

Bama fans might finally be getting some good news on the injury front, and it couldn’t come at a better time with a top-25 clash at Georgia looming on Sept. 27. Kalen DeBoer gave an update on three crucial starters: RB Jamarion Miller, DL Tim Keenan, and DE LT Overton.

Keenan, who underwent tight rope surgery late last month, has yet to play this season, but all signs point to him suiting up in Athens. Still, DeBoer cautioned it might not be a full workload. Miller, meanwhile, is working his way back from a preseason collarbone injury. “He’s got some explosiveness,” DeBoer said, hinting at what the Tide’s offense has been missing.

As for Overton, who exited the Wisconsin win with an undisclosed issue, DeBoer sounded confident: “I’d expect him to play.” A game with Georgia is going to be the true test of this 2025 season for the Crimson Tide. The Bulldogs don’t just thrive on defensive speed. They punish one-dimensional teams.