In a video call with Nick Saban and his wife Terry Thursday evening, 247Sports Composite five-star quarterback Ty Simpson looked at his future head coach and said ‘I’m going to be wearing this Alabama hat tomorrow.”
“Ms. Terry started whistling in excitement.” Simpson said. He and his parents were smiling ear to ear.
Simpson went public with his plans and indeed donned that hat Friday afternoon during a live broadcast of his commitment on CBS Sports HQ, choosing to play for the defending National Champs over his other finalists in Clemson, Ole Miss and Tennessee.
“It was an awesome feeling knowing I’m going to get to play for the great Nick Saban,” Simpson stated.
Saban himself took in Thursday’s scene as chill as one would expect.
“Coach Saban said that’s great news and you kind of caught me off guard, we’re very excited and you made a lot of people in Alabama very happy,” said Simpson’s father Jason, who is the head football coach at UT Martin.
The 6-foot-2, 185-pound Simpson is tabbed by the 247Sports Composite as the country’s No. 3 pro-style passer and No. 27 prospect overall. He is commit No. 4 for Alabama in the 2022 cycle, joining Top247 linebacker Robert Woodyard, Top247 defensive end Walter Bob and four-star tight end Elijah Brown.
“What stuck out to me with them was one their culture and two their player development,” Simpson said. “They get their players ready for the NFL and the NFL is a dream of mine and I’m going to a place where they have NFL coaches in there every day that can make me the best player I can be.
“They’re going to get the best out of everybody who’s there. They’re going to play the best players and that’s going to help you throughout your career, being in their with Bill O’Brien and Coach (Doug) Marrone and Coach Saban and his ties to Coach Bill Belichick, being able to learn from the greats like that would be awesome.”
At one point in the process Tennessee was the team to beat for Simpson but the coaching change in Knoxville opened the door for the Crimson Tide and Tigers to make their push. While Clemson was an enticing situation, and the Tigers even got their school president on the phone with Simpson this week, it wasn’t enough to beat Alabama.
“Coach Saban I never knew him till this recruiting process,” the elder Simpson said. “We saw him on television like everybody else. The opportunity to sit in his office over the past couple years with Ty as a recruit, and then when you get a chance to sit down face to face with him in the Zooms when it was our family and him, you got to see an experienced coach that can mentor your son and get the best out of your son and chase his dreams.
“I think it was big for Ty the day (new offensive coordinator) Bill O’Brien got hired he called Ty. Then he called me. To get to know him and his pedigree of being the head coach at Penn State and coaching Tom Brady with the Patriots and then the head coach of the Texans, I knew Ty could see himself getting really challenged to be the best version of himself as a player.”
Simpson accounted for about 2,200 yards of offense and 27 total touchdowns as a junior. He completed over 61 percent of his passes for 1,888 yards and 20 scores to just four interceptions while adding 311 yards and seven more touchdowns on the ground. On film you see good arm strength, throwing with anticipation from several arm angles, his hand talent is evident with the way he can slow down and speed up his delivery and the most fun part regarding Simpson’s film is the ability to extend plays in a Brett Favre like fashion scrambling all over before delivering a strike downfield for a big gain.
“The athleticism obviously and the arm strength are two big reasons why he’s getting recruited, the arm strength is something not normal,” Simpson’s head coach Jarod Neal said. “He has above average arm talent and he can make any throw. The thing that sets him apart from most high school players comes from the knowledge of the game he already has and it allows him to have those conversations with coaches and understand what’s going on and not to have to have it broken down into smaller conversations.”
Simpson is a playmaker under center that can adapt to any situation, pressured, inside or outside of the pocket, his creativity and instincts make him unique at the position in the 2022 cycle.
“He has a very whippy release, generates a lot of velocity for a guy that hasn’t grown into his frame yet,” QB Collective coach Will Hewlett said. Hewlett got a chance to work with Simpson during the summer alongside some of the top passers in both the 2021 and 2022 classes at the QB College National Event. “Just has a hunger to get better at the little things. At the Collective camp he was by far one of the most talented kids there and had a lot of upside.”
Simpson is headed to Alabama to get the most out of that upside.
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