Not long ago, Jalen Milroe was benched after throwing two interceptions in a loss to Texas — Alabama’s only loss of the season so far.
In the following game against South Florida, he was benched by his head coach, and the game was almost a disaster. Although Milroe’s performance was not great against the Longhorns, it was still better than Tyler Buchner and Ty Simpson’s performance in the 17-3 win against the Bulls. As a result, Nick Saban decided to turn back to Milroe as the team’s quarterback.
He hasn’t looked back since. It’s proved to be the right decision time and time again, as Milroe’s remarkable turnaround has helped the Crimson Tide rifle off 10 straight wins and go undefeated in conference play.
“I don’t think it was like turning the lights on,” Saban said of his quarterback ahead of Saturday’s SEC Championship game, via On3. “It was more like some of those dimmer switches. You roll it and the lights go up a little more all the time. I think that was more the way I would describe it.
“When he came in, he started to develop confidence. He started developing the ability to not be affected by the last play… He got comfortable enough with the offense where he started making good reads and throwing the ball the right place, at the right time. That helped his confidence.”
Alabama will need a confident Milroe at his best if they have any chance of defeating the back-to-back National Champions and thwarting Georgia’s Playoff hopes.
[On3]
