Kalen DeBoer Expresses Confidence in his Quarterback After Vanderbilt Win

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. - Alabama head coach Kalen DeBoer "burned" two timeouts late in the first half when Vanderbilt had the football on offense. His defense allowed a touchdown with 1:33 left in the first half, and Alabama was staring down the barrel of a 14-7 deficit to Vanderbilt at halftime at home after the Commodores upset Alabama last season.

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Alabama's offense, led by quarterback Ty Simpson, navigated down the field in six plays, going 78 yards in 1:11, tying the game at 14 points after Ty Simpson's touchdown to Germie Bernard. During the postgame press conference, Alabama head coach Kalen DeBoer said he was comfortable using those timeouts on defense because of the trust he has in Ty Simpson.

"You're playing the percentages. You're playing the percentages, right? You're playing the percentages to just give yourself as much of an opportunity," DeBoer said after Alabama's 30-14 win over Vanderbilt. "You're letting them get a good play call, and it goes both ways. They did a nice job of scoring. You're playing the percentages that you're gonna have as much time as possible.

"With our offense, again, getting in a rhythm like that, like we did, I'm really proud of the fight and just the belief to go down the length of the field in the short amount of time that we had. That happens in practice. We call it clutch, two-minute drill every single week. We did it a lot in fall camp. There are a lot of opportunities that our system allows for whatever you call, it's probably gonna be wrong. The guys are understanding that. Ty is understanding it. You can see some of those windows that he's starting to hit. I love how we're going not just in the middle of the field now, but we hit some balls down the outside. Defense got to cover the entire field. Short, long, sideline to sideline."

On the drive, Ty Simpson completed a 14-yard pass to Ryan Williams in the middle of the field. Two plays later, Simpson found Germie Bernard down the Alabama sideline for a 27-yard touchdown, tying the game at 14.

That confidence in Ty Simpson has led to Alabama's offense running through Simpson, and so far, it's paid off for Alabama as the Crimson Tide is 4-1 after the first weekend of October. Alabama will go on the road next weekend, October 11, to take on No. 19 Missouri in Columbia, Missouri.

Wyatt Fulton is the Tide 100.9 DME and Brand Manager, primarily covering Alabama Crimson Tide football and men's basketball. For more Crimson Tide coverage, follow Wyatt on X (Formerly known as Twitter) at @FultonW_.