TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — A few Alabama players have tried to beat Jalen Milroe to the team’s athletic facility. So far, no one has taken the redshirt junior’s title as the Crimson Tide’s earliest riser.
During last month’s NFL Scouting Combine, former Alabama cornerback Terrion Arnold said he and Milroe used to hold “Kobe Bryant” competitions to see who could show up first for workouts. Arnold would occasionally get to the Tide’s facility around 5 a.m., an hour and a half before team workouts started. By that time, Milroe was already well into his grind.
Alabama receiver Kendrick Law said he’s tried to race his quarterback to the weight room on a couple of occasions only to experience a similar outcome.
“I heard he gets here at 3-something in the morning,” Law said when asked about Milroe last week. “I mean, I’m not getting up that early, so he’s going to win every time.”
This spring, Milroe might find himself in a more prominent competition as he looks to retain his spot as Alabama’s starting quarterback. Last week, first-year head coach Kalen DeBoer revealed that the redshirt junior is opening up camp as Alabama’s first-team option behind center. However, Milroe will have to fend off one of the nation’s deepest quarterback rooms to keep his job.
Alabama returns redshirt sophomore Ty Simpson, who fought hard with Milroe for the starting job last season. It also brings back redshirt freshman Dylan Lonergan, who shined in last year’s A-Day game before drawing positive reviews in his first year with the program. In addition, Alabama is welcoming in Washington transfer Austin Mack, who enrolled early last year to learn DeBoer’s offense during his first season.
If anyone in that group ends up unseating Milroe as Alabama’s starter, it isn’t going to be because they outworked him. He’s making sure of it.
“The biggest thing for me is constantly improving,” Milroe said. “I’m nowhere near a finished product. So every time I enter the building, all I want to do is improve and get better.”
Milroe’s first-team reps aren’t the only thing that signifies his spot as Alabama’s QB1. The returning tea
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