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Chris Lowe, ESPN Senior Writer
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Before he ever played a game under Alabama’s new coaching regime, Jalen Milroe said this preseason that he felt comfortable, prepared and empowered as a quarterback.
“Even going back to high school. I can be there without hesitation,” Milro told ESPN.
Such declarations are one thing. It’s another to deliver, and Milro has done it repeatedly through four games for the Crimson Tide, most recently with a dazzling performance in a thrilling 41-34 win Saturday night over then-No. 2 Georgia to vault Alabama to No. 1 in the latest AP poll
Milrow passed for 374 yards and two touchdowns, including a 75-yard toss to Ryan Williams, and rushed for 117 yards and two more touchdowns. In four games this season, he has passed for at least two touchdowns and rushed for at least two touchdowns. He completed 72.9% of his passes with just one interception and is second nationally with a 204.7 passer rating.
“He was, I think, exceptional,” Alabama coach Callen DeBoer said of his redshirt junior quarterback. “I didn’t want to jump the gun, but I really felt that way the last few weeks, and it started with the Wisconsin game, where he got into a little bit of a rhythm and made those plays. … It doesn’t mean he’s perfect, but Man, he’s a weapon out there and he’s doing it through the air and his feet.”
DeBoer isn’t the only one who feels this way.
Milrow is quickly moving up NFL teams’ draft boards, and as the calendar now flips to October, he’s put himself at the forefront of the Heisman Trophy conversation.
“He’s always been a dynamic athlete, but he’s grown as a quarterback under this staff,” an NFL scout told ESPN. “He looks more relaxed and connected. Last year, he was a great athlete running around and making plays on the quarterback. Now he looks like a quarterback who can be a great athlete and still make winning plays.”
Milro is not one to boast that he called his shots, but he did. He saw that after working all offseason with DeBoer and offensive coordinator Nick Sheridan, who calls the plays for the Tide and hasn’t been shy about what it means to play for coaches “who really believe in me.”
He said it wasn’t a dig at former coach Nick Saban, who benched Milro in Week 3 against South Florida after a two-interception performance in a home loss to Texas. Rather, Milrow says it’s a nod to the current coaches and the way they’ve given him the reins to play his way as he polishes his game.
“I have a great coaching staff that believes in me,” Milro said. “I have teammates who believe in me and that’s what matters.”
The Milrow-to-Williams connection was electric for the Crimson Tide, and Williams said all he had to do was follow Milrow’s lead.
“He’s a tremendous player. He gets better every day,” Williams said of his quarterback. “I can’t stress it enough. He literally gets better every day, and that’s everybody because we have an environment where if you’re not good, you’re not looking at the person next to you.”
Milro finished sixth in the Heisman Trophy voting a year ago, and Saban said his transition in the latter part of the season was key to Alabama’s trip to the College Football Playoff.
But with 18 total touchdowns through four games, Milro has made the necessary steps to go from very good to elite. Also, Sheridan’s plan for Milrow against Georgia was as good as it gets. Alabama scored touchdowns on its first four possessions. Milrow completed his first 11 passes and picked the Bulldogs apart on the edge with his speed.
“We took the next step,” said DeBoer, whose quarterback Michael Penix last season at Washington led the nation with 4,903 passing yards and had 36 touchdown passes. “Guys don’t always need to be open right now. You see (Milrow) throwing to open guys and the receivers hoping, ‘Hey, I’m going to get the ball,’ and that’s progress in our passing game, and if we can continue to do those things, Then it will be difficult to protect us.”
Georgia coach Kirby Smart said the 6-foot-2, 225-pound Milrow “might be the best running back in the country … and he throws the ball.”
It’s a combination that fits opposing defensive coordinators.
“You have to pick your poison,” Smart said. “Do you want the guy to take off and beat you on the run? Do you want to play loose coverage and try to keep an eye on him so he doesn’t take off?”
Georgia’s plan was to throw Milro the ball if Alabama moved into the red zone.
“We didn’t have to. He ran us around,” Smart lamented.
No play exemplified Miller’s explosiveness more than his 36-yard run up the right sideline, beating Georgia’s Malachi Starks on the edge, that put Alabama up 28-0 early in the second quarter.
“We had our best player on him on fourth-and-1, and he outran him down the sideline and then turned it over and scored,” Smart said. “If you can stop him and not worry about him throwing it, I think you can. But when he’s throwing it well and they’re catching it well, it’s really hard to stop.”
Milro’s poise and humility did not go unnoticed by the Alabama football complex, coaches and players as he spoke to the media late Saturday night. DeBoer said Milrow’s growth as a leader — and not being over the top with his emotions — has only strengthened the bond in Alabama’s locker room.
Milro wore a Jalen Hurts shirt after the match. Their stories are similar in that they were both benched at one point during their Alabama careers. Milrow nodded respectfully when asked about the former Tide quarterback, who finished his college career at Oklahoma.
Hurts, now the quarterback of the Philadelphia Eagles, is extremely popular among Alabama fans. He was replaced at halftime of the 2017 national championship game after the offense stalled in the first half, and Tagovailo threw the game-winning touchdown pass in the final seconds to beat Georgia. Hurts elected to return to Alabama for the 2018 season and when Tagovailo was injured in the SEC Championship game, Hurts came off the bench to lead Alabama to a dramatic 35–28 victory over the Bulldogs.
“Jalen Hurts is a great guy to watch when it comes to dealing with adversity, when it comes to playing the position,” Milro said. “I’m a Texas kid. He was a Texas kid, and he was one of the reasons I came to the University of Alabama. When Alabama played Georgia (in 2018), if we look back, Jalen Hurts stepped in at the end of the game, so I’m representing him today. wanted to.”
Milro then looked at the camera and saluted.
“He’s looking out. Hey, Jalen Harts,” Milro said. “But, nah, I love Jalen Hurts. I think he’s a great quarterback and I wanted to represent him.”
If Milro keeps it up, he’ll be doing more than just representing him. He will soon join him in the NFL.
