Alabama Crimson Tide HC Kalen DeBoer gets real about Ty Simpson after QB’s injury

The Alabama Crimson Tide’s season ended Thursday with a lopsided 38–3 loss to the Indiana Hoosiers in the College Football Playoff quarterfinal at the Rose Bowl, and while the loss was painful, much of the postgame focus centered on quarterback Ty Simpson and the injury that forced him out of the game. Simpson, a fourth-year junior, started the game and opened the second half before being replaced by backup Austin Mack.

Head coach Kalen DeBoer addressed the
situation directly after the loss, offering clarity on what happened and defending his quarterback’s effort.

“Ty had an injury, obviously. He really wanted to try to stay out there. We treated him there at halftime. He gave it a series, and he feels like he let down the team,” said DeBoer. “But there’s no way that’s the case. He went out and tried to battle. That’s who he is.”

Simpson confirmed to the coaches that he had a cracked rib, which they identified at halftime. He managed only one series in the third quarter. Before leaving the game, Simpson completed 12 of 16 passes for 67 yards. His most costly moment came in the second quarter when Alabama was driving into Indiana territory while behind 10–0. Simpson scrambled for a first down, took a hard hit, fumbled the ball, and Indiana capitalized with a touchdown. The Hoosiers carried a 17–0 lead into halftime.

Mack, a redshirt sophomore who has served as Simpson’s primary backup all season, finished the game by completing 11 of 16 passes for 103 yards. He directed Alabama’s only scoring drive, which ended with a 28-yard field goal by Conor Talty late in the third quarter. The Crimson Tide managed just 193 total yards and failed to score a touchdown on nine possessions.

Simpson’s exit was the first time all season that Alabama turned to another quarterback outside of garbage time. He started all 15 games in 2025 and was never listed on an injury availability report during the year. Over the full season, Simpson completed 293 of 457 passes for 3,500 yards, 28 touchdowns, and five interceptions, finishing with a 64 percent completion rate.

With a year of eligibility still remaining, Simpson could pursue the NFL as a first-round prospect, though he confirmed, following the loss, that he hasn’t settled on his plans yet.

The loss itself was historic for the Crimson Tide. The 35-point margin was the largest postseason defeat in program history and the first time since 1964 that Alabama failed to score a touchdown in a bowl game. Indiana, undefeated and ranked No. 1, dominated statistically, holding the Crimson Tide to three points while scoring on six of its nine drives.

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