Josh Cuevas' 'That's my Quarterback' Moment for New Starter Ty Simpson

TUSCALOOSA, Ala.— Alabama offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb described Ty Simpson's leadership style as "fiery." The redshirt junior was named the Crimson Tide's starting quarterback on Monday in a team meeting, and that fire and passion was on display right away during Tuesday's practice according to redshirt senior tight end Josh Cuevas.

One of the offensive lineman jumped for a false start, and Simpson wasn't too pleased.

"Out of the corner of my ear, I just hear him screaming, and I’m like, ‘That’s my quarterback. That’s my quarterback, yeah, for real,'" Cuevas said. "Just kind of that little thing. Wanting to be great and wanting us to get every little detail exactly correct and making this offense perfect so we can operate at an efficient level is just his main goal.

"And you can really tell when he’s putting in the work and being very intentional with his throws. He’s just being very intentional with his work and just trying to communicate and get everything down. When I talk about passion, it’s kind of every aspect for Ty.”

The quarterback is undoubtedly the leader of any football team. How they choose to lead the team varies from player to player. While passion is an important aspect, Grubb also wants to make sure Simpson plays with emotional control, using his quarterback from last season with the Seattle Seahawks, Geno Smith, as an example.

"I was wildly impressed in my time with Geno Smith, he’s a fiery competitor as well," Grubb said. "I always told Ty, Geno’s ability to get back to room temperature quickly and be able to process and be an elite quarterback was just something that I was always amazed by. I told Ty that’s what you’ve got to be is a guy that can have composure and realize there’s different times to have release points. You know, you score a touchdown and wanna go crazy, go crazy, but up until then, you’ve got to be a smooth operator."

Grubb said he has been impressed with Simpson's ability to calm his fieriness at the right times. That leadership and composure will be important for Simpson as his first career start will come in a true road environment at Florida Start on Aug. 30.

"Nothing is going to change" for Simpson now that he's been named starter when it comes to his preparation for the season.

"I'm going to make sure I go through my process of being the best I can be," Simpson said. "I gotta make sure that my teammates can count on me and make sure they confidence in me, and I'm going to make sure I can give us the best chance to win."