Kalen DeBoer discusses Ty Simpson, Austin Mack, Dylan Lonergan after win over Mercer

Alabama football starting quarterback Jalen Milroe only needed to play 2½ quarters to do his job for the day.

Milroe completed 11 of 16 passes for 186 yards, two touchdowns to go with a rushing score against Mercer to put the Crimson Tide up by enough that it could get its backup quarterbacks plenty of work.

So, Ty Simpson entered the game and played about a quarter. Then Dylan Lonergan had his chance. Austin Mack did too. All of the scholarship quarterbacks got an opportunity. Cade Carruth, a walk-on quarterback from Trussville, even got into the game late.

The five quarterbacks all saw action in a game in which No. 10 Alabama defeated Mercer 52-7 on Saturday at Bryant-Denny Stadium.

After the victory, DeBoer had a chance to give his thoughts about the play of his backup quarterbacks for the Crimson Tide (8-2, 4-2 SEC).

He started with Simpson, who completed five of 10 passes for 71 yards while rushing for 14 yards on two carries, with one for 13 yards.

“Ty with some scrambles,” DeBoer said smiling. “The long one along our sideline. People who really know and have watched Ty ... you can see he’s got that ability. Can do things with his feet ... Ty is tough to handle when it comes to running the football too.”

Simpson’s most impressive play was when he escaped a sack on third-and-15, then he found tight end Josh Cuevas downfield for a 43-yard pass to put Alabama near the goal line. That set up a fourth-quarter touchdown the next play to put Alabama up 45-7.

“If it’s picked off, it’s picked off,” DeBoer said. “Smart just to give him a chance. Find a way to make a play.”

Next into the game was Lonergan. Mack replaced him later in the fourth quarter.

Lonergan helped Alabama convert a fourth-and-3 with 6:09 left as Lonergan hit Ty Lockwood for five yards. Lonergan completed five of six passes for 23 yards.

Mack completed two of three passes for 39 yards and one touchdown, a late score to Rico Scott to punctuate the victory.

“There’s a fine window of trying to let these guys run the offense and get that experience and get an opportunity to do what they work on each and every day,” DeBoer said. “I was proud of the way they just handled everything, from the execution to even the procedural things, making sure guys are lined up before they motion. All that stuff. Thought it was a good day for all of them as a whole.”

Nick Kelly is an Alabama beat writer for AL.com and the Alabama Media Group. Follow him on X and Instagram.