Alabama QB Ty Simpson ready for another big moment against Georgia
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Ty Simpson is not the same quarterback as he was when Alabama football first beat Georgia Saturday, Sept. 27. He’s faced high-pressure moments. He’s developed confidence, belief. And he’s done it over and over.
“Game-winning drives, ways of staying on the field to seal victories. Starting fast in games,” Alabama coach Kalen DeBoer said. “He understands the importance of that. Just staying the course. I think if you really narrowed it down, he’s gotten better, I think.”
Simpson has beaten Georgia once. He had 276 passing yards, two passing touchdowns and a rushing score in the Crimson Tide’s 24-21 road win against the Bulldogs.
And while the opponent is the same, the stage is different for Simpson. It’s an SEC championship.
“This wasn’t something a committee picked or whoever picked,” Simpson said. “We earned this. We went through a tough schedule to get to this position.”
Simpson also knows the Georgia team he will face is different too. It’s a Bulldogs team with “a new identity,” a group that’s “got it rolling.”
“This is going to be a heavyweight fight,” Simpson said. “Last year, last time we played them, none of that means anything, right? They are going to have a chip on their shoulder and something to prove. And we know what’s at stake, right? This is why you come to Alabama. This is what you dream about as a kid, playing in an SEC championship.”
Simpson isn’t the same either. And another matchup with Georgia allows the Alabama quarterback to see how far he’s come.
Simpson is much more prepared he said. He knows what to expect from a game week or a game day.
Simpson knows the balance of a mindset going into a matchup: what he’s worried or thinking about versus playing free.
Simpson knows how to play disciplined, how to play “underneath myself.” It comes from lessons learned, from experience, from time, from reps.
“I look back at the Auburn game and think about all the pressure that they brought on third down and stuff, and think about times in games to where I didn’t pick that up and I had a negative play,” Simpson said.
“Reps, just keep on putting them in your memory bank, right?”
DeBoer saw that growth in action against Auburn. None of his three touchdown passes were “gimmes,” the Alabama coach said. They were the product of Simpson’s confidence to use his ability to make a play with the players he has around him.
“When it came down to big moments, Ty came through for us over and over,” DeBoer said.
Another big moment is coming for Simpson Saturday, Dec. 6 against Georgia, a team Simpson already had a big moment against in Athens. But because of the confidence Simpson exudes, confidence generated by the reps the quarterback has taken, DeBoer is confident in what Simpson can be.
“He’ll find a way to get it done,” DeBoer said.
Alabama kicks off against Georgia at 3 p.m. CT Saturday, Dec. 6 on ABC.
Colin Gay covers Alabama football for The Tuscaloosa News, part of the USA TODAY Network. Reach him at cgay@gannett.com or follow him @_ColinGay on X, formerly known as Twitter.
This article originally appeared on The Tuscaloosa News: Ty Simpson ready for big moment in Alabama vs Georgia SEC championship
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