Alabama football will likely have a quarterback battle this offseason. With Jalen Milroe reportedly trending toward an NFL future, the Crimson Tide could be in search of a new starter, and the competitors may include current primary backup Ty Simpson, along with another signal-caller on the roster.

Austin Mack transferred in from Washington before the 2024 season, following head coach Kalen DeBoer. On Wednesday, DeBoer was asked about Mack’s progression, and raved about the redshirt freshman.

“He’s one of the hardest workers on the team,” DeBoer said. There’s a lot of guys that pour a lot into it. He’s doing stuff on his own pretty much every day. You pick an early morning time when we don’t have a practice, he’s doing something in some facility in here.

“You bounce around and all of the sudden hear a ball being thrown or something moving. He’s one of those guys. He’s a gym rat.”

Mack has only played in one game this season for the Crimson Tide. He saw the field late in UA’s blowout win over Mercer, completing two of his three passes for 39 yard and a touchdown against the Bears.

In the meantime, Mack has helped run Alabama’s scout team, and DeBoer said he has taken full advantage of the reps in that role.

“He’s really come a long way,” DeBoer said. “It’s fun seeing him take advantage of even the scout team reps he took and just his ability to throw the ball where he wants it. And sometimes that’s a great opportunity because if you make a mistake it’s not the end of the world, but you can keep honing in on your skills. So, he did a lot this year to help those guys with the defense and now he’s getting more and more reps. So I’m excited about his future, for sure.”

Alabama finishes the 2024 season on Dec. 31, against Michigan in the ReliaQuest Bowl. The game is scheduled to kick off at 11 a.m. CT that day in Tampa, and will be aired on ESPN.