Aggies could face QB from Lone Star State
COLLEGE STATION — Alabama fans are finding out what Katy natives have known: Tompkins High alum Jalen Milroe is uncommon among his contemporaries — ask the Katy Tigers.
Two years ago this fall, Tompkins toppled Katy behind Milroe’s heroics, snapping the Tigers’ 75-game win streak in district play. Katy had gone nearly 12 years without a loss to a district foe; now Alabama might be counting on him against the Home of the 12th Man.
Should a shoulder injury sideline reigning Heisman Trophy winner Bryce Young on Saturday night against Texas A&M, Alabama coach Nick Saban will turn to Milroe, a former four-star prospect who traveled a twisted path to Tuscaloosa, Ala.
Milroe, who in 2019 pledged to Texas before switching to Alabama, stepped in for the injured Young in the second quarter of Alabama’s 49-26 win at Arkansas last Saturday.
The dual-threat quarterback scampered for 77 yards on a third-and-15 early in the fourth quarter against the Razorbacks as the Crimson Tide clung to a 28-23 lead.
“What we try to get our guys to do is focus on doing their job, and if everybody does their job, we’re going to have a chance to be successful,” Saban said. “It doesn’t really matter who’s in there playing … sometimes that’s harder to do for guys who aren’t starters, but I think it’s a real test to your character if you can do it, so you can take advantage of the opportunities when they come.
“Jalen did a pretty good job of that last week, and hopefully he can build on that if he has to play this week.”
“We were in (the game), and that play right there seemed to take a little bit of the wind out of our sails,” Arkansas coach Sam Pittman said.
The play in a desperate situation was reminiscent of two years prior, when Milroe converted a fourth-and-17 on a 30-yard touchdown pass to Josh Mcmillan in springing Tompkins to a 24-13 lead over Katy entering the fourth quarter of the memorable contest.
“Put it in Jalen’s hands, and let’s go,” Tompkins coach Todd Mcvey said at the time. “That’s our quarterback, and we trust him.”
That trust now has been transferred to the nation’s most prominent college program, thanks in part to current Texas quarterback Quinn Ewers. Milroe (6foot-2, 212 pounds) first pledged to UT in July 2019, before his junior season at Tompkins.
But a year later when Ewers pledged to Texas before his junior year at Southlake Carroll, Milroe switched to Alabama.
Speaking of twisted paths, Ewers bypassed his senior year at Southlake Carroll and enrolled a year early at Ohio State in 2021, playing sparingly for the Buckeyes. The nation’s top-rated recruit in the (technically) class of 2022 then transferred to Texas and nearly led the Longhorns to an upset of Alabama in Week 2 before he was knocked out of the game with an injury.
Milroe did not play in the Crimson Tide’s 20-19 victory over Texas, but he might see the field plenty Saturday night against UT’S biggest in-state rival.
A&M coach Jimbo Fisher also recruited Milroe but especially pursued Denton Guyer quarterback Eli Stowers, who was the only quarterback signed in A&M’S class of 2021. Stowers has had a shoulder injury at A&M and has shifted between quarterback and tight end.
“(Milroe) is a tremendous young man, a high-character young man and very intelligent,” Fisher said of his Saturday night opponent. “And I know from (having him) in camp, he can throw it. … He was a tremendous high school player, and he’s doing a great job at Alabama.
“… You don’t ever think you’re going to be replacing the Heisman Trophy winner, and all of the sudden you come in and lead them down on a couple of (scoring) drives.”
The strong possibility of Milroe, too, has the Aggies preparing for different types of quarterbacks. Young can use his legs if needed but prefers staying in the pocket and finding open receivers.
Milroe was the nation’s No. 3 dual-threat quarterback in the class of 2021, and opponents — Arkansas most recently — have found out why.
“If it wasn’t for the offensive line making a hole for me it wouldn’t have been possible,” Milroe, dubbed “Milticket” during his star-studded Tompkins days, said of his 77-yard sprint against Arkansas. “It all came down to the offense as a whole, and all 11 guys stepping up and allowing that play to happen.”