Alabama QB Jalen Milroe on Learning New Offense, Relationship with Nick Sheridan

Alabama quarterback Jalen Milroe is striving toward continuing to learn in Alabama's new system.

TUSCALOOSA, Ala.— Coming off a season in which he threw for 2,834 yards and 23 touchdowns, Alabama quarterback Jalen Milroe is still focused on getting better. This year, he has a new head coach and offensive coordinator as well as a new system, but the desire to improve hasn’t changed. 

That desire to improve manifested itself last season, but remains a part of Milroe's journey as he and his teammates embrace a new era of Crimson Tide football. The opportunities of the moment aren't lost on him.

“With my time of playing football, this is a special moment for me,” Milroe said Tuesday. “Coach [offensive coordinator Nick] Sheridan truly believes in me. He speaks that every single day… he’s saying how proud he is of me and he comes with positive reinforcement behind the coaching.” Sheridan has made the moment special for Milroe with who he is as a person, trusting him and cultivating an environment where he can grow. 

Milroe got better as the 2023 campaign went on and eventually ended in a College Football Playoff semifinal appearance at the Rose Bowl. He earned the job as the starting quarterback and ran with it. He left little doubt following the retirement of Nick Saban that he would still be playing at the Capstone, announcing to a gathering of fans that he was staying on the same day new coach Kalen DeBoer was hired. This spring, Milroe and his teammates have been joined by a new face, Washington transfer Austin Mack. Ty Simpson stayed too, and Dylan Lonergan decided to focus on football as opposed to baseball.

With the sweeping changes in the program comes a new offense, but he’s excited because it means a chance to continuously learn. “The day I stop learning and growing is the day I need to stop playing football,” Milroe said. He’s adamant that learning the system will make him better after three years of getting used to  one offense, then a switch going into his fourth year. “It’s gonna make me expand my horizon when it comes to the scheme, maneuvers and stuff like that.” DeBoer’s offensive scheme transformed the career of former Washington quarterback Michael Penix Jr., who joined Milroe last winter as one of the four starting quarterbacks to compete in the Playoff.

Being one percent better every day and a quest toward a continued climb were two of the goals Milroe pointed to for the upcoming season. “The biggest thing you have to do is trust the process with everything,” he said. “During the process, it can be weary, it can be tiring, it can be hard, but the biggest thing you’ve gotta do is stay grounded and stay close to your short-term goals and your long-term goals.” He sees himself as having become a better quarterback, as he did over the course of last fall, thanks to his eagerness to keep learning.