After the second week of the year, the Alabama Crimson Tide were 1-1 and quarterback Jalen Milroe had lost his starting job. Fast forward seven weeks and Alabama is a top-five betting favorite in Vegas to win the 2023 national championship and Milroe has the seventh-best odds to win the 2023 Heisman Trophy. So, how did it happen?
In Week 3 against the USF Bulls, Saban gave both Tyler Buchner and Ty Simpson a chance to win the job as Milroe didn’t see a single snap in the game. Alabama beat the Bulls 17-3, but it could not have possibly been any uglier with the two QBs going 10/23 for 107 yards.
With Alabama’s national championship hopes on the line and Lane Kiffin and Ole Miss coming to town in Week 4, Saban and his staff decided to hand the reins back over to Milroe and never looked back. Sure there have been growing pains and bad halves, but each week Milroe is taking massive steps toward improvement. Now, with back-to-back top 15 wins over Tennessee and LSU, Alabama is finding their way back into the playoff hunt and Milroe is playing as well as anyone in the SEC at the position.
Saturday night was Milroe’s statement game as he diced up the LSU defense for 155 yards and four scores on the ground. He is an absolutely sensational runner of the football as we all know, but the biggest difference is his passing is becoming more consistent each game as he completed 65% of his throws against the Tigers last night.
Milroe has climbed all the way up to No. 7 in the Heisman odds at +2500 after last night’s dazzling performance. Michael Penix of Washington and Bo Nix Oregon currently lead the race at +150 a piece, but the playoff race is wide open and the Heisman Trophy is anyone’s for the taking. Typically, this is where Nick Saban shows his greatness and finds ways to win and get the most out of his teams. The last month of this season is going to be a roller coaster so buckle up!
Latest Heisman odds from Caesars:
+150 — Michael Penix
+150 — Bo Nix
+900 — J.J. McCarthy
+900 — Jordan Travis
+1200 — Carson Beck
+1400 — Marvin Harrison
+2500 — Jalen Milroe
+6000 — Ollie Gordon
+7500 — Drake Maye
+7500 — Jayden Daniels— Mike Rodak (@mikerodak) November 5, 2023
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