Alabama is expected to turn to Austin Mack at quarterback against Vanderbilt, with Keelon Russell likely held out so his ankle can heal, according to ESPN’s Pete Thamel.
Thamel wrote on X that “Starter Keelon Russell (ankle) is expected to be available, but the expectation is the Tide staff holds him out and lets his ankle heal,” adding that “Russell has been listed as probable.”
Russell picked up the ankle injury in last week’s win over LSU, but he stayed in the game and threw three touchdowns. Alabama head coach Kalen DeBoer said Monday that the staff is trying to balance Russell’s health with what the team needs on the field.
“We gotta keep moving and winning and playing our best football,” Alabama head coach Kalen DeBoer said on Monday when asked how he’s balancing Russell’s health with his progress. “So, you’re weighing how he feels, what the medical staff says as far as - we never want to hurt him, and we will never do that. But he’s gotta go out there and obviously be able to play at the level that can help us win.
“So, we got a lot of confidence if we had to move to Austin [Mack] at some point. But he’s day-to-day.
I mean, he continued to finish off the game. And so, that’s a good sign right there.
I mean, this kid’s a really tough kid.
“And he’s had other things that have popped up in games where he’s played through it. You guys have seen probably that, too, when you’re really paying close attention.
And he stays out on the football field, keeps doing his thing. So, for him to play at the level he played at, getting dinged up a little bit, is impressive in itself.
I’d expect him to do everything he can to get on the football field. And we’re never gonna put him in an area of safety where that’s a concern.”
Mack and Russell battled for the starting job this offseason, with Russell winning the competition. Mack has gone 3-for-4 passing this season while working as the top backup.
He arrived at Alabama after following DeBoer from Washington. Last season, Mack served as Ty Simpson’s backup and finished with 228 passing yards and two touchdowns on 24 completions in 32 attempts across four games.
That included the Rose Bowl loss to Indiana, when Simpson “cracked” his rib late in the first half and Mack came on in relief. He completed 11 of 16 passes for 103 yards and helped Alabama get its only points of the day on a Conor Talty field goal.
“Every game I kind of just tell myself, 'Be Ready,' and I’ve never been surprised,” Mack said after the Rose Bowl. “Anything could happen and I knew I was one play away from getting in the game. So when they told me I was getting in the game, it was just like, 'Let’s go and let’s just play ball.'
“It was the moment, I was ready for. It was something I had been preparing for the whole season.
Something I put a lot of work in to get to. Obviously, it's a big stage - the Rose Bowl against the No. 1 team - but I was ready for it.”
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