Alabama’s Ty Simpson dropped the ball in front of the goal line on a 79-yard TD run.
Alabama’s longest play of the season was 78 yards. Ty Simpson (now) can laugh at what should have been 79 years of age.
Instead, he learned a valuable lesson about when to throw the ball when it crossed the goal line and when to mis-throw it, and received a very clear rebuke from Nick Saban.
Let’s start from the beginning.Alabama used backup QB Simpson to outscore FCS rival Chattanooga 52-10 early in the fourth quarter.
On third-and-9 from the Mocs’ 21, the passer turned into a runner.
Simpson got out of the pocket, ran left, took advantage of Kendrick Lowe’s block and hit Bryant-Denny Stadium on the other side of the rim.
Simpson is not a second line quarterback. A redshirt freshman at Alabama and the son of former five-star recruit and UT-Martin head football coach Jason Simpson, he aspires to one day work in his father’s profession.
But on November 18 he gave a reading. Simpson, who dropped a lash just before reaching the goal line, dropped the ball to set off a celebration that would delight the young defender.
It is a very unfamiliar sight. The ball carrier approaches the goal line and naturally drops the pellet before crossing the plane.
A month and a half later, Simpson couldn’t help but smile as he recalled the teachable moment at Rose Bowl media day Saturday morning.
“As you can see, it was very exciting at first,” Simpson said. “
After we got the momentum from the Kentucky game, we had to go out there and play. Go for a long run.
I talked to my colleagues about what our evening would be like.
Looking back, no one could understand why they were rated. “Coach (Saban) told me I did a good job,” he said.But not long after, another quarterback, Tyler Buechner, delivered some bad news.
A look at the video card confirmed this.And Saban wanted to say one more thing.
“Then Coach Saban called me and said, ‘Pretend you’ve been there, man.’ Cost much. In big games it can cost you.’
I took it on the chin. “Yes sir, yes sir.” This is definitely a learning moment. I promise I won’t do this again.
I heard this clearly in team meetings. “It was more awkward than anything, but it was definitely a learning experience,” he said.
SEC Network cameras were on hand to capture the moment.”He said, ‘Hey, are you serious? You are much better than that.
Act like you’ve been there before. “It’s not the first time,” Simpson recalled. “You have to say ‘Yes sir’ and put your chin on your chin.
I was embarrassed, but I promise I won’t do it again. “I’ll give the ball to the referee,” he said.Simpson also remembers another reason refs had one-sided conversations when reviewing plays. “
That was one of the reasons I couldn’t talk to coach Saban,” Simpson said. “I have plenty of gas. I was very embarrassed.
I said, “My God!”After the referee made the decision, Simpson appeared on live television with his head down and a disgusted look on his face.
So he came back down the field and passed to freshman Richard Young, who broke off a 1-yard touchdown.
Teammates patted him on the back as he returned to the touchline and consoled the defender who saw his moment of glory collapse after 30 minutes.
