Alabama Football: Can Tide steal 5-star QB Ty Simpson from Clemson?

Ty Simpson, a five-star quarterback, is one of the top recruits in the class of 2022 and both Alabama Football and Clemson are fighting for his commitment. 

Over the years, Alabama football and Clemson football have no doubt established themselves as the top two programs in the country.

And the biggest reason for that has been exceptional play at the quarterback position. The defenses are obviously loaded with talent, as are the offenses for both teams, but during this College Football Playoff era each has always had an elite-level QB and that’s been the difference.

Both teams are going to have young superstar quarterbacks starting for them in 2021 too, but in order to keep that talent flowing, Clemson and Alabama are duking it out for one of the top quarterbacks in the Class of 2022 — Ty Simpson.

Simpson is out of Martin, Tennessee and was just given his fifth star by 247 sports. He’s 6-foot-2, 187 pounds and ranked as the No. 3 pro-style passer in 2022 as well as the No. 27 player overall.

Simpson is also just two days away from making his decision and unlike most recruits, this still seems like a 50/50 battle according to 247 sports.

As lead recruiting expert Steve Wiltfong writes on Twitter:

"“Clemson had the edge for five-star QB Ty Simpson but daily conversations with Alabama head coach Nick Saban have tightened this blue-chip battle up heading into Friday’s announcement.”"

The Tigers started receiving crystal ball projections for Simpson dating back to October and Clemson football has been seen as the favorite to land him.

However, as Wiltfong noted, Saban and Alabama football have been making a push of their own and with the way both programs have developed quarterbacks, Simpson has to feel like he can’t make the wrong choice either way.

Yet, the crystal balls have started to trend away from Clemson. Wiltfong, who had his prediction in for the Tigers in January, has dropped his confidence level to a one, on a scale of 1-10, which indicates a 50/50 battle.

Bama has also picked up a pair of crystal ball projections in the last two days, making this a fascinating recruiting battle between blue-blood programs.

The arms race in college football is for real and in the recruiting class of 2022, it’s playing out in real-time as Alabama football tries to nab Ty Simpson away from Clemson.