Each year since 1999, many of the country's best high school quarterbacks converge on Beaverton, Oregon — the home of Nike World Headquarters — to compete in an event known as the Elite 11, which gives these young QBs the opportunity to showcase their skills in a variety of events. At the end of the competition, an MVP is named, and then more often than not, these quarterbacks go on to find some degree of success at the college, and sometimes pro level. And as of 2024, no school has had more commits walk away with the Elite 11 MVP award than the University of Alabama.
The latest Alabama-bound prospect to add his name to this list is Keelon Russell, a four-star quarterback who is ranked as the 7th-best QB in the 2025 class, according to 247Sports. Russell, a duel-threat weapon who has amassed a 29-1 record and two state titles as the starting quarterback at Duncanville High School in Texas, not only took home the hardware, but managed to turns some heads up in the Pacific Northwest.
“Russell displayed some of the best arm talent at the Elite 11,” writes Bruce Feldman of The Athletic. “He was good off-platform and demonstrated great spatial awareness. He impressed the staff with his leadership and with what [QB coach] Roth described as an uncanny ‘awareness that really stood out.'”
It wasn't just Bruce Feldman who raved about Keelon Russell's performance. Elite 11 coaching veteran Justin Hoover stated that he believes Russell “just has this great feel and leadership and ability to calm everyone down,” while former Michigan Wolverines quarterback and current Elite 11 coach Devin Gardner said, “I think he might have the highest ceiling of anyone here.”
Russell initially committed to SMU before flipping to Alabama earlier this month. He joins Brodie Croyle (2000), Blake Barnett (2014), Tua Tagovailoa (2016), and Julian Sayin (2023) as the Alabama Crimson Tide commits who have won MVP at this prestigious event. Both Croyle (5th) and Tagovailoa (4th) are near the top of the list of the Alabama quarterbacks with the most passing yards in school history. Certainly, new head coach Kalen DeBoer and everyone in the city of Tuscaloosa will be hoping that Keelon Russell someday tops this list. But first, it's up to current Tide starting quarterback Jalen Milroe to build off of his successful 2023 season and continue to rise in his first season under DeBoer.
What heights can Kalen DeBoer and Jalen Milroe reach at Alabama?
Jalen Milroe's first season as the Alabama Crimson Tide starting quarterback didn't get off to the ideal start. Milroe was benched after a disappointing loss to Texas early in the season, retained his job after backup Tyler Buchner struggled on the road against South Florida, and then steadily improved throughout the year, leading the Tide to a miracle win over Auburn in the Iron Bowl and earning SEC Championship Game MVP honors for his performance against the Georgia Bulldogs. Milroe finished 6th in the Heisman Trophy voting, and enters the 2024 season as the co-favorite to win the award along with Georgia quarterback Carson Beck.
In addition to the way he closed out the 2023 season, part of the reason for Milroe's Heisman hopes in 2024 are due to the arrival of head coach Kalen DeBoer. While at Washington, DeBoer and his staff crafted a dynamic offense led by 2023 Heisman runner-up Michael Penix Jr. The Huskies were the 13th-highest scoring team in the country and featured a much more QB friendly offense than the Tide did under Nick Saban. The expectation is that DeBoer could unlock whatever is the next level that Jalen Milroe could reach as a collegiate quarterback.
The now-expanded SEC is going to be as tough as ever, and some media outlets rank Alabama as low as 5th in preseason conference predictions. But don't sleep on the new look Tide just yet. Kalen and Jalen could be cooking up something exciting down in Tuscaloosa.
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