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Alabama quarterback Ty Simpson remembers his last trip to the Rose Bowl with the Crimson Tide fondly. Two years ago, a few days prior to Alabama's loss to Michigan in the College Football Playoff semifinal, Simpson recalls meeting with then-coach Nick Saban about his plan for the rest of his career following two seasons as a backup.

Simpson was eyeing a potential jump to the transfer portal before Saban changed his mind the only way he knew how.

"He said, 'I get it if you want to leave, but I know you, and I know what you wanted in recruiting. If you want to create value for yourself and you want to be a first-round draft pick, this could be a great story for you. You could leave a legacy here,'" Simpson said, referring to Saban, on the 'Bussin' With The Boys' podcast this week. "I thought about it, prayed about it, and said, you know what? You're right. And the next thing you know, he retires. I'm sitting there, and I'm like, he just lied to me

"But also as a coach's son, I understand. I understand what was going on. I understand how he thought about it. We had a good conversation about it, and to this day, we laugh about it."

Saban announced his retirement from Alabama 10 days after the Crimson Tide's loss to the eventual-national champion Wolverines, but Simpson skipped an opportunity to leave to stay with the team.

Crowned the starter this season as a fourth-year junior in Kalen DeBoer's second year, Simpson has thrown for 3,500 yards and 28 touchdowns entering next week's showdown with unbeaten and top-ranked Indiana.

Simpson's first spring with DeBoer in 2024 was reassuring that he made the right decision to stick around following Saban's retirement. 

"Just got to play ball. It was free. It was offensive-minded and not defensive-minded," Simpson said during the podcast episode published Tuesday. "Honestly, it probably was better for my development in a sort of way, just because it wasn't -- honestly, because I could just play. The only reps that I got was some in a game, some in the South Florida game, but it was all defensive-minded reps. I had to prove to myself that I could actually play. I knew I could do it, whether it was in high school or practice, or during a game or a live-action scrimmage, I needed to prove to myself that I could.

"Coach DeBoer, that's all we did during the spring. 'Y'all just go play man. Just go do you.' Honestly, I took a huge step."

Simpson's "steps" thereafter have led to first-round buzz for the 2026 NFL Draft as one of the nation's top prospects under center. And according to DraftKings Sportsbook's latest odds, Simpson is at +1800 to go No. 1 overall.

Earlier this season, Simpson said he met with Saban before Alabama's opener to help ease some of the anxiety brought with the pressure of being the Crimson Tide's QB1. And after losing the game at Florida State, Simpson led Alabama to wins in 10 of its next 12 games prior to the SEC Championship loss to Georgia and a last weekend's first-round playoff victory at Oklahoma.