AJ McCarron launches campaign for lieutenant governor of Alabama
By Jacob Moss
Published:
Former Alabama Crimson Tide quarterback AJ McCarron is officially entering the world of politics, with the former Tide legend launching his campaign for Lieutenant Governor of Alabama on Thursday morning.
McCarron announced his intention to run for the second-highest public office in the state in a video posted on a YouTube channel dedicated to his campaign.
McCarron also states in the video that he will be running as a Republican, citing many of the leadership qualities and characteristics he developed while attending Alabama and playing in the NFL as traits he believes make him well-suited to this new role.
A highly recruited 4-star recruit coming out of high school, McCarron played for Nick Saban and the Tide from 2010-2013, becoming one of the most decorated players to ever come through the program.
“When Coach Saban recruited me to play quarterback for the University of Alabama, he taught me the principles of being a leader,” McCarron said in his announcement.
“And together we won back-to-back national championships. And playing in the NFL reinforced the importance of achieving goals bigger than ourselves.”
Over his 3 years as a starter for Alabama, McCarron threw for 9,019 yards and 77 touchdowns and guided the Tide to back-to-back National Championships in 2011 and 2012.
He was then drafted by the Cincinnati Bengals in the fifth round of the 2014 NFL Draft, and spent 7 years in the NFL as a backup while also spending some time in the XFL.
