First and 10: Dear Alabama, now do you believe in Jalen Milroe?

1. I don’t want to get on a soapbox, but …

At some point, Nick Saban is going to have to fess up. He’s going to have to admit he and the Alabama staff made a huge mistake in blaming Jalen Milroe for the Texas loss.

Because Milroe has now officially saved Alabama’s season.

It might not look like Tua Tagovailoa or Mac Jones or Bryce Young. It might not even look like Jalen Hurts.

But in this oddly desperate season, in this unique time where Saban’s grip on the SEC — and the national title — is seemingly slipping away with every Georgia statement game, what Milroe has accomplished since the end of last season has been remarkable.

He keeps taking rejection, and keeps climbing back into the arena and fighting.

They tried to replace him with high school recruits. Then there was Alabama’s flirtation with convincing quarterbacks to leave their current schools. Eventually, there was an official transfer portal signing, and last — but surely not least — the biggest gut punch of all: a benching.

Now here’s Milroe, apparently the last guy Alabama wanted playing quarterback in 2023, standing tall as the key to the season.

That’s 3 elimination games down, and 7 more to go until the Playoff.

“For guys to pull themselves up, to overcome adversity and resiliency,” Saban said after the Texas A&M win, “This is a great win for our team.”

He may as well have been describing the path taken by Milroe since the end of last season.

From the moment Young officially announced he was leaving early for the NFL — not that it wasn’t already a given — Alabama did nearly everything it could to find a way to play anyone other than Milroe, whose only career start was a win over Texas A&M in 2022.

He threw 3 TD passes in that game, but also had 3 turnovers. And for a coach who values ball security over all else, that’s not cutting it.

Saban signed 2 quarterbacks in the 2023 recruiting class, adding blue-chippers Eli Holstein and Dylan Lonergan to a QB room that already had a 5-star recruit from 2022 (Ty Simpson) and Milroe.

Once the regular season ended, Alabama began looking at transfer quarterbacks, reportedly offering multiple players to leave their current schools for lucrative NIL deals. Among those players: North Carolina’s Drake Maye, Maryland’s Taulia Tagovailoa (who transferred, of course, from Alabama) and Duke’s Riley Leonard, who is from Alabama.

None of them bit.

That left Alabama with Milroe, Simpson and 2 midterm enrollee freshmen competing for the starting quarterback job. Nobody separated from the others during spring practice, so Saban approved another run at the spring portal — where former Notre Dame starter Tyler Buchner was signed.

Because he was the former Irish starter in 2022 (before missing nearly 3 months with a shoulder injury), and because new Bama OC Tommy Rees recruited him and knew his ability, it was a foregone conclusion that Buchner had the job.

Only Milroe kept getting better, and shortly before the season opener — after Simpson didn’t develop and it was clear Holstein and Lonergan weren’t ready to play — Milroe was the safe choice.

Then came the Texas game, when Alabama struggled to protect the quarterback and run the ball — and couldn’t stop the Longhorns defensively. A 10-point home loss was laid directly at the feet of Milroe.

If you don’t think it was, look at the results: Milroe was benched the following game for Buchner. Milroe wasn’t happy, he let Saban and Rees know he wasn’t happy — and the next thing you know, Alabama is struggling to put away lowly USF on the road. Buchner didn’t work, nor did Simpson.

But instead of admitting the move to bench Milroe was wrong, Saban stuck with Simpson while the run game did just enough and the defense shut down USF.

Think about that: Saban was willing to lose the USF game out of principle instead of putting Milroe back in the game. Afterward, when asked about Milroe, he said, “It’s an internal team thing. I think everybody has the opportunity to respond in the right way when things don’t go exactly like you want them to.”

Translation: Milroe didn’t like that he was being singled out for the Texas loss. But why should he?

He wasn’t the reason Alabama lost that game.

A day later after the USF game, on Sunday, Saban announced that Milroe was the team’s starting quarterback moving forward. Three days after that, Saban told ESPN that Milroe wasn’t benched, that he wanted all 3 quarterbacks to get an opportunity to play — and that’s why Milroe didn’t play against USF.

“That’s it,” he said. “I’ve got confidence in Jalen. I believe in him.”

From recruiting over Milroe (twice), to blaming him for the Texas loss, to benching him — to eventually believing in him. Or something like that.

It has been a long road for Milroe. And it has only just begun.

2. The continued development

I spoke with 2 NFL scouts Sunday after the Texas A&M game, and both were at the game.

The breakdown of the game: The Aggies creeped safeties toward the line of scrimmage to stop the run — and dared Alabama to beat them with Milroe and a group of (at that point) underachieving wide receivers in man coverage.

And Milroe and the receivers did just that. Over and over and over.

“He’s not an elite thrower. Far from it,” an NFL scout said of Milroe. “But the 1 thing I’ve noticed since that Texas game is he keeps getting better. He’s holding onto the ball just a little bit longer, hanging in the pocket, moving in the pocket, just a little bit longer, until (receiver) separation. He’s giving the pass game a chance to win.”

Said the other scout: “He has, what, 6 career starts? What are we expecting? He’s not Bryce Young, OK? But that doesn’t mean he can’t be efficient, and that he won’t get better. Because he will. I’m telling you, he will get better as the season progresses. He’s confident now. That’s the thing that stood out to me. He’s playing confidently, and throwing it confidently. He’s no longer aiming the ball, he’s letting it go. If I’m Nick, I’m thrilled with that.”

Jalen Hurts is the quarterback Milroe is most closely compared to in the long run of Alabama starters under Saban. Look at the similarities of their first 6 starts

Hurts: 1,296 passing yards (59.5%), 10 TDs, 3 INTs; 396 rushing yards, 8 TDs; 6-0 record (3-0 vs. ranked teams).

Milroe: 1,270 passing yards (66.9%), 12 TDs, 5 INTs; 239 rushing yards, 4 TDs; 5-1 record (1-1 vs. ranked teams)

Hurts got better as the season progressed, and he did so because he had the benefit of a dominating defenses erasing mistakes, and an offensive line that paved the way for a group of solid running backs.

Milroe has the dominating defense, but the Alabama offensive line is still a work in progress. Hurts’ first season ended in the national championship game, and but for a rare final drive by Clemson QB Deshaun Watson after Hurts put the Tide ahead with a TD run, would’ve ended with a national championship.

3. Saving the Tide, The Epilogue

There’s no denying that Alabama doesn’t beat Ole Miss and Texas A&M — and maybe Mississippi State — without Milroe.

There’s no denying that he’s getting better every week, and the Alabama passing game is becoming more reliable. But there’s another reason for Milroe’s quick elevation from the Texas game: WRs Jermaine Burton and Isaiah Bond are more consistent.

Burton has had flashes at Alabama since 2022, and prior to that at Georgia. Now he looks like a legit deep threat, a player who can take the top off a defense with his speed and game-breaking ability.

He’s averaging 22.7 yards per catch, and he’s now pushing cornerbacks off coverage and catching critical down and distance throws on short and intermediate routes.

Translation: He’s becoming a true No.1 receiver.

Meanwhile, there’s Bond, the player Saban has raved about since last season — consistently projecting him as a player on the verge of a breakout season. This could be it for Bond, who had a career-high 7 catches against Texas A&M.

With 2 dangerous options on the outside — and another solid option with emerging TE Amari Niblack — Milroe’s progression will continue. And the Tide will only become more dangerous.

Not bad for the quarterback Alabama didn’t believe in, then blamed for a critical loss — then embraced when they had to. And he delivered.

4. A rare season

We haven’t reached Joe Burrow-level history yet (and won’t), but Jayden Daniels is putting on a show this season at LSU.

Tigers coach Brian Kelly said in July that Daniels was primed for an All-American season, and Daniels is doing everything he can to make it happen.

After last week’s win at Missouri, Daniels has now accounted for at least 4 TDs in 5 consecutive games — a first in the history of LSU football. Not even Burrow, in his season for the ages of 2019, can say that.

Daniels is completing 73% of his passes for 1,969 yards, 19 TDs and a 10.2 average per attempt. He has thrown only 2 INTs, and is No. 2 in the nation in pass efficiency rating (196.72) — behind only USC QB Caleb Williams (206.17).

Daniels has also rushed for 442 yards and 4 TDs, and has accounted for 2,411 yards — or 73.2 percent of the LSU offense.

5. The Weekly 5

Five games against the spread.

• 1. Arkansas at Alabama (-17.5)
• 2. Missouri (-2) at Kentucky
• 3. Texas A&M at Tennessee (-3.5)
• 4. Florida at South Carolina (-2.5)
• 5. Auburn at LSU (-13)

Last week: 1-4.

Season: 16-14.

6. Your tape is your resume

An NFL scout analyzes a draft-eligible SEC player. This week: Georgia CB Kamari Lassiter.

“I really like the way he plays the game. He’s tough, he active and is fundamentally sound. He’s a really smart player. He doesn’t have top-end speed, and that may be the thing that could keep him from from Day 1 (pick). Too many times in the selection (process) we look at numbers and measurables and not the player. Not what the player does in big games, and how he plays within the structure.”

7. Powered Up

This week’s Power Poll, and 1 big thing.

1. Georgia: The offensive line is settling in, and the run game is beginning to assert itself. All signs of an offense coming together.

2. Alabama: After a season of regression in 2022, edge rusher Dallas Turner is playing at an elite level. He has 6.5 sacks and 2 forced fumbles in 6 games — after 4 sacks all of last season.

3. Ole Miss: Don’t underestimate the run defense improvement from one week to the next. After giving up 223 yards rushing against LSU last week, the Rebels held Arkansas to 36 yards on 29 carries.

4. Texas A&M: That top 10 pass defense was deceiving. You don’t get beat that many times in man coverage against an offense not running a complex structure.

5. Kentucky: Wildcats had receivers running open all game against Georgia, and QB Devin Leary couldn’t deliver the ball. In 3 games against SEC competition, Leary is 34-of-74 (46%) for 402 yards.

6. Tennessee: In 2 SEC games, QB Joe Milton has thrown his only interceptions (3) at Tennessee and is completing 62% of his passes.

7. LSU: In the past 2 games against Ole Miss and Missouri, the LSU pass defense has given up 24 plays of at least 15 yards — and 800 yards passing and 6 TDs.

8. Missouri: The pass rush that looked strong in September hasn’t made an impact in SEC games. The next 2 weeks are critical — with winnable games at Kentucky and vs. South Carolina — before a trip to Georgia on Nov. 4.

9. South Carolina: Gamecocks had a bye week to figure out pass protections. If QB Spencer Rattler has a clean pocket, South Carolina will have success against Florida’s No. 1-ranked (in the SEC) pass defense.

10. Florida: Until the Gators do something to change it, this number will follow the program: Florida is 1-7 in games on the road or at neutral sites under coach Billy Napier.

11. Arkansas: Hogs have lost 4 in a row under coach Sam Pittman for the first time since losing the last 4 games of 2020. Three of those 4 losses were 1 possession games.

12. Auburn: Two weeks to prepare for LSU, which hasn’t stopped anyone this season. Can Auburn’s dual-QB offense find enough holes against the worst defense in the SEC?

13. Mississippi State: Bulldogs snapped a 3-game losing streak by relying more on QB Will Rogers. The next question: Are there 3 wins left on the schedule to reach bowl eligibility?

14. Vanderbilt: There’s not another win on the schedule. The goal for the remainder of the season: Get QB AJ Swann back in the starting lineup, and get him as many reps as he can get.

8. Ask and you shall receive

Matt: Am I crazy to think Ole Miss can win out? I watched the Kentucky offense miss a lot of plays against Georgia. — Steven Pihl, Atlanta.

Steven:

First, let’s address the Georgia defense. There were plays out there that Kentucky didn’t make, no question. But some of those were because of pressure from the Georgia front.

Georgia still likes to play 2 high safeties and man underneath because they can get home in the pass rush with 4. They dare you to throw the ball down the middle or deep, where they’ll make big plays.

I really like the Ole Miss offense in Year 2 under OC Charlie Weis Jr., and the development of QB Jaxson Dart. He’s accurate, he’s making smart decisions and he’s a tough, willing — and at times, dangerous — runner.

They’re balanced on offense, they’re patient and they’ve got big play potential all over the field. I can see Ole Miss winning 10 games, but getting to 11 with a win over Georgia may be a reach.

The rest of the season outside of the Georgia game isn’t a walk. They’ll get 2 weeks to prepare for a tough game at Auburn, and play Texas A&M in Oxford to begin November. Then the Egg Bowl at Starkville.

There’s plenty of heavy lifting ahead, but if the defense follows up the Arkansas effort with more strong run defense against Auburn and Texas A&M, it will set up a big game with Georgia.

9. Numbers

6.7. Graham Mertz is No. 2 nationally in completion percentage (79.5%), but it’s a wild misrepresentation of the Florida passing game.

A more accurate representation: 3rd down.

Mertz has completed 75% of his passes on 3rd down, a high number that typically would signal success. But in 36 attempts on 3rd down, Mertz has completed 13 throws for 1st down conversions, a rate of 36%.

Mertz is also averaging 6.7 yards per attempt on 3rd down, a full 2-plus yards under his average on 1st and 2nd down (9.1). Gators coach Billy Napier says the ball needs to go downfield more, and that Mertz needs to take more chances.

Until it does, the Florida offense will continue to be predictable — and defensible.

10. Quote to note

Arkansas coach Sam Pittman: “Our issue was just playing smart football. That’s what it was. It wasn’t anything else.”

Matt Hayes

Matt Hayes is a national college football writer for Saturday Down South. You can hear him daily from 12-3 p.m. on 1010XL in Jacksonville. Follow on Twitter @MattHayesCFB