PASADENA, Calif. (AP) — Alabama quarterback Ty Simpson says a cracked rib sidelined him in the second half of the Crimson Tide's 38-3 loss to top-seeded Indiana in the Rose Bowl on Thursday.
Simpson got hurt when an Indiana player's helmet hit him in the torso and caused a fumble after he made a courageous scramble through the Hoosiers' defense for a first down late in the first half. He had an X-ray at halftime that revealed the injury, Simpson said
after the College Football Playoff quarterfinal ended.
“Felt like I had a good thing going on that drive when I got hit,” Simpson said. “It kind of changed the momentum for sure. Just ready to get back to work. I’ve got to get healthy and get ready to go.”
Simpson still went back on the field for one more series after halftime, but he voluntarily gave way to backup Austin Mack after he couldn't play through the injury.
“I made an executive decision and thought (about) what gave us the best chance to win,” Simpson said. "I thought Austin being 100% could help us win.”
Simpson acknowledged that he might have tried to do too much on that fateful scramble after he came up one yard short of a first down on a run earlier in the game.
“I knew I slid (and) I thought I got the first down,” Simpson said of the first run. “I was a half a yard short. Came back to the sideline, was (ticked) off. The competitor in me wanted to make sure I got the first down. Got more than the first down, and then should have been smart and just got down.”
Neither quarterback had sustained success in a one-sided loss.
Simpson went 12 of 16 for 67 yards, while Mack went 11 of 16 for 103 yards while getting sacked three times. Mack led the Tide's only scoring drive, going 65 yards on nine plays in his first series, which culminated in a short field goal.
The Tide didn't score again in their biggest blowout loss since September 1998.
“(Simpson) really wanted to try to go out there (after halftime)," Alabama coach Kalen DeBoer said. “I know he feels like he let down the team, and there's no way that that's the case. He went out there, tried to battle. That's who he is.”
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AP college football: https://apnews.com/college-football
