Austin Mack lost the Alabama Crimson Tide quarterback battle to Keelon Russell heading into 2026, all but ending his tenure in Tuscaloosa.
Mack arrived at Alabama alongside of Kalen DeBoer in 2024, but has never gotten the opportunity to become the full-time starter. And unless Russell flames out early this season, Mack never will.
The redshirt junior has just one year of eligibility remaining, and barring unforeseen circumstances, he will almost certainly be entering the transfer portal come the winter.
A former five-star recruit, Mack will definitely generate considerable interest, but there also might be some teams reluctant to take a chance on him given the fact that he has minimal experience as a starter.
But could the Miami Hurricanes represent one of the programs willing to give him a shot?
Miami will probably be in the market for a quarterback after the season. It acquired former Duke star Darian Mensah via the transfer portal this past offseason, but Mensah's jump to the NFL seems imminent.
Alabama Crimson Tide quarterback Austin Mack. Credit: David Leong-Imagn Images.
Unless the Hurricanes want to roll with Luke Nickel under center moving forward, they may very well scour the transfer portal for a signal-caller yet again. They did it with Cam Ward in 2024. They did it with Carson Beck in 2025. Now, Mensah in 2026.
Why wouldn't they utilize the portal yet again?
Now, I will say that the difference is those three other quarterbacks all had ample experience before arriving in South Beach. Mack? Not so much.
Yes, it was Mack who relieved an injured Ty Simpson in the Rose Bowl last year, but he has thrown a grand total of 35 passes throughout his collegiate career.
Mack did not play at all during his true freshman season at Washington in 2023, and he went just 2-for-3 with 39 yards and a touchdown in his debut campaign at Alabama.
That lack of history could ultimately sway schools like Miami in another direction. So could the fact that he just lost his battle to Russell in spite of being given every chance to win it.
But at 6-foot-6, 235 pounds with tremendous arm strength, there is no question that Mack's potential is tantalizing. Surely, other teams see it.
This isn't to say that Mack is bound for The U, but it would be surprising if Miami didn't express at least some level of interest in he 20-year-old come portal time.
