Did Wisconsin Tamper With Alabama 5-Star QB Keelon Russell? New Video Shows Suspicious Conversation

Keelon Russell is buried on the Alabama depth chart. Meanwhile, Wisconsin desperately needs a quarterback.

That raises questions about a conversation on the field at Bryant-Denny Stadium on Saturday…

I am not going to jump to any conclusions based only on a five-second video without any additional context but I would be lying if I said it does not look suspicious. And it’s not like tampering is not rampant in this modern era of college football, even if nothing comes from the brief interaction.

Keelon Russell is waiting his turn.

Russell was rated as the No. 2 overall player in the recruiting Class of 2025 behind only Bryce Underwood. The five-star quarterback chose to play for Alabama over SMU, Ole Miss and Baylor after an incredible career at Duncanville High School, a powerhouse in the state of Texas.

He also went 4-of-6 for 65 yards and two touchdowns in garbage time against ULM last week.

However, Russell is still listed third on the depth chart behind Ty Simpson and Austin Mack.

Head coach Kalen DeBoer discussed the lack of playing time for his true freshman signal-caller earlier in the week. It is not personal!

“There are steps,” he said. “It’s like, ‘Why aren’t you playing [Keelon Russell] more?’ But there are steps that he has taken. He’s continued to go up, but there are just two guys that are just so much further ahead in the verbiage of the offense when it comes to the spring. It’s complicated. We love making it as simple as we can, but in the end, our system, there are a lot of working parts to it.”

Fair enough. And it’s not like Simpson hasn’t played well during the first three games of the season.

There is no reason to rush into the Keelon Russell era if he is not fully ready.

Was Wisconsin tampering?

The Crimson Tide dominated the Badgers at home on Saturday. Simpson completed 24 of his 29 pass attempts for 382 yards and four touchdowns. Mack saw a few snaps at the very end of the game.

Russell did not play. He did not need to. That’s totally fine!!

On the other side of the field, Wisconsin starting quarterback Danny O’Neil (the backup to start the season) went 11-of-17 for just 117 yards and one late touchdown with two interceptions. Yeesh.

That leads us to the aforementioned postgame interaction.

Chris Worley serves as the Director of Player Development and Engagement for the Badgers. He briefly spoke with Keelon Russell after the game. His hand covered his mouth while they talked. It appeared as though he covered his mouth and started walking away when he noticed the camera nearby.