Bryant Haines took offense to Ty Simpson's recent podcast remarks and responded with receipts -- and no interest in softening the message after his unit delivered one of the worst losses in Alabama history
By Brad Crawford Apr 19, 2026 at 10:41 am ET • 2 min read 
Getty Images Indiana defensive coordinator Bryant Haines lashed out at former Alabama quarterback Ty Simpson and later the Crimson Tide fanbase this week after a perceived slight from the former signal caller on a recent podcast.
It all started when Simpson appeared on former teammate and current Ohio State safety Caleb Downs' podcast. During the interview, the Alabama signal caller claimed he knew what Indiana was going to do on every snap of the Crimson Tide's 38-3 blowout loss to the Hoosiers -- he just couldn't do anything about it.
"From my point of view, I was like, they don't do much," Simpson told Downs. "They do the same thing every down. So when I got the ball, I knew exactly what was going to happen. They just didn't mess up bro. They were in the exact same spot they were supposed to be. They were so well coached.
"It was so much different than the SEC. In the SEC, they'll play man, they'll do these unorthodox coverages. That's kind of how it is. That game was crazy to me. Of course, I got hurt. So that was a bummer. I knew what they were going to do. We couldn't really run the ball, didn't really throw. It was just so crazy to me how it happened."
Haines apparently took offense to Simpson's statement, sharing a clip from Downs' podcast with a retort attached.
"Adorable," Haines wrote on social media. "We also saw everything they were doing, on every single snap… It's just that we exploited those cues. And didn't get frozen and crushed by them."
After some pushback on social media for the comment, Haines doubled down.
"That's all it took to break your entire fanbase?" He wrote. "Wow.. maybe I should've just said "Boo". No apologies, no compliments. Grow up folks. He had a bad take and I said the painful truth. Bounce back better. #GoIU #NoCompliments"
While some may question the point of the social media exchange, Haines has certainly earned the right to talk. The Broyles Award winner's unit limited Alabama to 193 total yards, including 23 yards rushing and a 3-for-11 effort on third down in the CFP quarterfinal win. Simpson completed 12 of 16 passes for 67 yards while rushing three times for 17 yards before he exited the game with a cracked rib.
Alabama's 35-point loss was the program's worst since the turn of the century, which includes the Crimson Tide's mutilation at the hands of Clemson in the national championship game to end the 2018 season.
It also marked Alabama's most lopsided loss in a bowl game and lowest point total in a postseason matchup since Bear Bryant's team ended the 1960 Bluebonnet Bowl in a 3-3 tie with Texas.
Indiana finished No. 2 in the country in scoring defense, fourth in total defense and eighth in opponents' third down conversion rate (30.1%). Four Hoosiers were honored with first-team All-Big Ten accolades -- Tyrique Tucker, Aiden Fisher, Louis Moore and D'Angelo Ponds.
In December, Haines signed a multi-year extension that makes him one of the highest-paid coordinators in college football.
On paper, Indiana's defense looks to be stout again in 2026. Despite losing a couple of starters to eligibility and the NFL Draft, the Hoosiers landed a top-10 transfer haul featuring former Kansas State edge Tobi Osunsanmi and Penn State cornerback A.J. Harris.
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