Alabama football coach Kalen DeBoer enters his first spring practice Monday. Here are five key priorities for the Crimson Tide's 15 spring practices.
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Kalen DeBoer, Nick Sheridan and Alabama QB Jalen Milroe
The Crimson Tide's returning starter at quarterback helped to spearhead the internal effort to hold the roster together when DeBoer was hired in mid-January, so buy-in from the playmaking veteran isn't in question. That's a fine first step for the critical three-way relationship between DeBoer, Sheridan and Milroe, but now comes the execution phase: installing an offense that's nothing at all like the one Milroe ran a year ago. While DeBoer has said the offense will be tailored somewhat to the talent on hand, Milroe can at least expect this much from an adjustment standpoint: he'll be asked to get the ball out of his hand much more quickly in DeBoer's system than he did in 2022. There will be plenty more for Milroe to learn this spring, but if he can embrace that change, the entire offense should benefit.
The DeBoer culture
Buy-in means different things to different players, and for at least a few, it won't mean enough. That's the nature of coaching changes, and with the NCAA transfer portal offering multiple opportunities per year for players to seek a new team, it's become the nature of college football as well. Somebody is sure to test DeBoer from an effort standpoint, someone else from an attitude standpoint, and still someone else from a behavioral standpoint. College kids, athletes or not, cut classes. Beyond all that, there's an on-field culture that six weeks of meetings and workouts can't begin to build like practice can. There will be well-intentioned, hard-working players who just have a tougher time than others learning different technique or terminology than what they were used to under Saban. Selling them on something that's not quite how the greatest coach of all-time taught it won't be easy. But having a locker room presence like the aforementioned Milroe, and other veterans who embraced the new staff, such as defensive back Malachi Moore and guard Tyler Booker, will help.
Who's on the corner?
New defensive backs coach Maurice Linguist has his hands full. The Crimson Tide lost its top three cornerbacks in Terrion Arnold,
Kool-Aid McKinstry and Trey Amos from last year. The chase is on for some mostly inexperienced candidates, and Linguist will be clocking a wide-open race at the finish line. Domani Jackson, a transfer from Southern Cal, has played a little major college ball, at least. It'd be a good time for redshirt freshman Jahlil Hurley to make a move, and five-star freshman signees Zabien Brown and Jaylen Mbakwe figure to get close looks as well. Not much torpedoes a defense like a weakness at this position, especially one that will also be looking for new edge rushers up front. Linguist and new defensive coordinator Kane Wommack would like nothing more than to identify a couple SEC-ready cornerbacks as quickly as possible.
Changes up front
If the DeBoer-Sheridan offense is anything like the DeBoer-Grubb offense at Washington last year, a lot more will be asked of the Crimson Tide offensive line from an athletic standpoint. More speed, more pulling, more blocking in space. That'll be an interesting adjustment for a group that mostly stuck to driving defensive linemen off the line of scrimmage last year. Transfer center Parker Brailsford, an All-Pac 12 pick at UW last year, might find himself a de facto captain when it comes to installation.
What's needed?
DeBoer has indicated there are a few open scholarships on the roster. Given the imbalance between transfers going out vs. those coming in, that's no surprise. The Spring transfer portal opens on April 15, two days after the annual A-Day game, and you can bet the Crimson Tide will be active. What position will need the most help? For DeBoer and staff, identifying strengths is important, but so is identifying a weakness or a lack of depth. Spring practice should give them every chance to recognize what direction to turn once the portal window opens, and act quickly when it does.
