Alessandra Delrose
There was still more to be written for Lane Kiffin in his time in crimson.
That, beyond any other reason, is why Kiffin enters his second season as the Crimson Tide's offensive coordinator.
"I just really felt that we had done so many good things in year one, but this chapter wasn't over yet," Kiffin said Sunday in his lone media opportunity of the year.
That chapter already includes a conference title and several offensive school records in 2014. Now Kiffin wants to maximize his time under Nick Saban.
"There's still so many things to learn from coach," he said. "Just going into the offseason, it's kind of like being a freshman. I feel like a sophomore now where last year you're a freshman just trying to figure it out, trying to get the scripts ready, get to practice and stuff. Now you really start to understand how and why he does it and why it's so successful."
He reminisced on how rewarding it was to see Blake Sims succeed after many years in the program and how fulfilling it was to see Amari Cooper take his natural talents and add hard work to become a top five NFL draft pick.
Now Kiffin is charged with getting another quarterback ready to play - he wouldn't allow himself to get too much into details about the quarterback competition - and leading another productive offense.
He allowed that having five quarterbacks in competition makes things more difficult, but right now it is what it is.
"Another way to look at is if you eliminate one or two, you might be eliminating the wrong guy," Kiffin said.
Losing Cooper is definitely a blow to the offense, but Kiffin mentioned two wide receivers who have the talent to replace the production but players who also need to continue progressing.
Sophomore ArDarius Stewart showed his potential last season before an injury derailed him. Robert Foster also showed promise.
"ArDarius is as talented, probably the most talented guy that we have and has made some significant plays. We've just got to get him to take it to the next level so he can be an every-down player.
"Robert Foster has flashed, very fast, showed us a really good skill set. Again, just need to continue to get him to be more consistent."
Another potential target is junior tight end O.J. Howard, who remains a fan favorite.
"He's a very special player," Kiffin said.
The admiration goes both ways.
Howard, who said he never had any doubts that Kiffin would return for a second season, said he's excited about how he might be used.
"He can call a play up and keep the defense guessing," Howard said. "He knows how to get the ball to our guys who make big plays."
Finding an offensive identity remains a work in progress and won't likely be settled until the personnel is in place. One thing remains constant, though. Alabama wants to run the ball.
"Obviously we want to be tough and physical…" Kiffin said. "There are a bunch of different ways to run the ball. You watch the national champs, Ohio State, run the ball and they're not running it the normal, conventional way. They're spread out and different things.
"So it's not necessarily the formations and the way that you run it, but the style you run it and how physical you want to be. So we want to run the ball and be physical. We just have to figure out who those players are doing that, not just running the ball but the skills and the personnel we're using."
- See more at: https://alabama.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=1790503#sthash.1lIxR3Bj.dpuf
There was still more to be written for Lane Kiffin in his time in crimson.
That, beyond any other reason, is why Kiffin enters his second season as the Crimson Tide's offensive coordinator.
"I just really felt that we had done so many good things in year one, but this chapter wasn't over yet," Kiffin said Sunday in his lone media opportunity of the year.
That chapter already includes a conference title and several offensive school records in 2014. Now Kiffin wants to maximize his time under Nick Saban.
"There's still so many things to learn from coach," he said. "Just going into the offseason, it's kind of like being a freshman. I feel like a sophomore now where last year you're a freshman just trying to figure it out, trying to get the scripts ready, get to practice and stuff. Now you really start to understand how and why he does it and why it's so successful."
He reminisced on how rewarding it was to see Blake Sims succeed after many years in the program and how fulfilling it was to see Amari Cooper take his natural talents and add hard work to become a top five NFL draft pick.
Now Kiffin is charged with getting another quarterback ready to play - he wouldn't allow himself to get too much into details about the quarterback competition - and leading another productive offense.
He allowed that having five quarterbacks in competition makes things more difficult, but right now it is what it is.
"Another way to look at is if you eliminate one or two, you might be eliminating the wrong guy," Kiffin said.
Losing Cooper is definitely a blow to the offense, but Kiffin mentioned two wide receivers who have the talent to replace the production but players who also need to continue progressing.
Sophomore ArDarius Stewart showed his potential last season before an injury derailed him. Robert Foster also showed promise.
"ArDarius is as talented, probably the most talented guy that we have and has made some significant plays. We've just got to get him to take it to the next level so he can be an every-down player.
"Robert Foster has flashed, very fast, showed us a really good skill set. Again, just need to continue to get him to be more consistent."
Another potential target is junior tight end O.J. Howard, who remains a fan favorite.
"He's a very special player," Kiffin said.
The admiration goes both ways.
Howard, who said he never had any doubts that Kiffin would return for a second season, said he's excited about how he might be used.
"He can call a play up and keep the defense guessing," Howard said. "He knows how to get the ball to our guys who make big plays."
Finding an offensive identity remains a work in progress and won't likely be settled until the personnel is in place. One thing remains constant, though. Alabama wants to run the ball.
"Obviously we want to be tough and physical…" Kiffin said. "There are a bunch of different ways to run the ball. You watch the national champs, Ohio State, run the ball and they're not running it the normal, conventional way. They're spread out and different things.
"So it's not necessarily the formations and the way that you run it, but the style you run it and how physical you want to be. So we want to run the ball and be physical. We just have to figure out who those players are doing that, not just running the ball but the skills and the personnel we're using."
- See more at: https://alabama.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=1790503#sthash.1lIxR3Bj.dpuf
