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Two months without college football has felt like an eternity. But thereās good news, folks: the wait is almost over. The Crimson Tide players will slide on their helmets and lace up their cleats Friday, March 13, when Alabama returns to the field to begin it spring practice schedule ahead of the 2015 A-Day Game.
The Crimson Tide will welcome eight early enrollees, including 2014 signee Bo Scarbrough, and two new assistant coaches in Tosh Lupoi (outside linebackers) and Mel Tucker (defensive backs) to the field tomorrow as the first chapter of the 2015-16 season begins.
One of the deepest positions for Alabama for the upcoming year is the teamās defensive line. The Crimson Tide only lost two contributors (Brandon Ivory and Dee Liner), while adding four in its top-ranked recruiting class for 2015 (two DTs and two weakside DEs). The D-line will easily be one of the teamās strengths when it travels to Dallas for its first game of the season, but thatās almost a guarantee.
Before Alabama steps back onto the practice field on Friday, though, letās take a look at some of the unknowns and question marks surrounding the team:
Biggest storyline: Quarterback battle
Unless youāve been living under a rock, you know the Crimson Tide will look to replace its starting quarterback in 2015 now that Blake Sims is moving onto the NFL after five years in Tuscaloosa. But which signal caller will it be?
There are five candidates for the job, with only one of them throwing a single pass last season. That would be Florida State transfer Jacob Coker, who entered the 2014 season in a tight battle for the starting spot with Sims. But, obviously, he lost the fight to the dual-threat QB.
Coker, having a year to learn the teamās playbook, will be joined by three returning players in Alec Morris, Cooper Bateman and David Cornwell. Morris hasnāt done much in his Alabama career, but was quietly considered the No. 3 guy last season, seeing the field under center late in only one contest.
Bateman returns as the teamās field-goal holder and top scout-team quarterback. He, like Sims, can make plays with his legs, so it will be interesting to see what he can do, if given the chance. For Cornwell, he redshirted last season, his first in Tuscaloosa, and is finally healthy after enduring knee and ankle injuries.
Thatās four quarterbacks, for those keeping count. The fifth is early enrollee Blake Barnett, who was a five-star prospect and the No. 2 pro-style QB in the 2015 recruiting cycle, according to the 247Sports Composite rankings. Barnett clearly has the talent, but I just donāt see Nick Saban giving the reigns of the offense to a true freshman, especially with so many older players in front of him this spring.
Based off experience alone, one would believe Cokerās the favorite entering spring practice, but that was also the case last summer. Weāll just have to wait and see who is taking first-team snaps from center Ryan Kelly on Friday.
Weakest areas: S, WR and ILB
Alabama is losing three safeties with a ton of game experience in Landon Collins,Nick Perry and Jarrick Williams. Collins and Perry combined for 182 total tackles and five interceptions in the backend of the secondary, while Williams, who was hampered by injuries, played in 11 games last season.
Players like Geno Smith, Maurice Smith, Jabriel Washington and Laurence Jonesall saw the field in 2014 and will be looked upon to fill the voids left by the three departing players. The Crimson Tide also added two four-star safeties in its 2015 recruiting class, in Ronnie Harrison and Deionte Thompson, who could make an impact this spring.
Itās also no secret that Alabama struggled mightily in defending the deep ball last year, although thatās not entirely on the safeties. The defensive backs need to polish their technique and have players step up, especially with three veteran safeties no longer on the roster.
Just like the safety position, the Crimson Tideās receiver group is losing three major contributors, as Amari Cooper,DeAndrew White and Christion Jones are all looking to land on an NFL roster this spring. The receiving trio, led by Cooper, caught 183 passes and 21 touchdowns last year as Simsā top-three targets in the passing game.
Now, it will be up to younger players like Chris Black, ArDarius Stewart, Robert Foster and Cameron Sims to step up and take over starting spots this spring and off-season. The four receivers pulled down 40 receptions last season in reserve roles. We, the media, however, heard nothing but positive vibes about the young pass catchers from Saban last year, so the wide out position should be in good hands on Friday.
That brings us to the inside linebackers. Trey DePriest, the signal caller on defense last season, is out of eligibility, leaving a hole at Mike beside returning starter Reggie Ragland. After missing the first game of the season, DePriest recorded 87 total tackles in 2014.
The obvious replacement for DePriest would be the hard-hitting Reuben Foster, but Foster has dealt with head/neck/shoulder-related injuries throughout his Alabama tenure, including last season. If he canāt learn to keep his head up and see what heās tackling, I donāt think heās the answer at Mike next season.
That leaves guys like Dillon Lee and Shaun Hamilton with chances to see playing time in the starting lineup. Other than that, the inside linebacker position is pretty thin, with no other players with game experience under their belts. This position will be the most important to try and fill, to me, during the teamās spring practices.
Breakout players: Jones, Sims and Foster
Letās start with rising sophomore safety Laurence Jones, who is referred to as āHootieā by his teammates. I listed him earlier as a candidate to see playing time in the secondary next year, but I think he is a near lock to hold down the strong safety spot in place of Collins.
Jones is 6-foot-2, 221 pounds and is entering his second year in Tuscaloosa. He played in seven games last season, contributing on special teams and as a reserve on the defensive side of the ball late in games.
That big frame is the mold the safety position is starting to turn to -- just look at Seattle Seahawks safety Kam Chancellor. And Jones enrolled early last year, so this will be his second spring of learning the playbook and having an opportunity to try to lock up a starting job.
Next up is rising sophomore wide receiver Cameron Sims. Sims, as a true freshman, appeared in 12 games, catching seven passes for 62 yards and one touchdown, while also helping the team out on special teams.
The coaching staff showed a lot of faith in Sims last year, as he was one of the first receivers off the bench to sub into games for Cooper, White and Jones.
Heās one of the biggest receivers on the team at 6-foot-4, 208 pounds, and could be a serious red-zone threat for the next starting QB. I personally think Sims is in for a big year after seeing how much he was used a season ago, passing older guys on the depth chart.
That leaves rising junior inside linebacker Reuben Foster. Like I mentioned earlier, Foster has a reputation of landing big-time hits, but, more often than not, heās the one that comes up wobbling or injured rather than the player that received the hit.
Donāt get me wrong, Foster has all the talent in the world, as he arrived at Alabama as the No. 1-ranked inside linebacker and No. 6 overall player in the 2013 recruiting cycle, according to the 247Sports Composite rankings. But accolades donāt help when a player canāt record a tackle without injuring himself.
To me, this spring is huge for Foster, though. He has the potential to come out and work on keeping his head up and lock down that Mike position alongside Ragland, giving the Crimson Tide the top ILB from 2012 and 2013 starting in the middle of its defense. That would be pretty impressive.
The Crimson Tide will welcome eight early enrollees, including 2014 signee Bo Scarbrough, and two new assistant coaches in Tosh Lupoi (outside linebackers) and Mel Tucker (defensive backs) to the field tomorrow as the first chapter of the 2015-16 season begins.
One of the deepest positions for Alabama for the upcoming year is the teamās defensive line. The Crimson Tide only lost two contributors (Brandon Ivory and Dee Liner), while adding four in its top-ranked recruiting class for 2015 (two DTs and two weakside DEs). The D-line will easily be one of the teamās strengths when it travels to Dallas for its first game of the season, but thatās almost a guarantee.
Before Alabama steps back onto the practice field on Friday, though, letās take a look at some of the unknowns and question marks surrounding the team:
Biggest storyline: Quarterback battle
Unless youāve been living under a rock, you know the Crimson Tide will look to replace its starting quarterback in 2015 now that Blake Sims is moving onto the NFL after five years in Tuscaloosa. But which signal caller will it be?
There are five candidates for the job, with only one of them throwing a single pass last season. That would be Florida State transfer Jacob Coker, who entered the 2014 season in a tight battle for the starting spot with Sims. But, obviously, he lost the fight to the dual-threat QB.
Coker, having a year to learn the teamās playbook, will be joined by three returning players in Alec Morris, Cooper Bateman and David Cornwell. Morris hasnāt done much in his Alabama career, but was quietly considered the No. 3 guy last season, seeing the field under center late in only one contest.
Bateman returns as the teamās field-goal holder and top scout-team quarterback. He, like Sims, can make plays with his legs, so it will be interesting to see what he can do, if given the chance. For Cornwell, he redshirted last season, his first in Tuscaloosa, and is finally healthy after enduring knee and ankle injuries.
Thatās four quarterbacks, for those keeping count. The fifth is early enrollee Blake Barnett, who was a five-star prospect and the No. 2 pro-style QB in the 2015 recruiting cycle, according to the 247Sports Composite rankings. Barnett clearly has the talent, but I just donāt see Nick Saban giving the reigns of the offense to a true freshman, especially with so many older players in front of him this spring.
Based off experience alone, one would believe Cokerās the favorite entering spring practice, but that was also the case last summer. Weāll just have to wait and see who is taking first-team snaps from center Ryan Kelly on Friday.
Weakest areas: S, WR and ILB
Alabama is losing three safeties with a ton of game experience in Landon Collins,Nick Perry and Jarrick Williams. Collins and Perry combined for 182 total tackles and five interceptions in the backend of the secondary, while Williams, who was hampered by injuries, played in 11 games last season.
Players like Geno Smith, Maurice Smith, Jabriel Washington and Laurence Jonesall saw the field in 2014 and will be looked upon to fill the voids left by the three departing players. The Crimson Tide also added two four-star safeties in its 2015 recruiting class, in Ronnie Harrison and Deionte Thompson, who could make an impact this spring.
Itās also no secret that Alabama struggled mightily in defending the deep ball last year, although thatās not entirely on the safeties. The defensive backs need to polish their technique and have players step up, especially with three veteran safeties no longer on the roster.
Just like the safety position, the Crimson Tideās receiver group is losing three major contributors, as Amari Cooper,DeAndrew White and Christion Jones are all looking to land on an NFL roster this spring. The receiving trio, led by Cooper, caught 183 passes and 21 touchdowns last year as Simsā top-three targets in the passing game.
Now, it will be up to younger players like Chris Black, ArDarius Stewart, Robert Foster and Cameron Sims to step up and take over starting spots this spring and off-season. The four receivers pulled down 40 receptions last season in reserve roles. We, the media, however, heard nothing but positive vibes about the young pass catchers from Saban last year, so the wide out position should be in good hands on Friday.
That brings us to the inside linebackers. Trey DePriest, the signal caller on defense last season, is out of eligibility, leaving a hole at Mike beside returning starter Reggie Ragland. After missing the first game of the season, DePriest recorded 87 total tackles in 2014.
The obvious replacement for DePriest would be the hard-hitting Reuben Foster, but Foster has dealt with head/neck/shoulder-related injuries throughout his Alabama tenure, including last season. If he canāt learn to keep his head up and see what heās tackling, I donāt think heās the answer at Mike next season.
That leaves guys like Dillon Lee and Shaun Hamilton with chances to see playing time in the starting lineup. Other than that, the inside linebacker position is pretty thin, with no other players with game experience under their belts. This position will be the most important to try and fill, to me, during the teamās spring practices.
Breakout players: Jones, Sims and Foster
Letās start with rising sophomore safety Laurence Jones, who is referred to as āHootieā by his teammates. I listed him earlier as a candidate to see playing time in the secondary next year, but I think he is a near lock to hold down the strong safety spot in place of Collins.
Jones is 6-foot-2, 221 pounds and is entering his second year in Tuscaloosa. He played in seven games last season, contributing on special teams and as a reserve on the defensive side of the ball late in games.
That big frame is the mold the safety position is starting to turn to -- just look at Seattle Seahawks safety Kam Chancellor. And Jones enrolled early last year, so this will be his second spring of learning the playbook and having an opportunity to try to lock up a starting job.
Next up is rising sophomore wide receiver Cameron Sims. Sims, as a true freshman, appeared in 12 games, catching seven passes for 62 yards and one touchdown, while also helping the team out on special teams.
The coaching staff showed a lot of faith in Sims last year, as he was one of the first receivers off the bench to sub into games for Cooper, White and Jones.
Heās one of the biggest receivers on the team at 6-foot-4, 208 pounds, and could be a serious red-zone threat for the next starting QB. I personally think Sims is in for a big year after seeing how much he was used a season ago, passing older guys on the depth chart.
That leaves rising junior inside linebacker Reuben Foster. Like I mentioned earlier, Foster has a reputation of landing big-time hits, but, more often than not, heās the one that comes up wobbling or injured rather than the player that received the hit.
Donāt get me wrong, Foster has all the talent in the world, as he arrived at Alabama as the No. 1-ranked inside linebacker and No. 6 overall player in the 2013 recruiting cycle, according to the 247Sports Composite rankings. But accolades donāt help when a player canāt record a tackle without injuring himself.
To me, this spring is huge for Foster, though. He has the potential to come out and work on keeping his head up and lock down that Mike position alongside Ragland, giving the Crimson Tide the top ILB from 2012 and 2013 starting in the middle of its defense. That would be pretty impressive.
