The wait for Alabama football will soon be over as the Crimson Tide announced it will begin its fall camp on Friday. The Tide will hold 23 practices as well as two closed scrimmages as it gears up for its season-opener against Miami on Sept. 4 inside Atlanta’s Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
The next month will be pivotal in determining how Alabama lines up this season. Before the Tide breaks for camp, BamaInsider will examine each position group by taking a look at two key storylines. Today we continue the series with the linebackers.
Nick Saban wasn’t in the mood to reveal his plans at inside linebacker this spring when asked if junior Christian Harris will step into the Mike linebacker role vacated by Dylan Moses. However, the head coach has plenty of options to choose from this fall.
Theoretically, it would make sense for Harris, who is entering his third year as a starter at inside linebacker, to follow in Moses’ footsteps and quarterback Alabama’s defense this season. The junior finished second on the team with 79 tackles, tallying seven stops for a loss with 4.5 sacks. While Moses handled most of the signal-calling, Harris said he also played a part in communication on the field, stating he would like to take a more vocal role this season. During spring camp, Saban praised Harris’ leadership while stating that he is capable of taking on the signal-calling role.
“I think he’s starting to gain confidence in being able to do that,” Saban said this spring. “I think that’s going to be important for us to grow, but having more experience and having more guys that know how to do it, know what to do, play the way you want them to play, you have less guys that need to be led so I also think that’s a positive."
While Harris seems poised to take on a bigger role in Alabama’s defense, the Tide has several other capable options to choose from when it comes to leading the unit. One of those is Tennessee transfer Henry To’o To’o, who joined the team this offseason after leading the Volunteers with 76 tackles and 10 stops for a loss last year. The junior has already served in a leadership role with Alabama this offseason, taking part in the team’s 18 for 18 Project last week.
“We thought Henry was one of the best players, defensive players in our conference, in watching him play at Tennessee, and we had recruited him in high school,” Saban said during SEC Media Days last month. “We thought he was an outstanding player in high school. We're talking about a fine young man who's very intelligent, very instinctive player, very conscientious. He wants to know everything about not only what he does, but everybody on the defense. He's got really good leadership qualities. So I think that there's a lot of positives that he can bring, especially – you always want to have a great signal caller or quarterback type guy on defense.”
Another option for Alabama is senior Jaylen Moody, who stepped into an increased role this spring after primarily serving as a reserve throughout his career. The longtime special teams star recorded 18 tackles last season, including a career-high seven stops against Arkansas when he filled in for an injured Harris.
“He has been a very positive guy on our team, he’s been a core player on special teams,” Saban said this spring. “He’s got a great attitude; he plays with a lot of energy. Now he has an opportunity to start and he’s certainly taken advantage of that. We’re happy that he’s here and he’s doing a good job for us.”
The pass-rushing duo of Christopher Allen and Will Anderson Jr. figures to be one of the best in the nation this season. But how does it rank among Saban’s all-time tandems at Alabama?
Last season, Allen and Anderson combined for 15 sacks and 23.5 tackles for a loss over 26 appearances. Anderson earned the Shaun Alexander-FWAA National Freshman Player of the Year Award, leading the nation’s freshmen with seven sacks despite failing to bring down a quarterback in his first seven games. On the other side of the defense, Allen led the SEC with 13 tackles for a loss while finishing third on the team with six sacks. Both players are expected to expand on those numbers as they enter their second seasons as starters this year.
Alabama is well accustomed to pass-rushing duos in recent years. Allen and Anderson were preceded by Anfernee Jennings and Terrell Lewis, who combined for 14 sacks and 24 tackles for a loss over 24 appearances in 2019. The Tide’s most productive tandem under Saban came in 2016 when Ryan Anderson and Tim Williams combined for 18 sacks and 35 tackles for a loss over 30 appearances.
Can Allen and Anderson pass those totals this season? The duo certainly has a lot going in its favor.
As discussed earlier in this series, Alabama returns plenty of experience in its defensive line which should free up pursuits to the quarterback off the edge. The Tide also loses just one member of its starting secondary, which should tie up receivers and give Allen and Anderson more time to get to the backfield.
Depth will likely be the duo’s biggest obstacle when it comes to their pursuit of reigning supreme on the stat sheet. Outside of Allen and Anderson, Alabama also features several talented options including Drew Sanders, Chris Braswell, Quandarrius Robinson, Dallas Turner and Keanu Koht who were all rated as Rivals100 talents coming out of high school. That’s a problem the Tide won’t mind dealing with this season.
The next month will be pivotal in determining how Alabama lines up this season. Before the Tide breaks for camp, BamaInsider will examine each position group by taking a look at two key storylines. Today we continue the series with the linebackers.
Who will lead Alabama’s loaded linebacking unit?
Nick Saban wasn’t in the mood to reveal his plans at inside linebacker this spring when asked if junior Christian Harris will step into the Mike linebacker role vacated by Dylan Moses. However, the head coach has plenty of options to choose from this fall.
Theoretically, it would make sense for Harris, who is entering his third year as a starter at inside linebacker, to follow in Moses’ footsteps and quarterback Alabama’s defense this season. The junior finished second on the team with 79 tackles, tallying seven stops for a loss with 4.5 sacks. While Moses handled most of the signal-calling, Harris said he also played a part in communication on the field, stating he would like to take a more vocal role this season. During spring camp, Saban praised Harris’ leadership while stating that he is capable of taking on the signal-calling role.
“I think he’s starting to gain confidence in being able to do that,” Saban said this spring. “I think that’s going to be important for us to grow, but having more experience and having more guys that know how to do it, know what to do, play the way you want them to play, you have less guys that need to be led so I also think that’s a positive."
While Harris seems poised to take on a bigger role in Alabama’s defense, the Tide has several other capable options to choose from when it comes to leading the unit. One of those is Tennessee transfer Henry To’o To’o, who joined the team this offseason after leading the Volunteers with 76 tackles and 10 stops for a loss last year. The junior has already served in a leadership role with Alabama this offseason, taking part in the team’s 18 for 18 Project last week.
“We thought Henry was one of the best players, defensive players in our conference, in watching him play at Tennessee, and we had recruited him in high school,” Saban said during SEC Media Days last month. “We thought he was an outstanding player in high school. We're talking about a fine young man who's very intelligent, very instinctive player, very conscientious. He wants to know everything about not only what he does, but everybody on the defense. He's got really good leadership qualities. So I think that there's a lot of positives that he can bring, especially – you always want to have a great signal caller or quarterback type guy on defense.”
Another option for Alabama is senior Jaylen Moody, who stepped into an increased role this spring after primarily serving as a reserve throughout his career. The longtime special teams star recorded 18 tackles last season, including a career-high seven stops against Arkansas when he filled in for an injured Harris.
“He has been a very positive guy on our team, he’s been a core player on special teams,” Saban said this spring. “He’s got a great attitude; he plays with a lot of energy. Now he has an opportunity to start and he’s certainly taken advantage of that. We’re happy that he’s here and he’s doing a good job for us.”
Will Allen and Anderson be Alabama’s best pass-rushing pair under Saban?
The pass-rushing duo of Christopher Allen and Will Anderson Jr. figures to be one of the best in the nation this season. But how does it rank among Saban’s all-time tandems at Alabama?
Last season, Allen and Anderson combined for 15 sacks and 23.5 tackles for a loss over 26 appearances. Anderson earned the Shaun Alexander-FWAA National Freshman Player of the Year Award, leading the nation’s freshmen with seven sacks despite failing to bring down a quarterback in his first seven games. On the other side of the defense, Allen led the SEC with 13 tackles for a loss while finishing third on the team with six sacks. Both players are expected to expand on those numbers as they enter their second seasons as starters this year.
Alabama is well accustomed to pass-rushing duos in recent years. Allen and Anderson were preceded by Anfernee Jennings and Terrell Lewis, who combined for 14 sacks and 24 tackles for a loss over 24 appearances in 2019. The Tide’s most productive tandem under Saban came in 2016 when Ryan Anderson and Tim Williams combined for 18 sacks and 35 tackles for a loss over 30 appearances.
Can Allen and Anderson pass those totals this season? The duo certainly has a lot going in its favor.
As discussed earlier in this series, Alabama returns plenty of experience in its defensive line which should free up pursuits to the quarterback off the edge. The Tide also loses just one member of its starting secondary, which should tie up receivers and give Allen and Anderson more time to get to the backfield.
Depth will likely be the duo’s biggest obstacle when it comes to their pursuit of reigning supreme on the stat sheet. Outside of Allen and Anderson, Alabama also features several talented options including Drew Sanders, Chris Braswell, Quandarrius Robinson, Dallas Turner and Keanu Koht who were all rated as Rivals100 talents coming out of high school. That’s a problem the Tide won’t mind dealing with this season.
