A New Beginning For The Crimson Tide....

[Bill from NYC]

There will be heavy pressure on Coach DeBoer as he begins a new era in Alabama football as he replaces Nick Saban, easily the greatest coach in college football history. From what little I have gathered so far, I am happier than I thought I would be. This will be an interesting team and coaching will matter quite a bit imo.  The following is a brief summary of how I think that the Tide shapes up entering the season....

 

Quarterback:

Jalen Milroe returns and will start. He is immensely talented but did have certain liabilities last season. He needs to improve on his short and mid-range passes and make quicker decisions. Apparently Coach DeBoer has been working with him, and DeBoer is said to be very sharp offensively. The kid is an amazing runner who is fast and strong. Milroe is backed by Ty Simpson who I think will be a very good player. Behind him is Dylan Lonergan, as well as a talented kid from Washington who transfered in, so QB depth is not an issue. It is in fact a strength.

 

OL: 

Will probably be better than last year. LT Kaydn Proctor was very good as a freshmen but was overweight. This season he lost weight and will probably be more agile. The center position should be improved and they probably have the best pair of guards in the NCAA. RT should not be a problem.

 

RB:

Another asset. They are very deep and they have backs with speed, power, and ability to block. There are at least three high quality RBs.

 

WR:

Very deep but one of them needs to step up as a great #1 which they did have for what seems like forever. Some are comparing incoming 5 star freshman Ryan Williams to Jalen Waddle. Williams is supposedly excelling in camp, but that is a tall order.

 

DL:

They will be better than last season imo. Very good starters but I'm not sure about the depth.

 

LB: Strong all over and VERY talented and deep on the inside.

 

Secondary:

There does seem to be questions at corner but the new players are said to be doing well in camp. At safety, Malachi Moore is a terrific player who can cover, intercept passes, stop running plays, and even sack quarterbacks. That said, it will be seemingly impossible to replace Caleb Downs who left for Ohio State.

 

Kickers:

Punter is highly rated. Record setting place kicker Will Reichard is gone but the new kid is said to be kicking 60 yarders in practice.

 

In all, there will be a great deal of pressure on DeBoer, and rightly so. There will probably never be another Nick Saban, and I hope that Coach DeBoer can even come close. I think that they will score more points than last season, although their schedule is brutal. I think that they will open strong and gain confidence. The point spread is minus 31 1/2 on Saturday and this is nuts, but they will probably cover.

 

Good Luck Bama and ROLL TIDE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Edited August 29 by Bill from NYC