It has been a monumental year for Alabama football on offense and a productive time defensively as of late, seeing how the team is pushing to win back-to-back national titles for the first time since 2011-12 seasons.
Upon earning its 11th straight win versus Citadel on last week, the College Football Awards Show in Atlanta will be filled with outstanding players and the Crimson Tide is providing the majority of them.
Like a proud parent, Nick Saban is set to accompany five young men that have been chosen as finalists for national awards on Thursday, Dec. 6 at the College Football Hall of Fame via ESPN.
Behind the individuals listed below, Alabama has one of the nation’s top scoring offenses (48.7 ppg) and top scoring defenses (13.1 ppg allowed).
Two of the five stars– one on offense, one on defense — have been recognized for multiple honors.
Tua Tagovailoa, QB
He has turned Alabama’s offense from boring into non-stop entertainment as a first-year starting quarterback.
Tua Tagovailoa broke AJ McCarron’s single-season mark for touchdown passes with 31 and is two scores shy of having the record for total touchdowns.
He has had an incredible sophomore year, totaling 2,865 passing yards with 31 scores to two interceptions.
Tagovailoa accounts for 35 total touchdowns – four rushing – and despite some college football analysts leaning toward Kyler Murray of Oklahoma to win the Heisman Trophy, the native Hawaiian has managed to do double the damage to opponents in half the time as Murray.
He is finalists for both Davey O’Brien and Maxwell awards.
Jerry Jeudy, WR
Jerry Jeudy is one of five receiving targets at 500-plus yards for the Tide; however, he leads the group with 1,002 yards and 10 scores on 51 catches. He’s completely torn up the Southeastern Conference, turning in 100-yard performances against LSU, Ole Miss, Arkansas and Missouri.
With averaging nearly 20 yards per catch (19.65) and 91 yards per game, the sophomore continues to juke his way up the record book. After becoming the fourth receiver of the Saban era to account for 1,000 yards, Jeudy is now sixth all-time in most receiving yards in a season.
He is a finalist for the Fred Biletnikoff honor.
Jonah Williams, OL
For the man that speaks as though he’ll be a 15-year veteran in the National Football League, Jonah Williams anchors the left side of offensive line that has witnessed an impressive season.
He has protected Tua Tagovailoa to have massive numbers, while setting the edge for two 500-yard running backs in both Damien Harris and Najee Harris.
Williams has blocked for an average of 48.7 points and 541.5 total yards per game.
He is the linchpin of a group to assist Alabama to converting 65 of 120 third downs (54 percent) and 42 of its 60 red zone attempts for touchdowns, which is 70 percent.
A native of Folsom, Calif., Williams consistently grades out as the best lineman for the Tide and one of the nation’s premiere offensive tackles in football.
He is a finalist for the Outland Trophy.
Quinnen Williams, DL
The emergence of Quinnen Williams has served as a surprise for not only Alabama fans, but also consumers of college football. Even with him being one of the two smallest defensive tackles (295 pounds) of the Saban era, the redshirt sophomore has proven that size means nothing.
His outing versus Louisiana State University was one of those games that NFL scouts will watch for the remainder of the season. Williams, a native of Birmingham, Ala., tallied 10 total tackles, 3.5 tackles for loss and 2.5 sacks in the Tide’s 29-0 win over LSU inside Tiger Stadium.
Since the matchup, he is starting to rise on draft boards.
Williams is third on the team in tackles (55) and sacks (six) while he carries a team-high 15 tackles for loss and has nine quarterback pressures. He has been the epitome of disruption for opposing offenses and looks to continue in the postseason. Williams is a finalist for Chuck Bednarik, Outland and Bronko Nagurski awards.
Dylan Moses, LB
His teammate, Lyndell “Mack” Wilson, was robbed of an opportunity to join him as a Dick Butkus Award finalist; however, Dylan Moses has quietly turned in a huge year.
The sophomore and former five-star took over the lead in total tackles, following his output of seven on last week against the Bulldogs. Moses has 61 tackles, including nine for loss and 3.5 sacks through 11 regular season games. With him sharing responsibilities at inside linebacker, Alabama went from struggling early on to having one of the elite unit’s in the nation.
Stephen M. Smith is the managing editor and senior writer for Touchdown Alabama Magazine. You can “like” him on Facebook or “follow” him on Twitter, via @CoachingMSmith.
