Spring football returned to the University of Alabama on Friday, March 11.
Fans of the Crimson Tide are excited for this edition of athletes taking the field, as Nick Saban and the program look to reclaim the crown of national champions. With 15 practices sessions — including the A-Day Game — the staff writers for Touchdown Alabama Magazine will provide in-depth previews on marquee players.
We continue with the offensive side of the football with tight end Cameron Latu.
Cameron Latu
Classification: Redshirt senior
Position: Tight end
Hometown: Salt Lake City, Utah
Height: 6-5
Weight: 244
Strengths: Size, strength, blocking, red zone threat, athleticism
Weaknesses: Drops
SUMMARY FOR SPRING PRACTICE
Cameron Latu’s success at Alabama was a long time coming and required patience and hard work throughout. When he first arrived on campus back in 2018, Latu redshirted his first year with the Crimson Tide and was playing linebacker. With depth issues at tight end in 2019, Nick Saban transitioned Latu to fill the need offensively and after two more years of development, he was one of Alabama’s premier players in 2021.
During his redshirt junior season, Latu won the starting job at tight end and never looked back. He recorded 26 receptions for 410 yards and eight touchdowns through 15 games for the Crimson Tide. Along with being a lethal red zone threat, Latu was a well-rounded tight end relying on his physical tools from his defensive days to showcase his ability to block upfront. This helped give Alabama’s offense a much-needed complement to Jahleel Billingsley who was much more of a passing threat, but even then Latu proved to be more consistent.
This spring, with one season to go, Latu returns as the most experienced offensive skill player alongside quarterback Bryce Young. As Young and offensive coordinator, Bill O’Brien work to find replacements at wide receiver, Latu will need to step up even more so and be a reliable security blanket for the offense.
But this also means that Latu will need to clean up the drops and penalties. Despite having a successful overall season, Latu dropped three passes on the year, one of which was for a touchdown against Texas A&M. He also led the skill positions offensively with four penalties.
Improving in these areas will be imperative in the short term for he will likely be a heavily targeted option this upcoming season.
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Patrick Dowd is a Reporter for Touchdown Alabama Magazine. You can follow him on Twitter, via Pat_Dowd77
