As we prepare for the start of Alabama’s 2022 season, the staff for Touchdown Alabama Magazine will be previewing position groups in preseason camp.
The Crimson Tide returns veterans, young players, and depth at every position.
Alabama’s focus is to return to the College Football Playoff and win a national championship. Coach Nick Saban is pursuing the eighth national title of his career and seventh for the Tide. He wants to see excellence on both sides of the ball, and the season begins on Saturday, Sept. 3.
We continue with our preview series with the offensive line.
Alabama’s Offensive Line
-Returners: Emil Ekiyor (senior), Darrian Dalcourt (senior), Javion Cohen (Junior), Kendal Randolph (senior), Seth McLaughlin (redshirt sophomore)
-Newcomers: Tyler Steen (transfer), Tyler Booker (freshman), Elijah Pritchett (freshman),
-Expected starters: Tyler Steen, Emil Ekiyor, Darrian Dalcourt, Kendall Randolph, JC Latham
Summary:
Last season Alabama’s performance along the offensive line was far from the typical Nick Saban unit from years past. Despite having a top 10 NFL Draft pick in Evan Neal headlining the group, the line as a whole was wildly inconsistent throughout the year in both the run and pass-blocking areas.
This season Alabama will need to find replacements for both its tackle spots and new offensive line coach Eric Wolford will be tasked with developing some of the young talent.
The interior of the offensive line returns intact this season as senior Emil Ekiyor opted to return for his final season with the Crimson Tide. Ekiyor will now enter his third season as a full-time starter as he started his career during the 2020 season where he was a big piece in Alabama’s historic offense and eventual national championship win.
Ekiyor’s didn’t quite take the jump some fans were expecting during his junior season where he struggled at times to handle quicker interior linemen. This led the Indianapolis native to drop nearly 20 pounds during the offseason in hopes to mend the flaw in his game from a year ago.
Flanking Ekiyor at center will either be senior Darrian Dalcourt or sophomore Seth McLaughlin who each saw time last season. According to Pro Football Focus, Dalcourt was the team’s third highest graded offensive lineman to start more than 10 games a year ago, but ankle injuries hindered his ability to finish the season.
Saban sees Dalcourt as a starting option for the team but McLaughlin definitely has an argument to be made to be the starting option. McLaughlin made his first start in 2021 during the SEC Championship Game where he instilled toughness within a unit that desperately needed it against a dominant Georgia front. He would finish the postseason as the starter where he did not allow any sacks in his three games.
To this point, no decision has been made on who will begin the season at center, but either option looks to be solid for the group.
At the other guard spot, new competition has emerged between returning starter Javion Cohen and sixth-year senior Kendall Randolph. Cohen missed time in the summer as he addressed his mental health and Saban has given Randolph an opportunity to compete in his final year of the program. Randolph has appeared to have primarily worked with the first group through fall camp, but Cohen proved to be an effective option for the Crimson Tide last season, especially in the run game.
Time will tell whether Randolph is able to hold the starting role or if Cohen will eventually reclaim his position but the improvement from both players this fall has been encouraging to the staff.
Lastly, Alabama will trot out two new offensive tackles this fall in former five-star recruit JC Latham and Vanderbilt transfer Tyler Steen. At the completion of last year, Saban knew the unit would be going into 2022 with very little playing experience at both spots which tipped him to dive into the transfer portal to pick up Steen.
Steen appeared in 33 games in three seasons with the Commodores giving him a wealth of experience against SEC-level opponents.
Latham on the other hand enters his second year in the program and has had lofty expectations since he originally joined in the class of 2021. He was one of the highest-rated prospects the Crimson Tide had signed, and after one season in the program, he will get his opportunity to showcase why he was such a coveted player.
Despite all the moving parts up front for Alabama, the combination of talent along with the tutelage of Wolford has encouraged Saban that improvement is on the horizon.
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Patrick Dowd is a Reporter for Touchdown Alabama Magazine. You can follow him on Twitter, via Pat_Dowd77
