Alabama football wrapped up spring practice Saturday with its annual A-Day event.
It is now time to reflect back on some learning points from the Tide’s 15 spring practices, which included three scrimmages.
Here are five things Touchdown Alabama has learned:
Ty Simpson is QB1 Frontrunner
Ty Simpson is heading into the summer as the front runner in Alabama football’s quarterback competition, but this battle has not been decided yet. Simpson had a solid spring and served in a QB1 role throughout Alabama football’s A-Day practice by taking all of the first reps in drills and primarily working with Alabama’s first-team offense. Alabama coaches want their next starting quarterback to take full control of this competition, and no one did this spring, according to the Alabama staff. Simpson will have to show he is the best option in fall camp to take the job over Keelon Russell and Austin Mack. Both Russell and Mack will have an opportunity to hit the lab throughout the summer and look further along in the fall which could make this battle even more interesting in the future.
Emergence of multiple defensive linemen will be big for Alabama in 2025
Alabama football’s defensive line has an opportunity to be really good in 2025, especially if multiple players in the room emerge. Jeremiah Beaman, Edric Hill, Jordan Renaud and Keon Keeley received their fair share of praise this spring from teammates and coaches. James Smith returns to action and will not be limited in the fall, and if he and some of the previous names mentioned can be as impactful as their teammates say they will be, look out for the Crimson Tide’s defensive front led by Tim Keenan III, LT Overton and Qua Russaw.
Alabama wide receiver room has chance to be elite
Alabama returns its two most productive wide receivers from the 2024 season in Germie Bernard and Ryan Williams. They have also added a potential juggernaut in Isaiah Horton, who was talked about throughout the spring. This trio combined with the expected emergence of Rico Scott give this group great potential. The return of Jalen Hale and the additions of Lotzeir Brooks and Derek Meadows are welcomed as well. Brooks is exciting to watch before and after he gets the football, and Meadows’ ability to be a mismatch can not be ignored. Jaylen Mbakwe and Cole Adams could also make some noise in this room.
Depth in secondary could be huge strength
Alabama returns multiple defensive backs with experience starting at the college football level. They have also added Cam Calhoun, who was a top cornerback for Utah during the 2024 season. It is clear the Tide will not be inexperienced on the backend, but some more depth pieces peaked their heads out this spring. Dre Kirkpatrick Jr. and Dijon Lee are a few of those pieces, who look to be on their way to carving out a role in Alabama’s secondary.
Alabama looks to have found its next kicker
Alabama kicker, Conor Talty seems to have shown what every program wants its kicker to show, and that is consistency. Kalen DeBoer spoke highly of Talty throughout the spring. Talty closed the spring out with a great showing at A-Day, making all of his kicks. He is now the expected replacement for Graham Nicholson after handling all kickoff duties in 2024.
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Justin Smith is the Director of Recruiting & Managing Editor for Touchdown Alabama Magazine. You can follow him on Twitter, via @Jdsmith31Smith
