Alabama concluded its spring practices on April 12 which was A-Day. The Crimson Tide brought in some new faces on both sides of the ball during the offseason as well as adding several new coaches to the coaching staff.
The Crimson Tide looks to have one of the most talented rosters in all of college football, per usual, but where do Alabama football’s strengths and weaknesses lie?
First and foremost, Alabama had a glaring weakness at right tackle a season ago. As a result, offensive line coach Chris Kapilovic was forced to rotate offensive linemen for the majority of the season. The two players who received the majority of the snaps at right tackle in 2024 were Elijah Pritchett and Wilkin Formby. Pritchett transferred to Nebraska during the offseason and Formby chose to return to Tuscaloosa for his redshirt sophomore season.
Given the struggles at the position, the Alabama coaching staff decided to sign two offensive tackles (Jackson Lloyd and Mal Waldrep) out of high school and one out of the transfer portal (Arkel Anugwom). While Formby might have the upper hand after spring practices, there is still room for others to work their way into the mix. Alabama’s starting offensive line will not be finalized anytime soon, so there could be a lot of changes made before August 30. Despite the additions and the fact that Formby decided to return, it still seems like right tackle is a position of weakness for the Crimson Tide post-spring.
One area that seems like it could be a weakness after the conclusion of spring ball is Alabama’s pass rush, specifically from the interior of the defensive line. Last season, Alabama’s interior defensive line combined to record just seven sacks in 13 games. Two of those sacks came from Tim Smith Jr., who is now a member of the Indianapolis Colts.
There does not seem to be a player who is an elite pass rusher along the interior. One could emerge over the course of the season, but the roster makeup suggests that sacks could be hard to come by yet again for Alabama’s interior defensive line group in 2025.
An area of strength for Alabama heading into the 2025 season is the wide receiver core. During the offseason, Alabama was able to bring back its two leading receivers in Ryan Williams and Germie Bernard as well as bringing in Miami transfer Isaiah Horton. In addition, the Crimson Tide’s offense will return Jalen Hale and Cole Adams from injury. Despite the fact that six wide receivers entered the transfer portal in the first transfer window, it still seems like Alabama is in a much better situation this spring than they were this time last year.
There is a good blend of size, speed, and playmaking ability in Alabama’s wide receiver room. That will likely prove to be crucial with the Crimson Tide breaking in a new quarterback for the 2025 season. The thought of having Williams, Bernard, and Horton to compliment Alabama’s rushing attack should provide some sort of confidence for the coaching staff.
One of the more interesting position groups to follow during the spring was the tight ends. Three of Alabama’s four scholarship tight ends missed time throughout the spring due to injury. It is never good to see a position group decimated by injury only four months ahead of the start of a new season. Nevertheless, Alabama found a way to get other tight ends such as redshirt freshman Jay Lindsey as well as walk-on tight ends Peter Knudson and Jayden Hobson more opportunities.
During the spring, it seemed like tight end might be an area of weakness. However, the coaching staff addressed the need for more depth at the position in the last two weeks. Alabama signed West Virginia transfer Jack Sammarco and Troy transfer Brody Dalton soon after spring ball ended. It might seem a bit premature given the injuries and the fact that multiple tight ends are unproven, but it seems like the tight end unit will be a position of strength for the Crimson Tide in 2025. The depth and the variety of six different skillsets in the room should pay dividends on the offensive side of the ball next season.
With the SEC being more difficult than ever, it will be interesting to see what areas end up being strengths and what areas end up being weaknesses for Alabama over the course of the 2025 season.
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Brody Smoot is a team reporter for Touchdown Alabama Magazine. You can “follow” him on X, via @brodysmoot.
