DeBoer lists names to know at inside linebacker for Alabama ahead of the spring

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Alabama head coach Kalen DeBoer joined Greg McElroy and Cole Cubelic on McElroy and Cubelic in the Morning, and he talked about the inside linebackers that will compete to claim the spots that Deontae Lawson, Justin Jefferson and Nikhai Hill-Green had last season. 

“Yeah, QB [Reese] would be definitely one of them,” DeBoer said. “CJ Jones, who missed a little bit of the season last with an injury, is coming back in his third year now. I mentioned Caleb Woodson is the lone transfer in, and you got Duke [Johnson II] and Luke [Metz]. That’s the easiest way to remember them. These guys were heavy, heavy special teams, and our special teams were extremely young, and that’s another exciting element to the team, is these guys all, not all, but much more production, and I’m not talking about just the specialists, much more production, especially from those mid groups, the linebackers, the running backs, the tight ends, those being in a much better place with guys who are experienced special teams wise, but those guys are all going to be competing and battling for that linebacker spot with the loss of Deontae, Justin and Nikhai.”

Reese could be a breakout linebacker in 2026 for a Crimson Tide defense that is counting on players to step up. He was labeled as the next linebacker up by Lawson and received tons of positive feedback from the man that wore the green dot in Alabama’s defense the past two seasons.

“He wasn’t even traveling to the games, but he’s showing up to every meeting and just being present no matter what the situation was,” Lawson told reporters at the 2026 NFL Draft Combine. “His role couldn’t grow that much last year, but he still took advantage. I’m definitely excited for him and the rest of the inside backers.”

The player with the most experience to his name that DeBoer mentioned is Woodson, the Virginia Tech transfer linebacker. In three seasons with the Hokies, Woodson tallied up 151 total tackles, two sacks and an interception. His best season statistically was in 2024 as he racked up 26 solo tackles and assisted on 46 tackles while adding an interception and two sacks to the stat sheet.

Jones, Johnson, and Metz are also players that DeBoer named that are looking to battle for the open spots in Alabama’s defense. Special teams are where most of Alabama’s reserve linebackers spent their time in 2026, but their respective numbers could be called on during the 2026 season based on how they do in spring practice and beyond.