Following the 2014 season, a handful of Alabama juniors were confronted by the same decision: either make themselves available for the 2015 NFL Draft or return to Tuscaloosa for a final season. Ultimately, the core of UA's defensive front seven -- linebacker Reggie Ragland and defensive linemen A'Shawn Robinson and Jarran Reed -- decided to spend another year developing on the college level.
To say their choices worked out well for the Crimson Tide would be an understatement. The trio served as the foundation for a defense that had a lot to do with Alabama winning its fourth national championship in the last seven years.
A year later, a bevy of UA underclassmen found themselves in the same situation. And while Heisman Trophy winning running back Derrick Henry opted to turn pro, Alabama came out of the process in very good shape, welcoming back both its top sack producer from a season ago and a tight end who was named most valuable player of the College Football Playoff Championship Game.
How will things play out this time around for those who decided to return to school? Chances are Alabama will have more than one senior go in the first round of next year's draft. As for another national championship, only time will tell.
