Will complacency set in? This is the real name of the game, isn’t it? Alabama certainly isn’t lacking for talent, after all. With Calvin Ridley, Cam Robinsonand O.J. Howard back, there’s a nice nucleus on offense. And the defense, which was so good last season, could be lethal yet again. The D-line might have to make up for some lost beef in the middle, but it’s going to be even faster off the edge. So that leaves one question: How badly does Alabama want it, and does it have the edge necessary to repeat as national champs? We’ve heard how in years past the attention of the locker room has slipped after winning it all. Replacing the leadership of Ryan Kelly, Jake Coker and Reggie Ragland won’t be easy. As much as the game will be played on the field, Alabama will have to find a way to win between the ears as well.
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rbr opComplacency isn't setting in with this team. It's too young, too inexperienced at too many critical spots. There are too many guys playing for a starting job, and, crassly, there are too many guys -- particularly on the defense -- that are playing for first round money this season. But, the analysis is correct. Before last season started, almost after the OSU lost, Alabama's locker room leaders were identified. The Tide need some Reggies and A'Shawns in 2016. Allen is certainly one; Eddie has become that guy. But, who takes the reigns over the offense and steadies them like Coker did down the stretch and as Henry did all season?

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OFFENSE Biggest positive: Playmakers are everywhere. Alabama generally always has had strong running backs, but rarely has it had as many weapons as it will this season. Calvin Ridley and ArDarius Stewart, two of the SEC’s top wide receivers last season, are back, as are a fully healthy Cam Sims and Robert Foster. Gehrig Dieter joins the team as a graduate transfer after a 1,000-yard season at Bowling Green, and O.J. Howard is one of the more talented tight ends in the nation because of his unique blend of size and speed. RBs Bo Scarbrough and Damien Harris — both former five-star prospects — also should help take a lot of pressure off the team’s yet-to-be-named starting quarterback.
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This is the most gifted Alabama offense as we've seen. At this point, it's a matter of figuring out how to distribute the ball to the obscene wealth of talent Nick Saban and crew have amassed. Hear that, Lane? No 114 passes to the same guy this year.

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[FONT=&quot]2. Right guard The participants: Redshirt freshman Brandon Kennedy vs. senior Alphonse Taylor The skinny: While nothing about Taylor’s play last season suggested that he should lose his starting job this season, his offseason said different. First, throughout most of the spring, Taylor practiced on the second team at least partly because of weight issues. Then, earlier this month, he was arrested on a DUI charge, which has left him "indefinitely suspended" and possibly in danger of missing a game or games. Meanwhile, Kennedy, a former four-star recruit, has stepped up, starting at the position with the first-team offense during the spring game. Others, such as sophomore Dallas Warmack and junior Bradley Bozeman, could get in the mix, but regardless, Taylor will need to win the job outright again, much as he did last season when he started all 15 games.[/FONT]
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rbr op[FONT=&quot]This is critical: Alabama cannot play with a swinging gate on the right side. Shank has been spotty in his tenure at Alabama, and, with the Tide breaking in a new right tackle as well, and Pierschbacher at center, Kennedy or Taylor must step up and anchor the interior. This, of course, assumes Shank's legal issues are going to disappear (and, I suspect they will, seeing as he blew a .000 irrespective of the Stupid Human Tricks the TPD made a concussed guy run through.)[/FONT]

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