Thoughts on next year's O-line.

STONECOLDSABAN · Jan 25, 2018

RTR91 said:
Barron was injured in the Auburn game.

Robbie Green didn't talk to an agent. He was ruled ineligible by the NCAA. IIRC, no official word was ever given, but speculation was a failed drug test (possibly steroids).

Oh I forgot that was the auburn game he got hurt.....my bad

Oh wow for some reason I thought he had talked to an agent. Clearly I don't know what I am talking about hahaha

BamaMan09 · Jan 25, 2018

RTR91 said:
Will Lowery started most of the season. That shows we weren't fully recovered from the sanctions.

Yep. CJ Mosley had to start out of necessity because there was no one else on the depth chart. Hightower was also playing on a bad knee. He suffered a catastrophic knee injury in 2009 and clearly wasn't 100% in 2010. That season was the last bite from the NCAA sanctions. The defense had elite talent at the top but no depth at all. I remember seeing Lowery trying to tackle Cam Newton in the Iron Bowl that year and knew we were in trouble.

TiderJack · Jan 25, 2018

RTR91 said:
Will Lowery started most of the season. That shows we weren't fully recovered from the sanctions.

You are right about Lowery but Saban and a lot of others have stated the 2010 team was his most talented team.

B1GTide · Jan 25, 2018

TiderJ said:
You are right about Lowery but Saban and a lot of others have stated the 2010 team was his most talented team.

I am sure that it was true then - not true anymore. The Alabama teams of the last few years and the next few years are the most talented that college football has ever seen.

RTR91 · Jan 25, 2018

crimsonaudio said:
Since Williams played RT in 2016, I can see him moving back to RT and having Leatherwood handle the LT spot - especially if Tua gets the nod as the starter.

Better than 2012? I'll have to see that before I'm even willing to consider it - the 2012 OL was probably the best I've ever seen in CFB.

Was listening to the Tuscaloosa News' podcast at lunch. Aaron Suttles commented that the 2018 OL has the "potential to be 2012-esque."

The talent will be there. Just depends on how well they gel.

TiderJ said:
You are right about Lowery but Saban and a lot of others have stated the 2010 team was his most talented team.

Even if it was his most talented team, we were still suffering from the sanctions somewhat.

BamaMan09 · Jan 25, 2018

TiderJ said:
You are right about Lowery but Saban and a lot of others have stated the 2010 team was his most talented team.

As I said earlier, there was elite talent at the top but not much depth. When the injuries hit, the team couldn't handle it. Plus that team was not used to having the target on their back. Different story nowadays.

BamaMan09 · Jan 25, 2018

B1GTide said:
I am sure that it was true then - not true anymore. The Alabama teams of the last few years and the next few years are the most talented that college football has ever seen.

I thought Ohio State in 2015 was incredibly talented. Still trying to figure out how they lost to Michigan State at home that season.

gtgilbert · Jan 25, 2018

BamaMan09 said:
Yep. CJ Mosley had to start out of necessity because there was no one else on the depth chart. Hightower was also playing on a bad knee. He suffered a catastrophic knee injury in 2009 and clearly wasn't 100% in 2010. That season was the last bite from the NCAA sanctions. The defense had elite talent at the top but no depth at all. I remember seeing Lowery trying to tackle Cam Newton in the Iron Bowl that year and knew we were in trouble.

CJ was a starter in the nickel, and this was the transition year to where we started playing more nickel than base, but he was not the starter in base package. CJ got the role in nickel because he beat out a bunch of other pretty talented LBs also. I think they were all 4* or greater like Nico Johnson, Jerrell Harris, Chris Jordan, Petey Smith and Tana Patrick. CJ was just that good as a coverage LB - the depth chart was certainly already stacked from a few several CNS recruiting classes.

uafanataum · Jan 25, 2018

How many, and which, OL guys do we have that are run blockers versus pass blockers? I remember during the Saban era we have had some year where it was better to run over right tackle, other years left tackle, and in 2012 i think we could run anywhere. We have also had years where run blocking was way better than pass blocking. Do the people close to the program see this as more of a run blocking or pass blocking line, or could they be well rounded on all things?

BamaMan09 · Jan 25, 2018

gtgilbert said:
CJ was a starter in the nickel, and this was the transition year to where we started playing more nickel than base, but he was not the starter in base package. CJ got the role in nickel because he beat out a bunch of other pretty talented LBs also. I think they were all 4* or greater like Nico Johnson, Jerrell Harris, Chris Jordan, Petey Smith and Tana Patrick. CJ was just that good as a coverage LB - the depth chart was certainly already stacked from a few several CNS recruiting classes.

Tana Patrick, Smith and Jordan never panned out at Alabama. Most of them were used as special teams players exclusively. They never made an impact as linebackers that I can recall. Smith actually transferred in 2011 I think. Nico Johnson was a very good player. No doubt. Jerrell Harris didn't truly make an impact until 2011.

RTR91 · Jan 25, 2018

BamaMan09 said:
Tana Patrick, Smith and Jordan never panned out at Alabama. Most of them were used as special teams players exclusively. They never made an impact as linebackers that I can recall. Smith actually transferred in 2011 I think. Nico Johnson was a very good player. No doubt. Jerrell Harris didn't truly make an impact until 2011.

Not so fast...

gtgilbert · Jan 25, 2018

BamaMan09 said:
Tana Patrick, Smith and Jordan never panned out at Alabama. Most of them were used as special teams players exclusively. They never made an impact as linebackers that I can recall. Smith actually transferred in 2011 I think. Nico Johnson was a very good player. No doubt. Jerrell Harris didn't truly make an impact until 2011.

True - but the point still stands that they were all highly rated guys Saban recruited and who knows if they might have had more of an oppty to make an impact had CJ not come in and earned that spot before they did even though tey'd all had a couple more years in the program.

92tide · Jan 25, 2018

BamaMoon said:
I'll say this about Leatherwood. It's rare when you lose a starting left tackle in a championship game and the guy that comes in behind him arguably outplays him. I know when Tua came in his blindside went to the RT, but Leatherwood played like a seasoned veteran!

the block he had on the final play was sick. it was like a dad playing with his young son

crimsonaudio · Jan 26, 2018

Interesting tidbit from this article:

On Tuesday, Bozeman confidently predicted next season’s starters on the offensive line. Freshman Alex Leatherwood would start at left guard, he said, and Ross Pierschbacher would move to center.

“Jonah [Williams] is a tackle,” Bozeman said. “He could easily play center, but he’s a tackle.”

Whether it’s Jedrick Wills Jr., Lester Cotton or the handful of four- and five-star prospects on the bench, Bozeman knew the line will be just fine without him.

At Alabama, it’s not so much rebuilding as it is reloading.

Bodhisattva · Jan 26, 2018

As long as the REC continues to pay off the refs to allow us to hold on every play we should be fine.*

*Not in blue on ITAT

JTBama · Jan 26, 2018

Bodhisattva said:
As long as the REC continues to pay off the refs to allow us to hold on every play we should be fine.*

*Not in blue on ITAT

Don't worry, we just won a title so I'm sure the bank account is full (blue font)

day-day · Jan 26, 2018

92tide said:
the block he had on the final play was sick. it was like a dad playing with his young son

Are you trying to get us to watch that play AGAIN?

Tenntiderman · Jan 28, 2018

Expecting big things out these young men in '18. Very talented. No reason to NOT expect an excellent year. Not a revelation to anyone, but This group is going to be special.

JTBama · Jan 28, 2018

Tenntiderman said:
Expecting big things out these young men in '18. Very talented. No reason to NOT expect an excellent year. Not a revelation to anyone, but This group is going to be special.

I think next year's oline may have more bulldozers than my local caterpillar dealer

Thoughts on next year's O-line.

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