17 days until Alabama Football: Jaylen Waddle
We are now 17 days away from kickoff! Jaylen Waddle was a wide receiver at Alabama from 2018-2020. Jaylen Waddle started his Bama career in 2018 with an absolute bang, totaling 848 yards on 45 receptions and seven TDs in the receiving game with another 233 yards and one TD in the punt return game. 113 of those receiving yards and one TD came in the 35-28 SEC Championship Game victory over Georgia. For his efforts in 2018, Waddle was named to the SEC All-Freshman Team, the Athletic Freshman All-American Team, and was awarded SEC Freshman of the Year. In 2019, Waddle saw less time due to a crowded WR room. Still, he put together a solid season, garnering 560 yards and 6 TDs with an amazing 662 yards and 2 TDs added in the kick/punt return game. Though it ended up being an underwhelming season for the Tide, Waddle's production as a return man earned him All-American and First Team All-SEC honors. Waddle was also named 2019 SEC Special Teams Player of the Year. 2020 looked to be Waddle's best season as he garnered an incredible 557 yards receiving in the first four games of the season (all against SEC opposition). Sadly, Waddle broke his ankle on a kick return against Tennessee in the fifth game of the season. He would not feature in the lineup until the CFP National Championship Game at which was clearly not at full health. Still, Alabama would go on to dominate Ohio State in the NCG, winning the game 52-24. Despite his injury, Waddle would STILL be named Second Team All-SEC as a return specialist! Waddle would declare for the NFL draft after the 2020 season, finishing his time at Alabama with two SEC championship rings and one National Championship. Waddle was drafted with the sixth overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft by the Miami Dolphins. His first season with the Dolphins was historic. Waddle garnered 1,105 total receiving yards on an NFL rookie record 104 receptions! For his efforts, Waddle was named to the PFWA All-Rookie Team.
17 DAYS AWAY FROM BAMA KICKOFF: KENYAN DRAKE
Kenyan Drake played running back for the Crimson Tide from 2012-15 and while he was never the feature back in his time with the team, he made his impact felt in every way he could. Drake split carries with other backs in his four seasons and dealt with several injuries across his career but remains one of the most memorable names of the Saban era.
Drake was a four-star recruit from Powder Springs, GA ranked as the 10th best player in the state and the fifth best all-purpose back. In his final season at Hillgrove High School, the senior rushed for over 1,600 yards and scored 18 touchdowns. Drake was named Georgia's Gatorade Player of the Year and then chose the Crimson Tide over his home state's schools, Georgia and Georgia Tech.
In his first season with the Tide, Drake appeared in 12 games and finished third on the team in rushing with nearly 300 yards and five touchdowns on 42 carries. Alabama ended the season 13-1, winning the national title over Notre Dame in dominant fashion and giving Drake his first of two championship rings.
As a sophomore, the second year back worked his way up the depth chart, more than doubling his carries, and compiling 700 rushing yards. The Tide ended the season in disappointing fashion though, dropping its final two games of the year to Auburn and Oklahoma.
In Drake's third season in Tuscaloosa, the Powder Springs native got off to a hot start, but suffered a broken ankle in the fifth game of the year and missed the rest of the year. As a senior in 2015, Drake returned healthy, but dealt with several nagging injuries throughout the season. First it was a cracked rib early in the year, then a concussion and finally a broken arm in Week 10. Despite the overwhelming number of individual injuries, none kept the senior out for long. He returned from the arm injury just two weeks later and finished the season on the field.
Alabama went 14-1 in 2015, ending the year with an emotional win over the Clemson Tigers in which Drake was the star of the show. Most fans likely remember his 95-yard kick return immediately after a Tiger touchdown that gave Alabama the surge it needed to carry on to victory.
After his time in Tuscaloosa, Drake was drafted in the third round of the 2016 NFL Draft by the Dolphins. He spent three seasons in Miami before being traded to the Arizona Cardinals in 2019 and is now a member of the Las Vegas Raiders.
Though he has continued to deal with injuries throughout his time in the league, Drake has been a solid option when healthy. Across his seven-year career, the former four-star has compiled nearly 5,000 all-purpose yards and scored 36 touchdowns. He is coming off of a severe ankle injury suffered in 2021 but looks to be healthy again heading into this season.
While he is unlikely to be a featured piece of the Raider offense, Drake can certainly carve out a role for himself due to his versatility out of the backfield.
WEARING #17 THIS YEAR ISAIAH BOND
- POSITION WR
- HEIGHT 5-11
- WEIGHT 175
- CLASS Freshman
- HOMETOWN Buford, Ga.
- HIGH SCHOOL Buford
An explosive playmaker out of Georgia ... a unanimous four-star prospect ... tabbed as the No. 72 ranked player on the On300 list in On3's rankings ... also listed as the No. 60 prospect in the On3 Consensus ... No. 51 on the 247Composite, the site's No. 2 athlete and No. 5 player in the state of Georgia ... No. 42 on the Top247 list and rated as 247Sports' No. 2 athlete and No. 5 player in the state ... the No. 70 prospect on the Rivals250, the No. 11 wide receiver and No. 5 player in Georgia ... No. 71 on the ESPN300, the No. 7 receiver, the No. 36 recruit in the Southeast Region and No. 9 player in the state ... On3 ranks Bond as the No. 12 receiver and No. 7 player from Georgia ... selected to the All-American Bowl in San Antonio, Texas ... won the Georgia 6A 100-meter (10.51) and 200-meter (21.19) state titles as a junior with personal bests of 10.48 (100 meters) and 21.05 (200 meters) ... played for head coach Bryant Appling at Buford High School ... chose Alabama over Florida and Georgia.
ALSO WEARING #17 THIS YEAR AMANNI STEWART
- POSITION QB
- HEIGHT 6-2
- WEIGHT 205
- CLASS Freshman
- HOMETOWN Bowie, Md.
- HIGH SCHOOL Charles Herbert Flowers
