I know, we love them all. Like with your kids, you're not supposed to have a favorite (I love them both, but I catch a whole lot less sass from my 9 month old that I do with my 4 year old..just sayin), but for the sake of this thread; who are some of the guys from this year's team that you find yourself pulling for just a bit more when they are on the field? Who ya got??? And why ya got 'em? Here's mine....
1) C. Latu: This one sorta goes back to last year, but this guy was a highly rated outside linebacker that was asked to move to TE for depth reasons and he has done more than just be another guy in the rep line. My assumption is that he wasn't going to get much playing time at LB so due to some depth issues he was asked to give TE a go. We have seen this before with guys moving from O to D or vice versa but most of the time I feel like the guy ends up at his original spot....Not this guy! I could be completely wrong about this but it looks to me like Saban likes to put in some of the "try hard" guys in on short yard situations as a lead blocker when it makes sense. I remember seeing #81 in that role last year so that tells me that is is likely a team first guy that has busted his butt in practice. Then he had a hot start to this year followed by a bit of a slump but overall he's been a big part of our success this year. I just like the fact that he stuck with it and it has paid off for him.
2) J. Williams: He will be a pick for a lot of fans based on his performance alone...and that is understandable. But in addition to him coming in and lighting it up, he has some of that Landon Dickerson in him in that he looks to have a very have become one of those guys that just pulls a team together. You would have no way of knowing he has been with the team for less than a calendar year based on how he interacts with both the team and media. He strikes me as a guy that you certainly want in your foxhole. I've heard Saban say that Williams has that dawg in him, which means you know the guy is scrappy as hell. I will never understand how he couldn't be a big contributor at OSU...but I am glad as hell it didn't work out there because we aren't where we are without him.
3) P. Mathis: This guy has been one of our most important parts of the defense in my opinion. He really has played some good ball the last couple of years. I believe he was a 5* coming out of high school, so good for him to stick it out while it took him a bit longer to develop that other guys he has played with during his time at Bama. From my untrained eye, he has very much complimented our OLB's by holding up the middle as they cause problems on the outside. I'm happy to see him have a major role.
4) B. Robinson: Probably another obvious one for most people but man what a guy that is easy to pull for. I won't go too deep into this one as I started an entire thread about the guy, but man there is no doubt that Alabama means the world to this guy. While the fact that he is a hometown guy that waited his turn is a good story and all, this guy has had a heck of a year. I hope he makes a little money in the league and then comes home to have some type of role within the program when he's done playinig.
5) C. Owens: I know he has had his struggles, but he has continued to be a positive influence on this team. I'm not sure a lot of folks noticed, but senior day against Arkansas is the game that he was benched for #74. Think about how dang hard that had to be for him...but then look at who was in the line up against UGA handing out butt whippings to the best defense of all time.
Thoughts on some other players:
While he has been underwhelming based on expectations coming into the year, J. Billingsley has come around in the last few games. Not only has he made a few important catches, but he's done a pretty good job blocking some of the times that I've noticed. He owned a UGA DB during our second scoring drive on a swing pass to J. Williams. So I hope he can continue to trend up as he could be a real problem for any defense remaining.
Everyone loves the way that W. Anderson plays, but how he carries himself and the way that he sort of seems to have taken over a much needed leadership role within the team is almost as valuable as his play on the field.
I'm not sure why this is but Seth McLaughlin seems to really improve the production of the OL when he's in at center. I don't know about the physical comparison between he and Dalcourt, but does seem to be some improvement now that he is playing. It could be as simple as he is healthy whereas maybe Dalcourt wasn't but whatever it is it seems to have a positive affect on the unit as a whole.
1) C. Latu: This one sorta goes back to last year, but this guy was a highly rated outside linebacker that was asked to move to TE for depth reasons and he has done more than just be another guy in the rep line. My assumption is that he wasn't going to get much playing time at LB so due to some depth issues he was asked to give TE a go. We have seen this before with guys moving from O to D or vice versa but most of the time I feel like the guy ends up at his original spot....Not this guy! I could be completely wrong about this but it looks to me like Saban likes to put in some of the "try hard" guys in on short yard situations as a lead blocker when it makes sense. I remember seeing #81 in that role last year so that tells me that is is likely a team first guy that has busted his butt in practice. Then he had a hot start to this year followed by a bit of a slump but overall he's been a big part of our success this year. I just like the fact that he stuck with it and it has paid off for him.
2) J. Williams: He will be a pick for a lot of fans based on his performance alone...and that is understandable. But in addition to him coming in and lighting it up, he has some of that Landon Dickerson in him in that he looks to have a very have become one of those guys that just pulls a team together. You would have no way of knowing he has been with the team for less than a calendar year based on how he interacts with both the team and media. He strikes me as a guy that you certainly want in your foxhole. I've heard Saban say that Williams has that dawg in him, which means you know the guy is scrappy as hell. I will never understand how he couldn't be a big contributor at OSU...but I am glad as hell it didn't work out there because we aren't where we are without him.
3) P. Mathis: This guy has been one of our most important parts of the defense in my opinion. He really has played some good ball the last couple of years. I believe he was a 5* coming out of high school, so good for him to stick it out while it took him a bit longer to develop that other guys he has played with during his time at Bama. From my untrained eye, he has very much complimented our OLB's by holding up the middle as they cause problems on the outside. I'm happy to see him have a major role.
4) B. Robinson: Probably another obvious one for most people but man what a guy that is easy to pull for. I won't go too deep into this one as I started an entire thread about the guy, but man there is no doubt that Alabama means the world to this guy. While the fact that he is a hometown guy that waited his turn is a good story and all, this guy has had a heck of a year. I hope he makes a little money in the league and then comes home to have some type of role within the program when he's done playinig.
5) C. Owens: I know he has had his struggles, but he has continued to be a positive influence on this team. I'm not sure a lot of folks noticed, but senior day against Arkansas is the game that he was benched for #74. Think about how dang hard that had to be for him...but then look at who was in the line up against UGA handing out butt whippings to the best defense of all time.
Thoughts on some other players:
While he has been underwhelming based on expectations coming into the year, J. Billingsley has come around in the last few games. Not only has he made a few important catches, but he's done a pretty good job blocking some of the times that I've noticed. He owned a UGA DB during our second scoring drive on a swing pass to J. Williams. So I hope he can continue to trend up as he could be a real problem for any defense remaining.
Everyone loves the way that W. Anderson plays, but how he carries himself and the way that he sort of seems to have taken over a much needed leadership role within the team is almost as valuable as his play on the field.
I'm not sure why this is but Seth McLaughlin seems to really improve the production of the OL when he's in at center. I don't know about the physical comparison between he and Dalcourt, but does seem to be some improvement now that he is playing. It could be as simple as he is healthy whereas maybe Dalcourt wasn't but whatever it is it seems to have a positive affect on the unit as a whole.