After three big signings in the Transfer Portal yesterday , plus the announcement from safety Bray Hubbard that he’ll be returning for his senior season, the question arises of just how much more Coach
DeBoer and GM Courtney Morgan need to do to get this roster filled out. After adding in the freshmen, let’s take a look at the expected roster for next year at this point and take some guesses on what positions they may still be targeting.
Quarterback
The Tide has four players here, with a battle between Austin Mack and Keelon Russell for the starting job. Don’t expect any additions.
Running back
There are 5 players rostered. Daniel Hill and Kevin Riley return as experienced “starters”, and AK Dear and freshman Ezavier Crowell will be competing to try to unseat either of the veterans with their 5-star level talent.
Alabama would likely want one more player for depth or for pushing Riley down the depth chart if they are good enough. But I don’t think it’s a total panic if the right player doesn’t pop up.
Wide Receiver
There are only 6 on the team, even with Noah Rogers coming in. The guys they have are good enough to be a starting group, but the Tide absolutely needs some depth. At least two more players would be ideal, even if they are small school developmental prospects or just back-end depth chart fodder.
Tight End
Alabama has 8 tight ends, if you include the preferred walk-on transfer, Jaxon Shuttlesworth. This is more than enough bodies.
Offensive Line
There are only 11 players for 5 starting spots. They barely fill out the 2-deep. On top of that, only Michael Carroll brings any starting experience. Alabama needs depth, and they could use an impact starter. This should continue to be priority #1 for the staff to get at least two more players, possibly up to 4 more. And ideally at least one of those should be starting caliber.
Defensive Tackle
Alabama added two starting caliber players here, plus have 5 guys returning for two positions, 4 of which played a whole lot of snaps the last two years. 9 total.They should be set.
Bandit Defensive End
Alabama returns Jordan Renaud as the presumed starter, former JUCO transfer Fatutoa Henry as a high-potential veteran, and a whole slew of incoming freshmen with high recruiting rankings. They’re likely fine here in terms of numbers (5 total), but it wouldn’t hurt to spend some money on someone to upgrade from Renaud if they don’t think he can take a step forward.
Wolf Edge Rusher
This one hinges on Yhonzae Pierre, who hasn’t yet announced his NFL decision. If he returns, the Tide has an impact starter and a quality backup in Justin Hill. Plus there’s a couple of impressive freshmen, including top-ten recruit Xavier Griffin, so they have depth with 5 players. If Pierre decides to go the NFL, then the Tide will really need to add a veteran player to rotate with Hill.
Linebacker
Transfer Caleb Woodson will likely man one starting position, while returning depth pieces QB Reese, Cayden Jones, Luke Metz, Duke Johnson, and Abduall Sanders will all compete for the other spot. Freshman Zay Hall rounds out the depth to get to a total of 7. Don’t expect any more additions here.
Cornerback
Alabama’s three starters are set with Zabien Brown, Dijon Lee, and Red Morgan. Past that, they have 6 more players who can play corner (though a few like Ivan Taylor and Carmelo ONeal may be safeties) for a total of 9 on the roster. They could stand to add maybe one more player as a depth piece, but they’d be fine without it if no one comes up.
Safety
This one is probably fine now that Bray Hubbard announced he is returning, so the current assumption is 6 players. We are still waiting on Keon Sabb’s NFL decision… But even if Sabb goes, then either Zay Mincey or 5-star recruit Jireh Edwards will push for that spot. If Sabb is gone, and backup Dre Kirkpatrick Jr. is still suspended, then it would be prudent for the Tide to take one more depth player. But if both are set to return next season, then the Tide seems set.
Special Teams
Alabama has two kickers and two punters. The new kicker and the new punter will both likely be upgrades that put the returners on the bench. Plus they added a long snapper in the portal. The Tide is set here.
Essentially, the two biggest needs at this point are offensive line and wide receiver. The depth for both of these took a major hit for the Tide when the portal opened. In particular, the offensive line doesn’t just need depth… They need difference makers.
There are a few other spots like running back, defensive end, or safety that could use one more player if the right one is available, but those aren’t major needs, just luxuries.
