Three Alabama football players were named to the 2026 Shaun Alexander Award Watch List, the honor named after the Crimson Tide legend that annually recognizes college football's top freshman.
Five-star class of 2025 freshman quarterback Keelon Russell, five-star class of 2026 running back EJ Crowell and five-star class of 2026 safety Jireh Edwards were named to the list on Wednesday.
Russell, ranked the industry's No. 2 quarterback recruit in the 2025 class out of Duncanville, Texas, won the Crimson Tide's starting quarterback battle in fall camp over Austin Mack.
Russell was 11-of-15 for 143 passing yards and two touchdowns in Alabama's wins over Louisiana-Monroe and Eastern Illinois last season. He rushed three times for 17 yards. During the
Tide's A-Day event in April, he was 21-of-33 for 240 yards with four touchdowns and an interception.
Crowell was the state's Mr. Football winner in 2025. He rushed for over 6,300 yards during a standout prep career at Jackson High School. In his senior season, Crowell rushed for 2,632 yards and 35 touchdowns on 209 attempts in 14 games. Crowell was ranked the industry's No. 2 running back recruit in the 2026 class.
Edwards was the top-rated safety in the 2026 class by ESPN and ranked No. 9 overall on the ESPN300 list. Edwards will miss at least some time this season after suffering an upper-body injury on Monday and undergoing surgery, Yea Alabama announced.
The Shaun Alexander Award was established in 2018 and is presented annually to the nation's most outstanding freshman player. Ohio State quarterback Julian Sayin won the award last year.
Alabama opens the 2026 college football season on Sept. 5 against East Carolina at Bryant-Denny Stadium. The Crimson Tide are ranked No. 11 in the preseason US LBM Coaches Poll and No. 13 in the AP Top 25 poll.
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Alabama football schedule 2026
- Sept. 5: vs. East Carolina, 11 a.m., ABC
- Sept. 12: at Kentucky, 2:30 p.m., ABC
- Sept. 19: vs. Florida State, 2:30 p.m., ABC
- Sept. 26: vs. South Carolina, prime time
- Oct. 3: at Mississippi State, early window
- Oct. 10: vs. Georgia, prime time
- Oct. 17: at Tennessee, TBA
- Oct. 24: vs. Texas A&M, TBA
- Nov. 7: at LSU, TBA
- Nov. 14: at Vanderbilt, TBA
- Nov. 21: vs. Chattanooga, 1 p.m., SEC Network+
- Nov. 28: vs. Auburn, TBA
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This article originally appeared on Roll Tide Wire: Alabama football players make 2026 Shaun Alexander Award Watch List
