Wednesday brings a fresh look at what Alabama should be chasing in each game week, and the opener against East Carolina offers a pretty clear checklist.
First, the Tide need to look like a physical offensive line from the jump. That’s the area most Alabama fans are watching, and it’s the one the staff has to feel best about getting sharper as the season goes on.
There’s a lot of turnover up front, with sophomore Michael Carroll the lone returning starter. Even he is switching from right tackle to right guard.
Jackson Lloyd was installed at left tackle just three days into spring practice, Cal Poly transfer Racin Delgatty has been viewed as the center, and Jayvin James won the right tackle job after battling Texas transfer Nick Brooks early in fall camp. Junior William Sanders was also named the starter at left guard by offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb on Monday.
With so many new pieces, a strong showing against East Carolina would be a welcome sign that this group can start playing with some edge.
The defensive front is the other big area to watch, especially with the transfer additions of Devan Thompkins from USC, Terrance Green from Oregon and Kedrick Bingley-Jones from Mississippi State. That trio has drawn plenty of praise throughout the offseason, and the expectation inside the building seems to be that Alabama upgraded in the trenches.
The Tide finished ninth in total sacks in the 2025 season, but the bigger point here is pressure. If Alabama can make the quarterback uncomfortable right away in the opener, that would be a strong early return on all the offseason attention the defensive line received.
Beyond the individual units, Alabama’s cleanest path on opening day is simple: play sharp, play clean and get out healthy. That means cutting down penalties, protecting the football, limiting drops and making the routine kicks.
It also means creating negative plays on defense and avoiding the kind of sloppiness that can show up when a team is still sorting out moving parts in Week 1. A smooth start would be especially useful with the nine-game SEC slate waiting next.
Kalen DeBoer’s era inside Bryant-Denny Stadium gets going with plenty to sort through, but those basics are the first things worth demanding.
In Other News...
Ryan Coleman-Williams Enters A Defining Alabama Season With One New Focus
Ryan Coleman-Williams heads into his junior season at Alabama with a different voice guiding the wide receivers, and that matters for a player trying to keep building on a productive year. Derrick Nix takes over the group this fall, giving Coleman-Williams a fresh set of eyes as he prepares for an important stretch in Tuscaloosa after putting up 689 receiving yards and four touchdowns on 49 catches last season.
For Coleman-Williams, the timing adds weight to every rep. He is eligible to enter the NFL Draft after this season, and he has already talked with Nix about the coaching changes and the areas he wants to sharpen. With a new receiver coach in place and a pro decision looming, Alabama will be watching closely to see how he handles a season that could define the next step in his career. [Read more 🡒]
Alabama Enters Season With Its Toughness Under Fire
A familiar preseason spotlight has landed on Alabama again, and this one is less about star power than about edge. With Kalen DeBoer entering the season under pressure to get the Tide moving in the right direction, the outside conversation has already started to circle around how this team looks when the competition tightens and the margins shrink.
The schedule will do plenty to shape that answer, with difficult road trips and key home dates against SEC opponents that should reveal plenty about where Alabama stands. For a program that measures itself by how it handles physical football, the question hanging over this season is whether the Tide can turn that scrutiny into something sharper on the field. [Read more 🡒]
LSU Just Gained A Roster Opening Alabama Fans Need To Watch
A federal ruling has opened the door for a wave of roster movement across the SEC, and LSU appears positioned to be one of the first programs to test it. Judge William Jorden granted an injunction making more than 40 athletes eligible for NCAA and SEC competition, a group that includes former NFL players Zxavian Harris and DaeQuan Wright, creating an immediate wrinkle for teams in the league that have spent the offseason building with the old rules in mind.
For Alabama, the significance goes beyond LSU simply gaining more bodies. Any added depth in Baton Rouge changes the competitive picture, and it comes at a time when the SEC is already preparing to push back hard. The league plans to appeal the ruling and has filed a separate lawsuit aimed at enforcing new punishments against teams that add former professional players, leaving the issue far from settled as roster decisions begin to play out. [Read more 🡒]