Alabama Football Conducts Final Preparations Ahead of First Scrimmage

The Crimson Tide held practice in shells at the Thomas-Drew Practice Fields on Friday afternoon.

Author:
Joey Blackwell
Publish date:
Aug 12, 2022 4:39 PM EDT

In this story:

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Alabama football hosted its final practice ahead of its first scrimmage of fall camp, practicing in shells on Friday afternoon.

Under partly cloudy skies with temperatures hovering in the high 80s, the Crimson Tide hosted the practice at the Thomas-Drew Practice Fields. Alabama will host its first scrimmage of fall camp on Saturday at 12:40 p.m. CT inside Bryant-Denny Stadium.

Earlier in the day on Friday, place kicker Will Reichard met with the media for the first time this preseason. During his time with reporters, Reichard was asked what was the most difficult kick that he ever made.

“That’s a hard question," Reichard said. "I mean, I don’t really think of it as that. I don’t really go out and say ‘Oh my gosh, this is a hard kick.’ I kinda just — you know, every kick is the same. You’re supposed to kick the same — you kick it 100 percent every single time, and if you’re kicking an extra point or if you’re kicking a 55-yarder, it’s supposed to be the same exact kick.

"There’ll be times that I watch film even on an extra point and I’ll say ‘Hey, that wasn’t my best kick’ even though it’s an extra point that went in, you’re still analyzing on what you can do better on every single kick whether it’s an extra point or a field goal.”

In addition to discussing his approach to kicking, Reichard was also asked about NFL veteran Justin Tucker, who said that when he is attempting a field goal or extra point, he examines the ball so closely that he even examines the dimples on the football.

“I mean, kicking is very technical," Reichard said. "I think Justin Tucker’s one of, probably the best kicker of all time — him and Adam Vinatieri are right up there — but once you get to that level of professionalism, you’re looking [at] every single detail that you can to push yourself to be better. I mean, I don’t typically look at the dimples of the ball, but there’s definitely a lot of things that I can look at to help me get better.”