Toughness on Tap as Alabama football Continues Practice Grind

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — The grind of fall camp continued as the Crimson Tide worked for two hours in full pads on Tuesday afternoon.

It was the second of four full workouts this week as the team gears up for its second, and final, scrimmage in preparation for the 2020 college football season.

Conditions were 89 degrees, with a heat index of 94 when the players started going through drills. On Monday, the Crimson Tide worked in shells on the Thomas-Drew Practice Fields..

Alabama held its first scrimmage at Bryant-Denny Stadium on Aug. 28. Last Saturday it went through some game-like conditions and drills.

"This is really not camp-like where you’ve got to go every day, you’ve got to grind through," Nick Saban said about this stretch of camp. "You’re developing the mental and physical toughness and conditioning level.

"I think this is a lot better for the players in some ways because they get a lot of rest, but you don’t really get that sort of opportunity to really make a difficult circumstance for the players and then they have to have the perseverance to overcome. That’s something I think is really important to developing mental toughness. That’s what we’re trying to get out of the players on these back-to back-days that we practice."

The second scrimmage is considered the last good opportunity for players completing for starting jobs and other roles on the team.

Usually after the final scrimmage Nick Saban and the coaching staff meet to decide which players will be counted on the most for the upcoming season, and thus get the most practice reps and attention moving forward, but this year figures to be a little different.

Due to coronavirus concerns and contract-tracing protocols, Alabama's depth chart figures to be more elaborate than usual, with players learning multiple positions as well.

Saban traditionally releases the initial depth chart the Monday before the season opener, which this year will be Sept. 21. Alabama visits Missouri on Sept. 26.