Former LSU Teammates Wish Eli Ricks Well at Alabama
ATLANTA — There isn’t any bitterness coming from Baton Rouge, La., regarding Eli Ricks' transfer to Alabama this offseason — at least not when it comes to the cornerback’s former teammates.
After spending the past two seasons with LSU, Ricks switched sides in one of the SEC’s fiercest rivalries when he announced his transfer to the Crimson Tide in December. The five-star cornerback spent the spring with Alabama and is expected to compete for one of the Crimson Tide’s starting openings at cornerback this fall.
And, for all but one of his games this season, his former Tigers teammates will be rooting him on.
“It’s not the best to see him go to Alabama,” LSU linebacker Mike Jones Jr. said during the Tigers’ appearance at SEC Media Days on Monday. “But I’m glad for him and hope he has a great year. I just hope he does well.”
Ricks started six games for LSU last season before undergoing surgery to repair a shoulder injury in October. The former five-star recruit earned Freshman All-SEC honors in 2020, leading LSU with four interceptions, two of which he returned for touchdowns. He also registered five pass deflections and 20 tackles over 10 games that year.
Ricks was limited for Alabama this spring as he continued to rehab from his shoulder injury. While Nick Saban said the 6-foot-2, 190-pound cornerback still needed to regain some of his weight following the injury, he expressed confidence in Ricks’ ability to make an impact this season, listing him as a possible starter at the cornerback position along with Kool-Aid McKinstry and Khyree Jackson.
“The biggest thing for Eli is learning the system,” Saban said following the A-Day game in April. “He’s like a guy that just got here, so for him to be able to learn the system – and sometimes it’s even more difficult for guys that’s played in a system, aight. So they knew a system, now they’ve gotta sort of enturbulate some of the things that they did to some of the things that we’re doing, and we call it something different. So you’ve gotta work through sort of some of that learning curve with them. But he’s a very conscientious guy and works hard at it, takes coaching well, wants to please.”
Monday, LSU players unanimously expressed their high expectations for their former teammate.
“He’s super talented as everybody would know,” Jones said. “He’s a true top-tier corner, one of the best cornerbacks in college football. I’m sure he’s going to do a great job.”
Added LSU defensive end B.J. Ojulari: “I think he’s bringing just that one-on-one cover aspect to Alabama. I think he’s going to be a great defensive corner for them. I’m so excited just to be able to play him to see how he matches up against the guys he used to go against.”
Wide receiver Jack Bech might have the best perspective of what Ricks offers after squaring up against him during practices.
“He’s very long and very technical,” Bech said. “He was one of the best cornerbacks I’ve played against, and I’ve played against some pretty good people. I would say they’re definitely getting a ball player.”
Ricks will get the opportunity to square off against his old team when Alabama travels to Baton Rouge for a Week 10 matchup against LSU on Nov. 5. While his former teammates can’t guarantee a friendly environment for the reunion, they have nothing but positive words for him heading into his first season with the Crimson Tide.
“I don’t got nothing planned right now,” Ojulari said with a smile. “You know when you get out there, the competitive nature, he might say a little word, but it’s all love. That’s my guy.”
