Where Alabama Stands on the OL Heading into Spring Camp
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Two of last season’s starting offensive linemen have moved on while another will be sidelined for the spring. The rest of Alabama’s remaining offensive front figures to be in for plenty of shifting and slotting over the next few weeks.
This offseason, Alabama lost both of its starting offensive tackles in projected No. 1 overall pick Evan Neal and sixth-year senior Chris Owens. Friday, Nick Saban announced that center Darrian Dalcourt will sit out spring camp with an injury. Returning right guard Emil Ekiyor Jr.'s availability is also unclear after he played through a shoulder injury late last season.
So what of the rest of the unit? At the moment, that remains to be seen.
Dalcourt and Ekiyor are two of six returning players with starting experience on the offensive line along with Javion Cohen, Damieon George Jr., Seth McLaughlin and Kendall Randolph.
Ekiyor, a redshirt senior, is the most experienced of the group, starting the Crimson Tide’s last 28 games at right guard. Next up in experience is Cohen, a junior who started 14 games at left guard last season. He's followed by Dalcourt, a senior who started 11 games at center. Randolph, a sixth-year senior, has six career starts as an offensive lineman and seven more as a blocking tight end. Meanwhile, George made three starts at right tackle last season while McLaughlin made three starts at center.
Alabama also added two five-star tackles in last year’s class in J.C. Latham and Tommy Brockermeyer and welcomed in SI99 member Tyler Booker as an early enrollee in January.
Friday, Saban scoffed at the idea of evaluating the unit after one practice but did say he is impressed with how his offensive linemen have approached the offseason, stating he thinks they are in better condition and have improved their bodies. The next month should help determine how those bodies best line up in order to provide ample protection for reigning Heisman Trophy winner Bryce Young and the rest of what figures to be an elite group of playmakers on Alabama’s offense.
“I mean, Damieon George had a really good offseason,” Saban said. “So I think we’re encouraged by the progress he makes, whether he plays guard or tackle. We’re gonna see if Javion Cohen should be a guard or a tackle. We’ll see if J.C. Latham should be a guard or a tackle, Kendall Randolph to be a tackle. Tommy Brockermeyer has got a chance to compete at the position. He was kind of in and out a little bit, fighting some injury things in the offseason, but we think he’ll be able to make progress in the spring.
“There’s a lot of competition at the [tackle] position, and, quite frankly, we’re moving a lot of guys around to try to see how we can get the best five guys to play. I’m not disappointed in the progress that any of them have made to this point.”
While the competition at tackle might generate the most attention, perhaps Alabama should begin building its line from the center position out. The Crimson Tide’s last four title-winning teams have all had centers who went on to be named team captains.
Alabama’s two primary competitors for the starting role — Dalcourt and McLaughlin — both experienced mixed results during their time as starters last season.
During Dalcourts 11 starts, he earned a 66.6 run-blocking grade and 63.0 pass-blocking mark from Pro Football Focus, giving up a pair of sacks and 14 quarterback pressures over 402 pass-blocking snaps.
McLaughlin’s 76.4 run-blocking grade from PFF topped Dalcourt's, but his 52.9 pass-blocking mark left a bit to be desired. The 6-foot-4, 295-pounder earned plenty of praise during his first career start against Georgia in the SEC Championship Game, not allowing a quarterback pressure over 50 pass-blocking snaps. However, he struggled in the national championship rematch, giving up seven pressures over 63 pass-blocking snaps.
“I think the center position is always important,” Saban said. “We have two guys that started significant games last year that are both centers. Darrian Dalcourt played really well last year and so did Seth when he got the opportunity to play. Darrian is going to be out this spring but when he comes back... Seth is a good leader, he’s a tough guy.
“I feel really good about those two guys. It’s trying to get the other guys in the right spot and maybe who do we develop to be a third center, because that’s always an important spot to have somebody to fill if you lose a guy.”
Another person Saban feels good about is Randolph, who elected to take advantage of his extra year of eligibility to play one more season at Alabama. The 6-foot-4, 298-pound utility man has lined up at a variety of positions for the Crimson Tide and displays the versatility and selflessness Saban is looking for this spring.
“I really love it when guys like Kendall Randolph show great resiliency, perseverance to continue to want to try to develop as players, make a commitment to the team to do whatever you need to do to help the team be successful. This is one of the guys that I’m most proud of in terms of where he came from from when he was a young player to where he is now. To graduate, to become a leader, to set a really good example. To have sort of great goals and aspirations for what he wants to accomplish in the future and what his focus is and what his commitment is to it.
“I think this is a great example of what college football should be. He’s created a lot of value for himself here by what he’s developed into, and we’re really, really proud of him. And I’m really happy to have him back. I think the first thing we’ve got to do Is let him compete for a starting job on the offensive line, which is going to be our first priority for him in the spring.”
Alabama will take next week off for spring break before returning to the practice field on Monday, March 21 as it holds the second of a total of 15 spring workouts culminating with the annual A-Day Game on April 16 inside of Bryant-Denny Stadium.
Returning lineman with starting experience
Emil Ekiyor Jr. | 6-3, 307 | redshirt senior | 28 career starts
Photo | Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports
Javion Cohen | 6-4, 305 | junior | 14 career starts
Photo | Gary Cosby Jr.-USA TODAY Sports
Darrian Dalcourt | | 6-3, 305 | senior | 11 career starts
Photo | Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
Kendall Randolph | 6-4, 298 | graduate student | 6 career OL starts (7 TE starts)
Alabama Athletics
Damieon George Jr | 6-6, 333 | junior | 3 career starts
Photo | Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
Seth McLaughlin | 6-4, 295 | redshirt sophomore | 3 career starts
Alabama Athletics
