How a Next-Play Mindset Has Helped Wilkin Formby Come 'A Long, Long Way’

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — The trot back to the locker room felt like an eternity for Alabama right tackle Wilkin Formby on Sept. 7, 2024.

The Crimson Tide had just defeated South Florida 42-16 at home after outscoring the Bulls 28-3 in the fourth quarter. But Formby wasn’t a part of the late explosion.

Formby was in a position battle with Elijah Pritchett throughout the offseason. While Pritchett handled most of the work at right tackle in Week 1, Formby got his chance to shine seven days later against South Florida.

Formby played for the first three quarters, and Alabama led by a worrisome 14-13 margin. It wasn’t his night. He gave up five total pressures and also tallied four penalties, per Pro Football Focus.

Formby had officially lost the right tackle competition to Pritchett the moment he was subbed off the field entering the fourth quarter. Crimson Tide fans made it clear that the Tuscaloosa native from Northridge High School should not be the starter over Pritchett.

“I just learned, first off, we have a very passionate fan base,” Formby told BamaCentral. “And also, I think that my preparation for that [game] wasn't where it needed to be. I remember the feeling that I felt walking off the field after that game, and I just reminded myself, like some days when I'm tired or whatever, I remind myself I never want to feel that feeling of letting my team down again.”

That was Formby’s first and last start of the 2024 season. He acted as a rotational player for the next couple of months and saw nearly 300 offensive snaps.

But things took a turn on Jan. 4, 2025. Pritchett entered the transfer portal that day and later committed to Nebraska.

Pritchett’s departure meant that Formby was all but certainly the next man up to fill the starting spot. He was given a new opportunity. He was aware of this and has been utilizing a “next-play mindset” throughout the spring, summer and now fall camp to improve every day.

“I think the biggest thing I've had to learn, if I had to name one thing, would just be something we talked about—flush it, be 1-0,” Formby said. “So whether it's at practice, in the game, whatever it is, wherever you are, if you mess up, flush it and move onto the next thing. Worrying about it is not going to change the past, so fix what you have to do and go for it.”

This mentality has helped Formby exceed the expectations of head coach Kalen DeBoer as he enters his redshirt sophomore year. Additionally, Formby’s work ethic both on and off the field has been noticed for quite a while.

“Wilkin, he’s really come a long, long ways,” DeBoer said on April 14. “We just met this morning, a group of us with him. I think the thing that you lose sight of sometimes is, if you flipped on the film a year ago, what would it look like? We’re in it, every single day with him, and he’s just focused on the now, but you peel back a little bit, and I think sometimes you forget just how far a guy has come, and that’s the case with him.

“It’s a physical piece, it’s a discipline piece. For every guy, but I think as an offensive lineman, especially at tackle, there are so many little details now that he’s picking up on that he wouldn’t have picked up on even late in the season last year.”

DeBoer explained that Formby has grown much more confident and he also caught the surprise of his head coach in the first two practices of the entire offseason with his leadership. A lot of these improvements stem from his time in the weight room with Alabama director of sports performance David Ballou.

“Tip of the cap to Dave Ballou and his staff, nobody does it better anywhere in the country than them,” Alabama offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb said on April 14. “Where Wilkin’s at now compared to where he was at physically last year, there's a big body of work that's been done.

“And I thought even just, if you just take run blocking, Wilkin had to work a ton at pad level, hand placement, just being able to engage people when he, you know, is obviously a longer player. And I thought you could see the physical development with him. He just looked like a different player out there very early on.”

So, what exactly has the 6-foot-7, 324-pounder been doing with Ballou this offseason? How has he been able to make this practically 180-degree turn in only a few months?

“I think the biggest thing is just keeping that mental intensity throughout the workout, and being able to sustain it at the beginning of the lift and holding it through the end. Just trying to work on mastering my body and helping it grow into this next season.”

Formby mentioned that his 2025 season started moments after Alabama lost to Michigan in the ReliaQuest Bowl this past New Year’s Eve. He recently reflected with Crimson Tide offensive line coach Chris Kapilovic about the changes he’s made since the offseason and his top priorities since the new year have revolved around being “the best player for my team.”

“Whether that's traveling to Atlanta, California, in my free time, training and really dialing in with coach Dave Ballou and his staff, or just working on the deficiencies,” Formby said.

On top of it all, Formby was slightly hindered by a wrist injury. Working on hand placement and technique for an offensive lineman is perhaps as important as a quarterback practicing his throwing accuracy. Nevertheless, this setback didn’t necessarily negatively impact Formby, and he’s been fully good to go for the past few weeks.

“I had just really been working on getting my feet primed and ready to go [while my wrist wasn’t 100 percent],” Formby said. “And then ever since I got cleared, [I've been] getting the strength back in my arm and in my wrist. And then recently, I practiced during camp, just being confident throwing my hands, developing my pass protection and not leaning in run blocking.”

As previously stated, Formby seems to be the clear frontrunner for the starting right tackle spot this season, and it’s been that way since Pritchett entered the portal. The question now becomes, will he be ready for that responsibility come Aug. 30 on the road against Florida State for the season opener?

“I think right now he has [taken over as the clear starter],” Grubb said on July 31. “He’s done a good job. I thought he had a good spring and played through some injuries, and he’s getting healthy now and I think he’s done a good job. He’s a smart player. He’s learned how to play with the strength that he’s acquired. I think he’s a much more physical player than he was last year.”

In less than two weeks, Formby will be able to show the college football world all the work he’s done. That said, he's not especially looking forward to a certain game on the schedule or trying “to prove the fans or prove anyone” that he should be Alabama’s starting right tackle.

“If anything, I'm just trying to be able to focus on the next play if a bad play comes,” Formby said. “Be focused on the next play. And then also hyper-focus on my preparation each week.

“I think just the biggest thing is to continually improve week to week, which is my biggest goal. Be able to improve on some things that I wanted to fix during spring ball and during camp and build consistency.”

Formby is a member of a starting five that has extremely high expectations this season. He’s “seen a lot of togetherness from the group” on and off the field to build chemistry—a big power player in the sport.

Both left tackle Kadyn Proctor and center Parker Brailsford have said this offseason that their goal is to win the Joe Moore Award. This is given annually to the best offensive line in college football.

The front five needs to be in sync not only on Saturdays, but in practice as well. This, of course, includes Formby, who could see Kapilovic and his unit take home the prestigious honor at the end of the season. But according to Formby, it won’t happen unless that next-play mentality is instilled by the entire position group on a daily basis.

“I definitely think [winning the Joe Moore Award] is a possibility. You know, at Alabama, we have a very talented group of guys. The biggest thing is just being very near-sighted and focusing on what we have tomorrow at practice.”

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