Alabama Crimson Tide Offensive Players To Watch vs. Ole Miss
How do you replace a Heisman Trophy winner and eventual No. 1 overall draft pick? That's the million-dollar question at Alabama right now, but the Crimson Tide are hoping after their experiment against South Florida, those questions.
There's a standard set by head coach Nick Saban in Tuscaloosa, AL., though, to be the best and beat the best. So far, the No. 13 Crimson Tide are doing some soul searching offensive after losing to the Texas Longhorns and struggling last week against the Bulls.
Alabama has depth at the skill positions that won't matter in this day and age of college football if there isn't a reliable quarterback to deliver them the ball.
Here are the players to watch on Alabama's offense when it squares off against the No. 15 Ole Miss Rebels in Week 4 Saturday.
Carleigh Holt-The Grove Report
QB Jalen Milroe
Milroe is priority No. 1 for the Crimson Tide offense against an explosive Rebels team.
The Katy, Texas, native earned the starting nod out of fall camp, going 13-for-18 for 194 yards and three touchdowns in Alabama's season-opener against Middle Tennessee, but he led the Crimson Tide in the ground game as well.
Against the Longhorns, he was a little more human. He threw for 255 yards and two touchdowns but had two interceptions and completed just over 50 percent of his passes.
Saban sat Milroe last week against South Florida as a last-ditch effort to see if he had anything working with Tyler Buchner or Ty Simpson. However, neither impressed enough to dethrone Milroe from his starting job full time as he'll be under center against Ole Miss this weekend.
Texas made a concerted effort to keep Milroe in the pocket and that led to the signal-caller showing some vulnerabilities.
RB Jase McClellan
Jase McClellan's gotten the majority of the carries so he gets the nod here, but Alabama has a two-headed monster at the top of the depth chart in its backfield.
McClellan and Roydell Williams have accounted for 55.5 percent of the Crimson Tide's rushing attempts and 65 percent of their yardage total.
Against the Rebels last season, McClellan led the Crimson Tide with 83 yards on 19 rushing attempts.
Milroe has also proven to be a viable threat if he can escape the pocket, rushing seven times for 48 yards and two touchdowns. However, against Texas, he ran for 44 yards on 15 attempts.
Even true freshman Justice Haynes impressed in his collegiate debut, averaging the highest yards per carry of any running back at 7.3 against Middle Tennessee.
Saban's strategy of rotating running backs keeps them fresh and limits injury, but might hurt the offense's rhythm in the ground game.
WR Isaiah Bond
Last season, Isaiah Bond wasn't a huge receiving threat catching 14 catches for 173 yards and a touchdown. However, Bond has led Alabama's pass-catching department with 10 receptions for 152 yards and a touchdown.
Bond has four more catches than the next highest — Jermaine Burton's six — but is more of a possession receiver. Burton and tight end Amari Niblack are explosive play machines, averaging 21.17 and 23.5 yards per reception, respectively.
Burton was second behind Jahmyr Gibbs with 40 receptions, but led the Crimson Tide with 677 yards. He found the end zone seven times last season.
Burton reeled in three passes for 62 yards and a touchdown against Middle Tennessee.
