Kalen DeBoer is fully focused on momentum.
Alabama football just ended its spring practice slate Saturday. By Monday, the Crimson Tide coach said players were back in the weight room to begin its summer workout schedule. It's the "competitive stamina" he wants to carry over from the spring, to the summer, and, eventually, into the fall.
"That competitive stamina, and relating it to what I'm talking about, is can we carry it though each phase of the offseason?" DeBoer said. "And then, that (leads) to us just having this way about us, how we do things, an edge to us that carries us through the entire fall."
While the majority of the attention has been on the quarterbacks and the offensive line , there were many things DeBoer, offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb and defensive coordinator Kane Wommack learned this spring.
Here are six major takeaways.
When Grubb was asked if a six-scholarship Alabama running back room is too large, he first commented that in 2024, six wasn't enough.
"Running back is a tough position, a physical position to play every game," Grubb said. "So you develop five, you really only get about maybe your top three or four guys. Then there are opportunities for the fifth guy. And you take developing those guys behind the first three or four."
In 2024, Jam Miller , who Grubb describes as "the elder statesman," was the only running back with more than 100 carries. Behind Justice Haynes at 79, no other Crimson Tide back had more than 27 touches.
Along with Miller, Grubb and DeBoer mentioned two running backs post spring: Richard Young, who has vastly improved his pass protection, and Daniel Hill , who garnered ample praise with his agility and pass catching ability as a bigger back.
The running backs not mentioned? Redshirt freshman Kevin Riley , redshirt senior and Louisiana transfer Dre Washington and true freshman AK Dear.
Alabama knows what it has at the top of its wide receiver room, from Germie Bernard and Ryan Williams , to Miami transfer Isaiah Horton . It's the rest of the room that has DeBoer and his staff excited.
In Rico Scott, Alabama has a player the coaching staff "expected" to break out, per DeBoer. In Derek Meadows and Lotzeir Brooks, Alabama has a 2025 wide receiver class the Crimson Tide "nailed," per DeBoer.
It's a room that prides itself on versatility, position flexibility, on scheme and how each receiver is used.
"Go on down the line. They all are just out there competing," DeBoer said. "I like the mindset that is developing. I say developing because I think it's something I think we're capable of, but we're far from there yet is to be the best receiving corps in the country. That's not just one or two guys or three. That's the whole unit."
All spring, Wommack has talked up an Alabama defensive line with something to prove. That continued after the Crimson Tide's spring practice schedule officially ended.
On the interior, Wommack praised redshirt freshman Jeremiah Beaman and his strides during spring workouts.
"He did a really nice job for us in the bowl game and I thought took his game to another level in the spring," Wommack said. "So there's a big body and a big frame that can move, he's athletic, and he is operating with consistency that we can trust. I'm excited about his trajectory."
And then there's LT Overton , the returner at bandit defensive end who has developed into a "consistent" force, one Wommack expects to "take another step from where was a year ago."
Throughout spring, Wommack has set expectations that the Alabama defensive line will be much more productive and forceful in 2025.
Alabama may not have Ike Taylor , the former Pittsburgh Steelers Super Bowl-winning cornerback, in its defensive backfield — much to Wommack's chagrin. But his son seems to be enough for the Crimson Tide.
Ivan Taylor, the freshman safety, turned heads all spring, culminating in an interception of a Keelon Russell pass during A-Day. And to Wommack, Taylor is a freshman who's learning, who has a "ton of energy" and a hunger to learn.
"I think he's probably one of the best open-field tacklers I've seen as a freshman," Wommack said. "Being able to get people on the ground, you know, that is a very challenging, difficult skill, and certainly one that I think he's really come in probably way above average for what you would see for a young freshman. He's got a real knack for the ball and I'm excited to kind of build upon that."
One open spot on Alabama's defense seems to be at its husky nickel cornerback spot. But there seems to be an answer, and a succession plan in place.
DaShawn Jones, a redshirt senior heading into his second season at Alabama, is expected to start. And, after moving from cornerback this offseason, sophomore Dre Kirkpatrick Jr. is expected to be waiting in the wings as a player who "took a really big step from Year 1 to Year 2," per Wommack.
"He's a football guy, understands the game, makes plays when it matters most," Wommack said. "And I thought he flashed in a number of ways this spring.The thing that is exciting to me is you saw some of those things a year ago, but with the highs and the lows, there was too much of a polarizing player there. Whereas now, I think he's playing at a much more consistent level and he's also making plays."
Grubb didn't have much to work with when it came to Alabama's tight end room this spring.
Josh Cuevas, Danny Lewis and Marshall Pritchett were each injured. Kaleb Edwards was finishing his senior year at Oak Ridge High School in California . Jay Lindsey was the only scholarship tight end at Grubb's disposal, something Grubb felt the redshirt freshman took advantage of.
"You always look for those type of opportunities where somebody has to make an impact in a tough stage," Grubb said. "For Jay to have to step in in that role and really take over after the rest of the guys that went down, he got better."
Colin Gay covers Alabama football for The Tuscaloosa News, part of the USA TODAY Network. Reach him at cgay@gannett.com or follow him @_ColinGay on X, formerly known as Twitter.
This article originally appeared on The Tuscaloosa News: 6 things Kalen DeBoer, Alabama football coordinators learned from spring
