Apr 20, 2013; Tuscaloosa, AL, USA; Alabama Crimson Tide White Team running back TJ Yeldon (4) scores a touchdown against the Red Team during the annual A-Day game at Bryant Denny Stadium. Marvin Gentry-USA TODAY Sports
Alabama returned to the Thomas-Drew Practice Fields on Thursday afternoon and weather reverted back to the hot Alabama weather the players have grown accustomed to.
Nose tackle Brandon Ivory was again doing some drills, while sitting out others, with a knee brace on his injured knee. He was said to be moving well. Sophomore Darren Lake filled Ivory’s spot when he was sitting out.
Defensive end Jeoffrey Pagan doesn’t seem to be slowed by his shoulder injury at all thus far.
Austin Shepherd remains at right tackle with Arie Kouandjio at left guard. Nick Saban said that after trying it out the other way the players and coaches felt more comfortable with Shepherd at tackle and Arie at guard.
Running back Alvin Kamara was back with the running backs going through drills in a black, non-contact jersey. He has been mostly doing conditioning work over the last week since getting his knee scoped, but now he’s already back working with the running backs.
Alec Morris and Luke Del Rio seem to be battling for the third QB spot.
Receiver Amari Cooper looks to be close to full strength now and doesn’t show any signs of his foot injury last week.
At Nick Saban’s press conference he called sophomore Landon Collins one of Alabama’s best safeties and said that he not only will be playing in the dime defense, but he is also competing for a starting job at safety. He said that the focus for the team this week was on progress. Saban said that he asked the team after practice to question if they had progressed this week. He also praised the scout team and called them a very big part of the success of a team as they get the starters ready for games. He also called this week “judgment day” for a lot of the team on deciding who will be likely contributing to the team.
Dee Hart is working behind T.J. Yeldon as the second back, followed by Kenyan Drake when running backs are doing drills. Saban really praised Hart after practice calling him “for his size, pound for pound, I don’t know if there’s a tougher guy on our team.” He also said that if every player was as competitive and hungry as Hart, complacency would not be something they had to worry about. Saban said he’s willing to do anything that the team asks of him.
Saban said that Alabama will wear a decal on its helmets this year in honor of former athletic director Mal Moore who passed away earlier this year.
Today the SEC released its Coaches All-SEC team voted on by the coaches of the SEC. An SEC leading five Crimson Tide players headlined the first team while an overall SEC best sixteen members of the 2013 were on the first, second, and third teams. Running back TJ Yeldon, wide receiver Amari Cooper, left tackle Cyrus Kouandjio, linebacker CJ Mosley, and safety HaHa Clinton-Dix graced the first team. Seven more Bama players appeared on the second team: defensive ends Jeoffrey Pagan and Ed Stinson, linebackers Xzavier Dickson and Adrian Hubbard, cornerback Deion Belue, right guard Anthony Steen, and punter Cody Mandell. Quarterback AJ McCarron, tight end Brian Vogler, linebacker Trey DePriest, and safety Vinnie Sunseri were on the third team.
Alabama practices again tomorrow but Saban will not speak to the media again until Monday.