Alabama Football: 2019 Expectations versus 2018 Position Groups
As we enter the long drought of the college football offseason, let’s compare the expectations for the 2019 Alabama Football team with the 2018 position groups.
The Alabama football roster for 2019 is mostly complete. With the signing dates over, the only roster changes will be transfer deletions and maybe a transfer addition or two. The key personnel for the Tide’s 2019 position groups are not expected to be affected by future transfers.
Offense:
Quarterback- 2019 Advantage
Despite the loss of Jalen Hurts, the quarterback position for 2019 will still be in good hands with Tua Tagovailoa entering into his Junior year. Another year of experience, growth, and recovery will only mean more success for the superstar quarterback. With the signing of Taulia Tagovailoa and Paul Tyson, the backup quarterback position will still be handled well. If Tua can put up the same types of numbers he did in 2018, these new guys will get a lot of valuable experience.
Running Backs- 2018 Advantage
The 2018 Running Back trio was an impressive one with the likes of Damien Harris, Josh Jacobs, and Najee Harris all earning substantial playing time. With two of the three-headed off to the NFL draft, Najee Harris and Brian Robinson are the only two noteworthy backs returning. With the addition of Trey Sanders (5 star) and Keilan Robinson (4 star) in this recruiting class, the 2019 running back group will certainly have the talent, but experience will be lacking.
Wide Receivers- 2019 Advantage
The receiver core in 2018 was phenomenal, to say the least. While Tagovailoa is impressive, he had a plethora of incredibly talented guys to throw to that made him look even better. While Irv Smith Jr is headed to the draft, the rest of the group will be returning for another year with the Alabama football team. Another year of experience and growth will be valuable, and we can likely expect to see another Biletnikoff award winner.
Offensive Line- 2018 Advantage
The Alabama Football offensive line will see some new faces in 2019 with Jonah Williams and Ross Pierschbacher heading to the NFL. Pierschbacher, a starter in four consecutive National Championship games, will be a huge loss in terms of experience and talent. The running backs will feel the loss of Jonah Williams at run-blocker as well. With the loss of those two, the 2019 offensive line will need to develop throughout the season.
Defense:
Defensive Line- 2019 Advantage
Quinnen Williams’ effort during the 2018 season masked some of the defensive deficiencies for the Alabama Football team. Although Williams is headed to the draft, with Davis and company returning for the 2019 season, I believe we will see an improvement on the defensive line next year. The 2019 recruiting class brought in more depth at defensive line, and Saban’s recent hire of Brian Baker as the coach for this position should lead to strong player development throughout next season.
Linebackers- Even
With Mack Wilson headed to the draft, Dylan Moses will assume the leadership role for 2019. Linebacker play was a weakness throughout the 2018 season, and I am not confident it will improve greatly in 2019. Moses has another year of experience under his belt, but the other linebackers have very little game time experience. Saban convincing Eyabi Anoma to stick around another year was a huge move for the Tide. Perhaps Moses will come into his own and become that vocal leader, but only time will tell.
Defensive Backs- 2019 Advantage
The Alabama Football secondary was one of the biggest weaknesses for the 2018 Tide defense. With Trevon Diggs leaving with an injury early in the season, the secondary lacked both depth and experience. Diggs plans to return for his senior season, so we will return all of our corners for next season. The loss of Deionte Thompson will hurt a little, but Xavier McKinney played his best games towards the end of the 2018 season. I see the secondary being far stronger for the 2019 season.
With a record amount of players declaring for the NFL draft in April, the 2019 Alabama Football team has big shoes to fill. After signing another top-ranked recruiting class and returning a lot of young players from 2018, I believe the 2019 team will be even better. Tua will still be Tua, and we can all breathe a sigh of relief that the Tide will finally have some experience in the secondary.
Next. Saban upgrades Crimson Tide staff. dark
There are more upgrades than downgrades among the position groups. Add in new placekicker, Will Reichard and the Crimson Tide roster is trending up for 2019.