Alabama Football: With Kaho return, danger still looms for the Tide at ILB

Alabama football dodged one bullet with Ale Kaho returning but dangers persist for the Crimson Tide at inside linebacker if Dylan Moses were to go down.

Alabama football fans were relieved when the rumors of a return by Ale Kaho were confirmed by the young man on Instagram. “They lied to you… 10 gon be back real soon… stronger than ever!” was the message. Who was it doing the lying? We assume it was a reference to doubters that did not include Nick Saban.

Last Friday, after Kaho missed the Tide’s first spring practice, Saban expressed some doubt if at some time “he will be ready … to play football or not.” Perhaps Nick was sending Ale a message. Maybe Kaho’s personal troubles, that were known last year, continue to plague him. Alabama football fans want two things. The first being whatever troubles Kaho has to be resolvable so he can move on with his life. The second is that neither the trouble nor the resolution prohibit him from continuing his Alabama football career.

The greatest threat to the 2019 Crimson Tide defense improving over the 2018 performance has nothing to do with Ale Kaho. The greatest threat is an injury to Dylan Moses, impacting games against top opponents.

The 2018 Crimson Tide defense did not have a customary Alpha leader at inside linebacker. Mack Wilson struggled in a leadership role and Moses was still learning as a sophomore. Most Tide fans believe Dylan can be that Alpha for the 2019 team. The confidence in Moses is matched by a concern if he were lost to a late-season injury, the Tide’s title chances might exit with him.

Alabama football is thin at inside linebacker because of recruiting misses in the 2017, 2018 and 2019 classes. Two good additions came in the 2019 class, but only one of them, Shane Lee is enrolled for spring.

Most Alabama football fans have thought Kaho would win the starting role next to Moses in the base and nickel defenses. Particularly in nickel, the inside linebackers must be able to tackle and cover in space. With the base defense being used less than 20 percent of plays, nickel is the most frequently used defense.

If Kaho cannot earn a starting role in spring and fall camps, the most logical starter would be Josh McMillon. The redshirt senior can be an effective run stopper and has enough speed to go from side to side. He should understand the reads and coverages better than any of the other roster choices. The question is how well he can cover.

Younger, less experienced options are sophomore Jaylen Moody and redshirt sophomore Markail Benton. True freshman Shane Lee should not be counted out or counted on until he absorbs the defense.

Defensive coordinator, Phil Golding, who also coaches the inside linebackers, has some other wrinkles he could use. If he thinks guys like Jared Mayden, Xavier McKinney and Shyheim Carter can be physical enough against the run, he could play more dime than nickel. Golding could also add one of the outside linebackers to a role in the nickel, thereby playing the nickel, like the dime, with only one true, inside linebacker.

None of those possible adjustments solve the “what to do” dilemma if Dylan Moses goes down. So who will start games next to Moses? It may change as the season progresses but it will be the guy best able to step into Dylan’s role if the need arises. That guy will need as much game experience as possible, including subbing for Dylan when early games are firmly in hand.

Without overcomplicating this discussion, it is important to remember the linebacker roles are situational, depending on the expectation of the opponent running or passing on a given play. In the nickel, there may be a run-oriented Will linebacker and a pass-oriented Will linebacker, who are different guys. And that potential adjustment is conditional on the offensive schemes of each opponent.