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Alabama Football: Player profiles 2019 – Patrick Surtain II

By Zachary Mangum

TUSCALOOSA, AL - SEPTEMBER 08: Patrick Surtain II #2 of the Alabama Crimson Tide is flagged for pass interference as he breaks up a pass intended for Jonathan Adams Jr. #9 of the Arkansas State Red Wolves at Bryant-Denny Stadium on September 8, 2018 in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)
TUSCALOOSA, AL - SEPTEMBER 08: Patrick Surtain II #2 of the Alabama Crimson Tide is flagged for pass interference as he breaks up a pass intended for Jonathan Adams Jr. #9 of the Arkansas State Red Wolves at Bryant-Denny Stadium on September 8, 2018 in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images) /
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This is the next post in the series of player profiles for some of the 2019 Alabama football roster. For this iteration, we will be looking at the legacy from Florida, Patrick Surtain II.

Patrick Surtain II, or PS2 as many call him, is a rising Sophomore CB for Alabama football. He is the son of former NFL All-Pro Patrick Surtain Sr. The elder Surtain was a force for the Miami Dolphins and Kansas City Chiefs during his illustrious NFL career.

Patrick Surtain Sr.
30 Dec 2001 : Patrick Surtain of the Miami Dolphins during the game against the Atlanta Falcons at Pro Player Stadium in Miami, Florida. The Dolphins won 21-14. DIGITAL IMAGE. Mandatory Credit: Eliot Schechter/Getty Images /

PS2 is considered by many to be the best CB prospect in a generation if he reaches his full potential. Coming out of American Heritage High School in Plantation, FL he had already racked up a laundry list of awards, accolades, and honors. Here is a quick glance at just some of them:

  • 2016 All-USA Florida Football 2nd Team
  • 2016 All-USA 2nd Team
  • Back-to-back 5A Florida State Championships 2016-17
  • Back-to-back All-County 1st Team in Broward County 2016-17
  • 2017 MaxPreps High School All-American 2nd Team
  • 2017 USA Today All-USA Florida Football 1st Team

While at American Heritage he was first coached by former NFL DB and Miami Hurricane star Mike Rumph. After Rumph left to be CB coach at Miami, Patrick Surtain Sr. took over as the head man. Also on the coaching staff at American Heritage is Chad Wilson former Miami DB and father of Quincy Wilson and Marco Wilson.

Given all the knowledge those three have about playing DB, it should come as no surprise that they turn out elite DB talent. PS2’s high school team was chock-full of talented DBs including Marco Wilson, a 4-star prospect who is now with the Florida Gators, and Tyson Campbell, a 5-star prospect now with the Georgia Bulldogs.

That is ridiculous talent to all be on one high school team. You rarely see 3 elite guys on a single high school team, but to have 3 elite guys at one POSITION is even crazier.

PS2 was always considered the best of the three. His natural ability to play DB manifested at a young age even before he started to learn the fundamentals of the position. His ball skills and ability to cover guys with his feet and not his hands came as almost second nature.

Those are skills that usually take guys years to master, yet PS2 had them mastered before he had his driver’s license. When asked if he could name any weakness to PS2’s game Chad Wilson had trouble coming up with an answer. He did say that if there was one knock on PS2 it was that he lacked the talkativeness and confident swagger that you usually find in elite DBs.

Many scouts believed that he would end up at LSU given his family ties to the area, but PS2 ended up picking Alabama football. When Patrick Surtain Sr. was asked why his son chose Alabama he had this to say:

"They’re the gold standard. All the other programs are great, but there’s only one Alabama. If you’re the best guy at your position, which Pat was rated as, you want to go to the best team."

In his Freshman season with Alabama football PS2 did not disappoint. He quickly became a lockdown corner during the regular season. Rarely getting targeted by opposing QBs. Even when they did PS2 shut them down.

Although he only had one INT, he also had seven pass breakups, and he didn’t allow a TD on any of his 771 regular season and SEC championship game snaps.

Honestly, one of the most telling things about how good a Corner is, is if they have low stats. Especially if they aren’t allowing TDs. That means that opposing QBs are making a conscious effort to NOT throw in their direction. And what bigger compliment is there than an opposing coach telling their QB to not throw to your man?

After his Freshman campaign PS2 was named a Freshman All-American by The Athletic. He was also named to the Freshman All-SEC team by the coaches. Coming into 2019 as a true Sophomore he was tabbed as a member of the pre-season All-SEC 2nd Team and has immense pressure to take a big step forward on the field.

The secondary was a big problem in both the Oklahoma and Clemson games. Oklahoma seemed to target PS2 and he had his worst collegiate game for sure.

Clemson didn’t target him much, but the secondary overall played poorly. The secondary is the biggest question mark on a team that looks to compete for and win another national championship in 2019.

PS2 will be a big part of the equation this season, and his performance may very well determine how good (or bad) the defense is in 2019. If he can live up to his potential Alabama football may very well not lose a game in 2019, because much of the rest of the team has already proven what it can do.

Next. Secondary More Talented and More Experienced. dark

If you missed the first player profile on LaBryan Ray you can find it here. Keep looking as we will be posting profiles on various players as we lead up to the season opener in August.

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