Alabama Football: Will Anderson Jr. doing what no Tide player has ever done

Alabama Football has had so many great teams, coaches and players, it is always impressive when another record is added to a long list of superlatives. When a new Alabama Crimson Tide record was added this week, it was stunning.

The NCAA recognizes only five organizations that select All-American teams. They are the Associated Press, the American Football Coaches Association, the Football Writers Association of America, the Walter Camp Football Foundation, and the media platform, The Sporting News.

To be a unanimous First Team All-American, a player must be selected by all five of the recognized entities.

At the end of last season’s awards cycle, the Alabama Crimson Tide had 40 Unanimous All-Americans, the most for any college football program. Now Alabama Football has 41, and the 41st one accomplished something no Alabama football player ever had.

The achievement is close to being unbelievable. According to Wikipedia, college football has only 29 players who have been named Unanimous All-Americans in multiple seasons.

Naming football All-American teams goes back to the 19th century and Walter Camp. The designation of Consensus and Unanimous All-Americans goes back to 1924.

Followers of Alabama football history realize how momentous is Will Anderson Jr.’s achievement. The Crimson Tide has had legendary Unanimous All-Americans. Anderson has accomplished what Alabama greats Derrick Thomas, John Hannah, Lee Roy Jordan, Cornelius Bennett and others never did. Anderson never won a Heisman Trophy, but none of the Crimson Tide’s Heisman winners, Mark Ingram, Derrick Henry, DeVonta Smith and Bryce Young achieved being back-to-back Unanimous All-Americans.

Will Anderson Jr. has received many accolades and words of praise. He has been recognized for being a great player and at the same time an outstanding leader and an exemplary person. He represents all that is right about college football and the Alabama Crimson Tide program.

How he will be missed! It is not known if he will play in the Sugar Bowl. It makes no business sense for him to risk an injury. If he does not play or after the game, if he does, we should ask ourselves did we fans fully appreciate him in his Crimson Tide career.

To some fans, nothing short of the unattainable perfect is ever enough. Will Anderson Jr. places the same demands on himself. No game performance, no matter how outstanding, ever reached the standard he set for himself.

Congratulations to Will Anderson Jr. for an honor fully deserved. One future day, he is destined to be in the College Football Hall of Fame.