As the Alabama Football team enjoys its bye week it’s an interesting exercise to examine how players have performed through eight games. There are many players who are worthy of winning awards and picking just one winner for each award is increasingly difficult. Let’s take a look at who wins each of my mid-season awards for the Alabama Football team.
Most Valuable Player – Dallas Turner – Edge Rusher
The Alabama defense has made life miserable for opposing quarterbacks and it all starts with Edge rusher Dallas Turner. Turner has taken a massive leap from 2022 where he recorded four sacks and 37 tackles. Through eight games Dallas Turner looks like he’ll smash both numbers with eight sacks and 34 tackles adding two forced fumbles to his impressive record. Will Anderson led the team last season with 10 sacks in what was a dominant season, for Turner if he gets only ten sacks it would be a massive disappointment which is a testament to how dominant he’s been in 2023.
Offensive Player of the Year – Jermaine Burton – Wide Receiver
While Jalen Milroe has been better than expected giving this award to a quarterback would be no fun. After a slow few weeks, Jermaine Burton has exploded onto the scene making himself the clear WR1 for this Alabama Football team. In the toughest matchups, Burton has shown the most, with his best two performances coming against Texas A&M and Tennessee. In a game many expected the Alabama offense to struggle Jermaine Burton had the game of his career hauling in nine passes for 197 yards and 2 touchdowns. Against Tennessee, Burton hauled in multiple impressive catches on his way to four catches for 62 yards and a touchdown. Jermaine Burton wins this award because whenever the offense seems stagnant, he makes a massive catch to get the team into rhythm again.
Defensive Player of the Year – Kool-Aid McKinstry – Cornerback
Kool-Aid Mckinstry certainly deserves props for his performance this season as he’s continued to cement himself as the nation’s top cornerback. Coming off of a season where he got second-team All-American honors from multiple publications McKinstry has seemingly only gotten better. When playing 1-on-1 coverage Mckinstry shows a level of poise and calmness you rarely see in a college cornerback. The ability Kool-Aid has in press coverage is his most impressive attribute and what makes him so special compared to other college cornerbacks. Kool-Aid has also shown solid tackling ability which in part makes him so valuable to this Alabama defense. Mckinstry’s play has made him a candidate for multiple honors including: The Lott, Nagurski, and Bednarik awards given to the nation’s top defender.
Crimson Tide Unsung Heroes – Malachi Moore – Star – Chris Braswell – Linebacker
Whenever anyone talks about the defense the conversation starts with Dallas Turner and Kool-Aid McKinstry and rightfully so. But the versatility of Malachi Moore and the athleticism of Chris Braswell have helped take this team to another level.
After seeing a dip in playing time last season Malachi Moore has returned the best, we’ve seen him playing Nick Saban’s “Star” position. The position was occupied by Brian Branch last season and the Alabama football team has gotten a similar performance from Moore. Playing the Star Moore ranks top 10 on the team in tackles and top five in pass deflections with an interception as well despite missing a game and a half to injury.
When Alabama entered the offseason one of the biggest questions was what would edge rusher look like opposite of Dallas Turner. Trying to find a way to replace Will Anderson’s team-leading 10 sacks seemed like it was going to be a daunting task for the Alabama football team as Turner only recorded four sacks last season. Chris Braswell has stepped up in a massive way recording 6.5 sacks in eight games adding an interception and a game-sealing strip of Tennessee’s Joe Milton. The duo of Braswell and Dallas Turner have combined for 66 tackles, 20.5 tackles for a loss, 14.5 sacks, four forced fumbles, and an interception making the duo one of the nation’s best pass rush duos.
Most Improved Player – Terrion Arnold – Cornerback
The improvement of Terrion Arnold has been one of the highlights of the season and has been massive for what Alabama can do defensively. Instinctually, Arnold’s play recognition has jumped off the table with the highlight coming this past Saturday when Arnold sniffed out a screen pass and flew up to make the stop forcing a Volunteer punt. In the absence of Malachi Moore, Terrion Arnold was able to bump over and play the star position filling in nicely. Arnold did leave the Tennessee game with a concussion, hopefully, he’ll return for the LSU game as the Alabama defense will have its hands full with the Tigers’ explosive passing attack.
Top Newcomer – Caleb Downs – Freshman
You have to be a high-caliber player to start as a true freshman on a Nick Saban-led team. Through eight games, Caleb Downs has been exactly that leading the Alabama Football team in tackles with 63. Downs is also the leading tackler out of all underclassmen in the SEC, leads the conference in solo tackles, and is fourth overall in the conference in total tackles. Downs has struggled in coverage at times but, as he continues to improve, he has a real shot at being an All-American as a true freshman.
Mr. Dependable – Kicker – Will Reichard
You can’t give away hypothetical awards to the Alabama Football team without mentioning Will Reichard. The Senior kicker is 25-25 on extra points and 15-15 on field goal attempts with a long of 51. He’s made two 50+ yard kicks on the season and 6 40–49-yard kicks impressive for any college kicker. When James Burnip got injured versus Texas A&M Reichard stepped up and punted 4 times averaging 41.3 yards per punt. Having a kicker like Reichard is a weapon as any time you cross midfield you have a chance at scoring points. This season Will Reichard became the SEC’s leading scorer with 496 points and counting.
Alabama Football: Key contributions from the entire team.
For every award you could make an argument for two to three players which shows how impressive this team’s depth is. On defense, you have multiple players on pace for multiple sacks, two cornerbacks that are among the best in the Nation, and a true freshman safety that leads the SEC in Solo tackles. The offense hasn’t had a clear-cut No. 1 wide receiver for most of the season and they continue to get production from a different player every week. Getting contributions like the Alabama Football team has from players who didn’t play massive roles last season is beyond impressive and is a testament to the team’s coaching staff.
Football is a team game and the Alabama Crimson Tide gets consistent contributions from players not highlighted in this post.
Note: All Stats Via ESPN