Alabama is two weeks into fall camp, and there's been plenty of movement up and down the depth chart as Crimson Tide players jockey for position ahead of the season-opener, which is now less than three weeks away.
It has been the competitive fall camp that Kalen DeBoer hoped for, with plenty of jobs up for grabs. The players who have lost ground in their respective competitions have mostly been surpassed by younger players rather than by poor performances in their own right.
We'll highlight a few players today who have their stock pointed upward after the first couple of weeks of camp.
QB Keelon Russell
We won't make you wait for this one. The sophomore phenom is having a terrific fall camp, and by most accounts was head-and-shoulders better than Austin Mack during Thursday's scrimmage. Kalen DeBoer may not be ready to name a starter yet, but it does feel inevitable that Keelon Russell will ultimately be the Crimson Tide's starter this season.
His dual-threat ability has been eye-opening, and perhaps necessary with an offensive line that is still trying to find its footing. Mack can bring a high floor to the Crimson Tide's offense, but Russell's ceiling may be as high as any quarterback in the country.
Alabama needs a ceiling raiser at the position. That's Russell, and he's proving that in camp. Thursday's second scrimmage should be the decider.
RB Trae'shawn Brown
Freshman RB Trae'shawn Brown flew under the radar as a recruit and in Alabama's 2026 class thanks to the inclusion of 5-star EJ Crowell, who dominated the headlines. But with Crowell dealing with nagging injuries in both the spring and the fall, it has been Brown who has seized the freshman spotlight.
With sophomore AK Dear sidelined for the first few weeks, there's a big opportunity for Brown to carve out a big role that he never relinquishes. He's got the home run potential that Alabama has been missing at the position.
Brown impressed in Thursday's scrimmage, and he won't be flying under the radar for much longer. The Crimson Tide found a gem in the 2026 cycle.
LB Luke Metz
Junior QB Reese came into fall camp as the leader in the clubhouse for the second starting off-ball LB job next to Virginia Tech transfer Caleb Woodson. But sophomore Luke Metz has had a strong fall camp and appears to have overtaken Reese.
Metz was running with the first team next to Woodson during Thursday's scrimmage, and he was the first LB singled out by DeBoer in his press conference. He also earned a lot of praise from defensive coordinator Kane Wommack earlier in the week.
Metz appears set to land the starting spot and play a major role in the Crimson Tide's defense.
Alabama's trio of transfer defensive linemen
This one might be cheating, but between USC's Devan Thompkins, Oregon's Terrance Green, and Mississippi State's Kedrick Bingley-Jones, it's hard to choose just one as a fall camp standout. They've all been revelatory, and they're big reasons why there's a lot of optimism that Alabama's defensive line will be a major upgrade from a year ago.
During the scrimmage, the veteran transfer trio made up the first-team defensive line for the Crimson Tide. Thompkins and Green were expected to be starters, but it appears, at least for now, that Bingley-Jones has the inside track at the 3-technique DT spot ahead of rising sophomore London Simmons.
Regardless of who starts, Alabama's depth on the defensive line looks to be a real strength in 2026.
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