There won't be any official availability reports this week as Alabama faces a non-conference opponent in Florida State at home this weekend. Last Wednesday night was the first availability report of Kentucky week, and it brought a surprise: sophomore guard Michael Carroll was listed as "doubtful," and it was ultimately revealed that he was dealing with a minor concussion.
Carroll did end up missing Saturday's matchup in Lexington. In his absence, Mal Waldrep started at left guard and Will Sanders kicked over to right guard. After an uneven start up front, the Crimson Tide settled in and physically overwhelmed Kentucky in the second half to the tune of 150 rushing yards and a 32-0 margin on the scoreboard.
It was an impressive performance, especially without Carroll, but getting the sophomore back would still be a welcomed site.
It sounds like that'll happen this weekend.
Even without an availability report being released, ESPN's Alex Scarborough reported on Wednesday night that Carroll has been back at practice this week and is expected to be available on Saturday against Florida State:
Alabama right guard Michael Carroll, a Freshman All-American last season, is expected to be available vs. FSU on Saturday, sources told ESPN.
— Alex Scarborough (@ByScarborough) September 17, 2026
He’s been back practicing this week after missing the Kentucky game with an undisclosed injury.
Alabama is expected to have Michael Carroll back this weekend vs. FSU
It was encouraging to see that Alabama was able to get through a road SEC game without its best player up front last week, but there's no question that the Crimson Tide is better when Carroll is in the lineup.
There's been a lot to be encouraged about with Alabama's offensive line through two weeks. They certainly haven't been perfect, but new offensive line coach Adrian Klemm has clearly already paid major dividends. There haven't been as many missed assignments or confusion up front so far. The issues have been more minor, and things that are easily fixable on film.
With Carroll back, Sanders will likely flip back over to left guard and start instead of Waldrep, but it'll be interesting to see if he goes the whole way or if there will be a rotation at left guard again. In the opener against East Carolina, Sanders started, but Waldrep ended up playing more snaps overall.
Alabama wants to maintain as much consistency and cohesiveness as it can on the offensive line. Adding Carroll back and returning to the starting five that won jobs to begin the season is a nice step in the right direction.
This will be another game for Alabama to work out some kinks. Florida State isn't a pushover, but the meat of Alabama's SEC schedule begins next week with South Carolina coming to Tuscaloosa.
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