While Kalen DeBoer noted at SEC Media Days on Wednesday that Alabama won't need as many freshmen to contribute right away as it did the last two seasons, it's also becoming increasingly clear that two Crimson Tide freshmen are going to carve out early roles.
The obvious one is 5-star RB EJ Crowell, who has a chance to be the focal point of a resurgent Alabama running game.
The other is a fellow in-state star, 4-star WR Cederian Morgan, who has had everyone in the program buzzing since he enrolled early and participated in Rose Bowl prep.
Senior safety Bray Hubbard praised the talented Tide rookie, while offering a bold prediction for his freshman campaign:
"He’s a big receiver. He’s also put on a lot of muscle mass. He’s a strong receiver, too," Hubbard said at SEC Media Days. "You throw anything his way, he’s going to catch it. He’s got really good hands. So I’m excited for him. I think he’s going to have a huge role in our offense.
"Obviously, I’m not on that side, so I can’t speak too much about it, but I go against him a good bit. So he’s a great player. I remember in bowl prep, when he early enrolled and came with us for bowl prep, I mean, the dude was catching some stuff. And I was like, man, this kid’s gonna be a great player."
Bray Hubbard believes freshman WR Cederian Morgan will have a "huge" role in Alabama's offense
The opportunity is certainly in front of Morgan in his freshman season at Alabama. The No. 3 WR spot next to Ryan Coleman-Williams and Lotzeir Brooks is wide open this fall, with Kalen DeBoer and Ryan Grubb waiting for someone to step up and take it.
That could very well be Morgan.
With Noah Rogers sidelined for at least the first few games, Morgan is competing against returners Rico Scott and Derek Meadows for the role. It makes sense that the real competition would be between Morgan and Meadows because their size (both 6-foot-4+) gives the Tide's offense a perfect contrast with Coleman-Williams and Brooks.
But it was also obvious from the A-Day scrimmage that DeBoer and Grubb are enamored by the idea of getting Meadows and Morgan on the field together to really provide some matchup problems for defenses.
Morgan has been drawing praise for months. His catch radius was well-documented in the spring by Coleman-Williams, who noted that Alabama teammates had taken to calling Morgan the "Gulf of Mexico" because he snags anything near him.
A lot of fans have taken to calling him "Baby Julio", something he's certainly leaning into with his choice to don the #8 jersey.
Alabama has had freshmen wide receivers step into large roles in both of DeBoer's two seasons in Tuscaloosa. First it was Coleman-Williams in 2024, and then it was Brooks last year. Morgan looks to have next.
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