Player updates from Saturday's Alabama Football 'open scrimmage'

Alabama Football conducted an open scrimmage on Saturday afternoon. In this case 'open' means invited guests, who numbered in the hundreds. As it always was under Nick Saban, media members were not invited.

There is much good news from Saturday and only one piece of semi-bad news. Starting right guard Jaeden Roberts suffered an ankle injury and he left the stadium in a boot, using crutches. According to Kalen DeBoer, the injury is not serious.

Observations from many sources include mixed opinions on the play of the quarterbacks. The offense was clearly focused on short and intermediate throws, meaning no long bombs from Jalen Milroe. Milroe was effective running the ball and like the shorter throws, his running seems to be a priority in the new offense. Ty Simpson earned some strong reviews, though Simpson did not always compete against the Tide's first-unit defense.

Six Alabama Football Scrimmage Positives

• Item one on the list is not one player. It applies mainly to James Brockermeyer and Jalen Milroe. There were no bad snaps in the scrimmage. That includes snaps from backup center Jo Ionata, who filled in with the second group due to Parker Brailsford not being available.

• Working with the first unit secondary at nickel back was freshman Red Morgan. There has been a buzz about Morgan all spring and on Saturday he showed why. Morgan is good in coverage and an aggressive run-stopper.

• Another defender who shined in the scrimmage was Qua Russaw. Mostly playing the Wolf position, the redshirt freshman showed impressive pass-rushing ability. Keanu Koht also looked good at the Wolf position. Keon Keeley also stood out as a disruptive defensive player but worked against second and third-unit players.

• Three offensive players who stood out were wide receivers, Caleb Odom and Cole Adams, and transfer tight end Josh Cuevas. CJ Dippre had an impressive run after a catch, but Cuevas might be the Tide's go-to tight end this fall. Odom showed his leaping ability in a touchdown catch. Cole Adams worked in a backup role, but multiple observers concluded Adams could have a key 'Hunter Renfrow' possession receiver role this fall.

• Conor Talty made every kick in the scrimmage. The longest was 48 yards and he looked to be a dependable replacement for Will Reichard for anything inside 50 yards.

Some Alabama Crimson Tide First Unit Lineups

• Offensive Line - Left Tackle, Elijah Pritchett, Left Guard, Tyler Booker; Center, James Brockermeyer; Right Guard, Jarden Roberts; Right Tackle, Wilkin Formby.

• Secondary (Nickel) - Cornerbacks, Domani Jackson and freshman Zabien Brown; Safeties, Malachi Moore and Keon Sabb; Husky (Nickel), Red Morgan

• Wide Receiver - At this point, the position group appears to have a seven-man rotation. Kobe Prentice, Germie Bernard, Caleb Odom, and Kendrick Law look to get the most snaps, with Emmanuel Henderson, Jaren Hamilton, and Cole Adams filling in.