Some Alabama Football transfers learning grass isn't always greener

Alabama Football saw significant roster turnover this offseason in the wake of Nick Saban's retirement in January. While the the amount of guys who would've actually contributed to the Tide in 2024 was totally overblown by national media hoping to finally shovel dirt on the grave of the bully, there was no doubt a handful of guys who chose to play elsewhere in 2024 that would have been at least part of the rotation at their position in Tuscaloosa under Kalen DeBoer.

Some guys who left made sense. There was Eli Holstein, who was buried on the depth chart here and behind guys ahead of him in class like Jalen Milroe and Ty Simpson, but also seemed to have fallen behind classmate Dylan Lonergan. Holstein transferred to Pittsburgh, won the starting job, and has led the Panthers to a 3-0 record to start 2024, including back-to-back ridiculous come-from-behind wins over Cincinnati and West Virginia.

WR Ja'Corey Brooks broke out as a sophomore in Tuscaloosa in 2022, but fell out of favor in 2023, logging just three receptions all year. He transferred to Louisville, and it has immediately paid dividends. Brooks leads Louisville in receiving through two games with 13 catches for 172 yards and a touchdown.

Then there's guys like Isaiah Bond and Caleb Downs, who are simply so talented that it doesn't really matter where they play because they are going to be impactful. Bond has flourished in Steve Sarkisian's offense, and while Downs hasn't had much spotlight so far, that's only because Ohio State hasn't played anyone yet. His time will come.

But there's a bigger group of Alabama transfers who left for greener pastures, but they've found nothing but dirt and famine.

The biggest single program who benefitted from transfers out of Tuscaloosa was Florida State, with head coach Mike Norvell grabbing five players out of the portal. Those players went from a consistently dominant program that hasn't lost more than two games in a single season since 2010 to a Seminoles squad that just fell to 0-3 after a 20-12 loss to Memphis this week.

Defensive back Earl Little Jr. and LB Shawn Murphy have settled into the same reserve roles they had in Tuscaloosa. Little is Florida State's backup nickel while Murphy isn't currently listed on the two-deep. With the way Alabama has rotated players on defense the first three weeks, it's hard to imagine that at least Little wouldn't be playing a bigger role for DeBoer than he is for Norvell.

Roydell Williams is listed as the team's starting running back, but he's only gotten 20-carries in Florida State's three games, and he's struggled behind an offensive line that can't open up holes, averaging a career-low 2.7 yards-per-carry. Williams needed to leave Tuscaloosa as it was likely that Jam Miller and Justice Haynes were going to surpass him this offseason and he would be settling into a much smaller role than he needed for his final year of college football, but his role hasn't been much bigger in Tallahassee. He probably would've been better off declaring for the draft or finding a program outside of the Power-4 structure where he could have been the focal point of the offense.

Malik Benson is one reception away from equaling his total from last season at Alabama, but his 12 catches for 171 yards in three games hasn't moved the needle all that much for the Seminoles. Benson probably could have settled into a pretty good role in Tuscaloosa this year. Instead he's stuck with a struggling QB on an offense that's averaging just a shade over 15 points-per-game.

While Bond has thrived in Austin, it's been a different story for tight end Amari Niblack, who left behind a starting job in Tuscaloosa and has had a difficult time getting on the field at Texas. He's listed as the team's third string TE, and has a single catch for 7-yards so far in 2024 after a 20-catch, 327-yard, 4 touchdown sophomore season at Alabama.

Then there's freshman cornerback Jameer Grimsley who was part of Saban's last signing class and decided to bolt for Gainesville. Grimsley hitched himself to the sinking Billy Napier ship, and is likely to face the coaching change at Florida he wanted to avoid at Alabama.

The grass isn't always greener on the other side of the fence. Kadyn Proctor realized that quickly in a short stint at Iowa before coming back to Tuscaloosa after spring practice.

The transfer portal is a great thing for student-athletes, if used wisely. Nobody should be stuck at a college they don't want to be at, and as frustrating it can be for fans to deal with significant roster turnover year-in and year-out, it has been a net positive for the sport because of the flexibility it gives to the athletes.

But these are also kids. Kids who frequently make rash decisions without fully thinking it out, or take poor advice from people who really don't have their best interest at heart. If you asked all the guys who left Alabama this offseason if they had regrets, more than a couple would answer affirmatively.