The Kadyn Proctor skill package isn't just an 'exhibition' according to Kalen DeBoer

Most of the time, when you see an offensive lineman get a chance with the football in his hands, it's a gadget that's pulled out when a game is already well in hand. It's just for show, an exhibition if you will.

Not at Alabama.

For three consecutive weeks, Alabama has schemed up a way to get the football in the massive hands of 6-foot-7, 360-pound left tackle Kadyn Proctor. And not in the midst of blowouts; in critical moments, they've turned to the junior offensive lineman to make a play.

And he keeps delivering.

It started against Georgia when Proctor split out wide as a receiver. He caught a pass - later ruled a backwards pass and run - and rumbled with the ball for a gain of 11 yards and a first down at the Georgia two-yard line. That play was called with Alabama leading by three late in the first half, and ultimately set up a Ty Simpson rushing touchdown to give the Crimson Tide a two-possession lead at halftime.

A week later against Vanderbilt, Proctor took a handoff on a 3rd-and-1 with less than six minutes to play in the game and Alabama leading by only six points. Proctor converted a key first down, leading to a Connor Talty field goal to give the Crimson Tide a two-possession lead.

Last week against Missouri, Proctor lined up in the largest wildcat package you've ever seen in your life. In a tie game late in the third quarter, Proctor took the direct snap from a funky formation and rumbled down to the 1-yard line for a two-yard gain.

There's a level of trust that Kalen DeBoer and OC Ryan Grubb have in Proctor that's abnormal. They are trusting him in crucial moments, and the big man keeps delivering.

"We’re using it in big moments," DeBoer told the media on Monday. "It’s something that we feel isn’t just this exhibition. It’s something, we feel like KP can do some things. There’s a positive and a way where we can gain yards in critical moments with him. There’s a trust that we have in him."

What's next for the Kadyn Proctor skill package?

Alabama fans, players, coaches, and Proctor himself likely want nothing more than they want to see the big man get into the endzone. He's gotten close. He got down to the two against Georgia, the one against Missouri. Next, he's got to cross that plane.

What's coming eventually is a counter off the Proctor package. They've used it once a game - in different formations - three weeks in a row. Eventually, perhaps as early as this week, they're going to line Proctor up somewhere and he'll be a decoy. They'll run the play the opposite direction, likely to a lot of green grass as the defense converges on Alabama's biggest skill player.

Or perhaps they'll use that wildcat formation again, and instead of Proctor running straight ahead, he'll do a Tim Tebow-like jump pass for what would also be a wide-open touchdown. Something like that is coming, and soon.

Regardless, what has become clear is that this wasn't just some gimmick Alabama wanted to run against Georgia to catch the Bulldogs off guard three weeks ago. Sure, that was a happily accepted byproduct of it, but the reality is that this is now a weekly staple of the offense. Something that Tennessee and other future opponents will have to gameplan for.