Questions still linger about Kalen DeBoer’s ability to win big in the SEC after Alabama missed the College Football Playoff with a disappointing nine-win campaign in Year 1 of his tenure. While DeBoer has a national championship game appearance on his resume, until he proves it in the country’s toughest conference, the skepticism will be hard to shake. However, it’s undeniable that DeBoer’s roster for the 2025 season is one of the best in the country.
Alabama has overwhelming talent on both sides of the ball, but concerns about first-year starter Ty Simpson can overshadow the offensive optimism. Defensively, there is no such issue. The Crimson Tide are loaded on the defensive side of the ball, and the Bronko Nagurski Trophy Preseason Watch List, released on Tuesday by the Football Writers’ Association of America, is just another piece of evidence.
Three Alabama players were named to the watch list for this upcoming season: defensive end LT Overton, defensive tackle Tim Keenan III, and linebacker Deontae Lawson.
Keenan, Lawson, and Overton named to Bronko Nagurski Preseason Watch List
The Bronko Nagurski Trophy is awarded to the best defensive player in the country as voted on by the FWAA members. Last year’s winner was South Carolina defensive end Kyle Kennard, a Georgia Tech transfer who led the Gamecocks defense with 11.5 sacks and 16 tackles for loss before becoming a fourth-round pick of the Los Angeles Chargers in the 2025 NFL Draft.
Of the 60 players on the preseason watch list, 18 hail from the SEC, representing 11 different programs. However, a few of the top contenders hail from the Big Ten: Aidan Fisher, D’Angelo Ponds, and Caleb Downs, the three returning FWAA All-Americans. Downs was the freshman of the year in the SEC in 2023 as a member of the Crimson Tide before transferring to Ohio State and winning a national championship last season.
Among Alabama’s preseason contenders for the award, Overton is the most likely to claim the hardware. There’s a case for Lawson, who will almost certainly emerge as the team’s tackle leader with Jihaad Campbell in the NFL, but with the counting stats that edge rushers rack up, these awards often favor that position, and based on the watch list, Overton wouldn’t be a bad selection.
Overton isn’t the SEC edge rusher drawing the most attention; that distinction falls upon two sophomores who had stellar freshman years, Dylan Stewart from South Carolina and Colin Simmons from Texas. However, Overton has a chance to be the most productive.
The former Texas A&M transfer led Kane Wommack’s defense with 39 quarterback pressures last season, the 13th most in the SEC, and posted an 18 percent pass rush win rate (8th in the SEC). However, Overton parlayed those gaudy numbers into just two sacks. If he becomes a better finisher once he gets to the quarterback, his sack number will spike and draw attention for the Nagurski Trophy.
Lawson and Keenan play less glamorous positions, but they’ll both be in the running for First-Team All-American bids if they play to their potential in 2025. With such a strong front seven, Alabama’s defense could be one of the best in the country next season and ease the pressure on Simpson as he adjusts to the starting role in Tuscaloosa.