News Article: A-Day wrap-up: It was a day of lists

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A-Day wrap-up: It was a day of lists
By Jess Nicholas
TideFans.com Editor-in-Chief
April 18, 2009

Those hoping for a glimpse of the future at Alabama’s A-Day spring scrimmage caught just enough to make them excited, just enough to make them worry and left them probably no more or less closer to an answer on what the fate of the 2009 Alabama Crimson Tide will be.

Defense dominated the scrimmage, especially against the run – not unexpected given the fact Alabama was without its top two running backs, the quarterbacks were down on two-hand touch and Alabama’s defensive line might be the best in the conference. Alabama had to count 83 rushing yards lost to sacks, some of them that would not have even close to a sack in a real game.

Since everyone likes a “Top 5, 10, etc.” list every now and then, here’s A-Day in list format.

Top 5 surprises of the spring:

5. William Vlachos takes the starting center job
Vlachos was the backup to Antoine Caldwell last year in theory, although in practice, the job might have gone to David Ross if Caldwell had been lost for a long period of time. This spring, Vlachos battled (and beat) Ross for the position, as well as former backup Evan Cardwell. Vlachos is undersized but strong, and plays with good technique. The last time Alabama had a center in that mold (Paul Hogan), things worked out just fine.


4. Marquis Maze emerges
Maze isn’t a new name; he earned early playing time last year and made the greatest non-catch since Tyrone Prothro in the opener against Clemson on a play wiped out by a penalty. But Maze led all receivers on A-Day and showed ability as a runner off the reverse, too. In pregame warm-ups, he even took some snaps at tailback. Maze is much like former Tide star Pierre Goode in that his primary weapon is raw speed. His hands still need some work. But having a speedy playmaker opposite Julio Jones would allow Jones some breathing room and get a few safeties to start looking the other way.

3. The amount of time it took to build a three-deep defensive line
As in, it didn’t take long. Alabama’s first-team defensive line has few peers nationally, especially against the run. The second-team defensive line could start for any other SEC West team, other than perhaps LSU, and would likely trail only Georgia in the East. Then there’s the third team, with names like Damion Square and Nick Gentry. This is the kind of depth people were hoping to get under Nick Saban. And it’s here.


2. Brian Motley at right guard
Most thought Motley was in the mix for playing time, but most probably thought it would be as left guard Mike Johnson’s relief pitcher. Instead, Motley unseated John Michael Boswell and held off promising true freshman Chance Warmack to join the first unit at A-Day. David Ross probably will have something to say about this position now that he doesn’t have to play center for the White (second) team at A-Day, but it was good to see Motley, a Class 1A star from Autaugaville High School and erstwhile nose guard, run with the first group for awhile. Look for this position to remain unsettled well into fall camp.

1. Robby Green at free safety
He’s not Rashad Johnson, but Robby Green jumped over the much-hyped Mark Barron, veteran Ali Sharrief and coaches’ favorite Tyrone King Jr. to land the position. Green’s light weight is a concern, but he has raw speed and a lot of smarts. The last time Alabama had a safety with those attributes – Cedric Samuel – things worked out pretty well. Green will really need to concentrate on conditioning and weight training over the summer, but if he can add 15 pounds and retain his current speed, he’ll be more than fine.

Top 5 performances of note at A-Day

5. Damion Square, DT: Square redshirted in 2008, but he’s had fans talking ever since his arrival in Tuscaloosa. Similar in build to Marcel Dareus, Square can play in or out and at A-Day, he was a force against both the run and the pass. Having this kind of depth will be critical in late-season games – despite his performance, Square is still technically a third-team player.

4. Terry Grant, RB: It wasn’t what Grant did so much as what he didn’t do – i.e., act tentatively. Grant, who lost his starting job prior to the 2008 season and finished the year as a special teams player more than anything else, got a chance to start Saturday with the absence due to injury of both Mark Ingram and Roy Upchurch. He responded by hitting holes with a vengeance. His 10 carries for 28 yards won’t exactly wow anyone, but Grant last year was too quick to go down to contact. If he continues to play in the fall as he did at A-Day, he’ll probably have a role.

3. Chavis Williams, LB/DE: In the doghouse for much of 2008, Williams was an automatic backfield wrecker at A-Day. He got upfield with a burst on nearly every snap he had a go-clearance on, and his combination of size and speed proved difficult for the offensive tackles to handle. Williams played a big part in Alabama’s opening win over Clemson last year; could he do it again in 2009?

2. Terrence Cody, NT: After Cody’s injury in 2008, he was never truly the same. Coaches have hinted that Cody was back to old form this spring, and he went out and proved it in this game. His blow-through of a Mike Johnson block and then subsequent flattening of Terry Grant was the best single defensive play of the game. If Cody looks like this in the fall, opponents may try to get him outlawed as a last resort.

1. Marcel Dareus, DT/DE: Dareus was Alabama’s passing-down nose tackle toward the end of 2008, but at A-Day he had the look of a guy that could dominate on any given down. Dareus’ biggest problem right now is that he sits behind Lorenzo Washington, who picked up an award after the game for being one of the team’s most improved players. Alabama looks to have anywhere from 7-10 linemen with which it can field a legitimate playing rotation. In that case, Dareus will get plenty of snaps – and do plenty of damage. It is rare for a man his size to be so quick. There were comparisons made to Glenn Dorsey when Dareus came out of high school. Perhaps that wasn’t just hype.

Top 5 players/situations to be concerned about

5. Off-field issues and expectations
This might sound like a cop-out – suggesting there weren’t five areas of concern at A-Day itself – but to ignore off-the-field issues would be foolish. For starters, Alabama’s three toughest games are likely to come against Virginia Tech, Ole Miss and LSU. Fans who were worried about Clemson last year are drifting towards the overconfident this year on the logic that Virginia Tech is just another ACC team. And since Alabama “always” beats Ole Miss and LSU is rebuilding its defense somewhat, the temptation is there to shuttle the 2009 Alabama team on into the BCS Championship Game without much worry. Saban will have to work to keep fan overconfidence from getting into the players’ heads. There is also the matter of NCAA and Textbookgate, which figures to be adjudicated sometime in May. If Alabama receives a substantial penalty from that case – and that wouldn’t be completely unexpected – it could not only throw a wrench into Alabama’s 2009-2010 recruiting, but could also affect the math that will determine how many of last year’s recruits are able to make it into school by August. Alabama has more incoming players than open slots as it is.

4. Will H-back be a strength or a weakness?
There were two unsung heroes of the 2008 Alabama offense: right guard Marlon Davis and H-back Travis McCall. McCall’s abilities as a receiver and a blocker, too, are proving difficult to replace. Brad Smelley and Preston Dial appear to be locked into that battle, with Smelley probably having the upper hand. Saturday, it didn’t appear that either was to McCall’s level as a blocker, at least not yet. Since Alabama plays a fullback only in certain situations, the H-back has to be an above-average blocker. Otherwise, he’s just a glorified receiver. This situation needs to improve before the opener.

3. Can right guard be solidified?
Feel-good stories about Brian Motley aside, given that William Vlachos is on the light side for a center, it is imperative that the new right guard be a difference-maker. Because of Alabama’s superior depth at tackle, it is right guard, not left tackle, that is the key position up for grabs. John Michael Boswell was expected to win the job, but didn’t. David Ross might have had he not been playing center for the second team. Brian Motley still needs to improve. When Alabama’s 2008 season really hit high gear came at the moment that Alabama stopped having to run over Andre Smith’s side anytime it wanted to gain positive yardage. Marlon Davis and Drew Davis were incredibly important to the success of the 2008 team. If the right side of the offensive line drops off in 2009, it will make things harder on both the running backs and the new quarterback. If D.J. Fluker arrives on campus living up to his considerable hype, don’t be surprised to see James Carpenter get a look here.

2. The kicking game – all of it
A-Day was not exactly an all-star show for Alabama’s kickers. Leigh Tiffin missed both kicks, although a 55-yarder that had the distance to be good from 60 is only a 50/50 proposition for even the top-level kickers. Punter P.J. Fitzgerald reverted to 2007 form. His backup, Heath Thomas, was on his way to a career day until he fumbled a punt snap on his last kick. The return was on, so Thomas was able to get the ball off anyway, but it’s no less a problem. Alabama figures to be sound in the return game (although it begs the question of why Julio Jones was returning kicks, or whether walk-on QB/WR Robert Ezell is the best option as a second-team kickoff returner) but the kicking itself needs to improve. The problem gets even dicier now that Corey Smith has quit the team and Alabama has only Colin Gallagher and a group of walk-ons whose names weren’t even in the program backing up Tiffin.

1. Star Jackson’s debut does not go smoothly
Redshirt freshmen quarterbacks will make mistakes, there’s no doubt. But Jackson looks to be even behind where Thomas Darrah was as a redshirt freshman walk-on last year. Jackson’s interception near the goal line in the second quarter was one of the most ill-advised reads ever executed at A-Day. On the other hand, he displayed good arm strength, and he has the luxury of time to get better. Probably the worst part is that the coaches likely wanted Jackson and Darrah to challenge and push Greg McElroy for the job, and at least as it pertains to Jackson, that never occurred.

Top 5 situations to watch between now and fall camp


5. Who will be this year’s senior breakout player?
One of the self-propagating traditions at Alabama in recent years has been the emergence of a senior (usually a fifth-year senior, but not always) who had, up to that point, not done much. Marcus Spencer was one of the first and most high-profile players to accomplish the feat, going from a slow, marginal strong safety as a junior to a hammerhead as a senior who rattled cages and intimidated receivers just with his presence. Two years ago, Matt Caddell turned the trick, going from a borderline contributor at best to Alabama’s most consistent receiver, and he couldn’t have picked a better time to stage his coming-out party – a late touchdown grab against Arkansas. He was joined that same year by Darren Mustin. Last year, Marlon Davis and Bobby Greenwood battled for the honor. Davis went from an average lineman to a key cog in the running game, while Greenwood went from plugger to weapon and was the only tackle/end to get anything remotely resembling a consistent pass rush. This year, receiver Mike McCoy looks to have the inside track. For more on him, see the next item.

4. Will someone step up to take the heat off Julio?
Julio Jones will be an automatic double-team in 2009, which is why it is critical for Alabama to find two or three receivers, at minimum, to keep safeties honest. Darius Hanks came on late last year and looks like a lock for the slot position. He runs nice routes and can get open, and probably has the best pure hands of the bunch. Marquis Maze is a speed burner, but must get more consistent. That leaves Earl Alexander and Mike McCoy as the other candidates. Alexander missed A-Day and much of spring with injury, but McCoy showed out Saturday, making a couple of difficult catches and looking quite comfortable in his role. The problem with McCoy, like Matt Caddell before him, is that he’s done this in the spring before. For two years now, McCoy has had solid springs only to fall into relative obscurity in the fall. Summer skel drills will be crucial for this foursome, and for incoming freshmen Kenny Bell and Michael Bowman.

3. Can Alabama develop inside linebacker depth?
Charlie Higgenbotham is a plugger and an important cog on special teams, but what would happen were he forced into a starting role? That’s the question Alabama would have had to ask itself in 2008. In 2009, things look to have changed a bit. Chris Jordan made a good push in the spring and had a nice A-Day game to close it out. Jerrell Harris added some weight and showed the ability to play inside or out. That gives Alabama three bodies whereas only one was available in 2008 – but Alabama also hasn’t played a live game yet. Two freshmen, Tana Patrick and Nico Johnson, will add to the mix come fall, but there’s no substitute for experience. Alabama can’t count on a Dont'a Hightower scenario every year. Jordan, Harris, Higgenbotham and also Cory Reamer may very well determine just how salty Alabama’s front seven is in 2009.

2. Did Thomas Darrah claim the backup QB job at A-Day?
Nick Saban is famous for not releasing official depth charts, so speculation is all anyone has at this point. Darrah certainly appeared to outplay Star Jackson at A-Day, but also didn’t come very close to Greg McElroy. The real question is what happens if heralded freshman A.J. McCarron proves to be everything his press clippings make him out to be. Would Alabama start the 2009 season with McElroy backed up by a true freshman? The key to that question likely rests in the hands of Darrah. He has now made statements of, at least, his adequacy as a college quarterback in consecutive A-Day games, so the level of work he puts into his summer skels may determine what happens once fall arrives. Darrah’s homerun arm strength definitely won’t hurt him.

1. The biggest question of them all – is Greg McElroy really ready?
McElroy pretty much ended the quarterback debate Saturday. His touchdown pass to Julio Jones came on a late, deep read – the kind of read John Parker Wilson often struggled to execute. His thread-the-needle touchdown pass to Mike McCoy was a thing of beauty. One of his two interceptions was on a freak tipped ball, while the other was a good read but didn’t have enough air on the pass itself. Now the really difficult question comes: Is he ready? Is he really, really ready to be the quarterback of The University of Alabama? If the Crimson Tide defense is as good as it looked at times Saturday, all of a sudden, 2009 could move from being a reloading year to being, possibly, a contending year. But it will happen only if McElroy – or a quarterback that beats him out in the fall, as tall a task as that is – is ready.