Observations From Alabama Fall Camp Practice 5

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. - Alabama returned to the Thomas Drew Practice Fields for its fifth practice of fall camp, with the media allowed to watch three periods (roughly 15 minutes) of Monday morning's practice. Here is what Tide 100.9 noticed from Monday's practice:

Quarterback-Running Back Handoff Lineups

Alabama rotated pretty heavily between Austin Mack and Keelon Russell in handoff drills during Monday morning's practice, with both quarterbacks alternating who got the first rep when Alabama switched sides of the field. Here is what the quarterback lineup looked like during Monday's practice:

Keelon Russell/Austin Mack
Keelon Russell/Austin Mack
Jett Thomalla
Tayden-Evan Kaawa
John Gazzaniga (walk-on)

However, the running back order didn't change within the 15 minutes we were allowed to watch Monday's practice, with a new face leading the running back room after Daniel Hill led the way through the first week of fall camp:

Kevin Riley
Daniel Hill
AK Dear
Trae'shawn Brown
EJ Crowell
Khalifa Keith

With six running backs and five quarterbacks, one quarterback had to get back in line for an extra rep with Keith. In the 15 minutes we viewed practice, that quarterback was consistently Keelon Russell.

Quarterbacks Getting Work With Tight Ends

Speaking of quarterbacks, while it was difficult to navigate through Alabama's defensive line to watch, the quarterbacks also got work in with the tight ends, with Mack and Russell again splitting reps pretty evenly through the 15 minutes we saw on Monday morning. At tight end, we saw sophomore Kaleb Edwards leading the way, followed by Oklahoma State transfer Josh Ford, 5th-year player Danny Lewis Jr., sophomore Marshall Pritchett, freshman Mack Sutter, junior Jay Lindsey, and junior Jack Sammarco.

Jarret Johnson (Alabama Iron Man) Works With the Defensive Line

Former Alabama defensive lineman Jarret Johnson donned his Iron Man costume again to work with Alabama's defensive line, with freshman summer enrollee Nolan Wilson (Picayune, MS) learning not to apologize when he accidentally caught Johnson by the throat during a rep. Wilson again lined up and bull-rushed his way to a victory.

He also worked with the rest of the defensive line, with Steve Bolo Mboumoua and Kedrick Bingley-Jones earning praise on back-to-back reps.

Other Observations from Monday's Practice

Defensive Lineman Terrance Green was seen with some nice moves during Individual period.
Quarterbacks were working closely with Tight Ends, with passes completed by Austin Mack to Josh Ford, Keelon Russell to Danny Lewis Jr., and Jett Thomalla to Jack Sammarco.
The defensive linemen were working on hand movements within the pads and shedding blocks.
Quarterbacks Austin Mack and Keelon Russell both shined with ball placement.
Assistant coaches brought as much intensity despite the blistering heat in Tuscaloosa during August.
Tight Ends showed some nice route running; a few balls were dropped on passes that were not 100% on target.

Alabama continues an ongoing QB battle between Sr. Austin Mack and So. Keelon Russell. Both continue to show their drive for the coveted QB1 spot.

Alabama returns to the practice field on Tuesday, August 11, and is set to open the season on Saturday, September 5 against East Carolina.

Ryan Bond is an intern for Tide 100.9 with an avid interest in college football and college basketball. To keep up with Ryan, follow him on X at @Ryanb5172

Wyatt Fulton is the Tide 100.9 DME and Brand Manager, primarily covering Alabama Crimson Tide football and men's basketball. For more Crimson Tide coverage, follow Wyatt on X (Formerly known as Twitter) at @FultonW_.