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While looking to follow up a College Football Playoff berth, Alabama retained multiple key pieces on defense heading into 2026. But the offense still brings some questions, according to former coach Nick Saban.
Alabama did well with retaining production on defense, including in the secondary with Bray Hubbard and Keon Sabb, and Yhonzae Pierre is back after a breakout sophomore season to anchor the pass rush. Of course, on the offensive side of the ball, Ryan Coleman-Williams also returns and is looking to bounce back.
But while the quarterback competition between Austin Mack and Keelon Russell continues, Saban said that’s not the biggest concern in Year 3 under Kalen DeBoer. He pointed to the offensive line, which struggled in 2025, as well as the need for another playmaker to step up alongside Coleman-Williams.
“They’ve got the right pieces on defense,” Saban said Wednesday on SportsCenter. “I think the big challenge for Kalen this year is going to be, can I fix all the issues we have on offense? We just talked about the quarterbacks and making the selection at that position. But the o-line – which was a little bit of a problem last year in terms of being able to run the ball and protect the quarterback, needs fixing – as well as, what kind of skill guys do we have besides Ryan Coleman-Williams who can make plays and make big plays for us? There’s a lot of question marks there.
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“I think they have a lot of capable players. I think it’s going to be interesting to see how this team develops because you have a lot of new players on the roster. But I do think they have a chance to be a good team and I think Kalen has done a really good job of developing this program over the last two years to make another run this year.”
Alabama will have some fresh faces on the offensive line, as DeBoer noted during his remarks at SEC media days on Wednesday. Kadyn Proctor and Parker Brailsford are off to the NFL, but the program retains three linemen who have seem time during their careers in Tuscaloosa: Michael Carroll, William Sanders and Jackson Lloyd.
Add in six portal commitments, and it will be a blend of old and new faces up front. It’s also a young crew, but DeBoer said that could work out in the Crimson Tide’s favor.
“Hopefully we can find a group here in fall camp that really gels well together, is the best unit as a whole,” DeBoer said. “When communication is made, it’s understood and it’s communicated at a high level, you know, to where everyone is on the same page, can go out there and do their jobs.
“I think there are physical tools across the board in our football team, but the question regarding offensive line, the physical tools there, we have a younger group. But again, that leads to the eagerness that these guys have and the willingness to be coached and to be pushed and that humility that they have I think that can be seen in the work that’s been put in.”
