Alabama is the overwhelming favorite against the Miami Hurricanes as they face off in the Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game this Saturday in Atlanta. Alabama returns plenty of star power on the defensive side of the ball and also has plethra of young and explosive playmakers offensively.
With that being said, there are a couple of areas that should cause some concern for the fans of the Tide.
QB D’Eriq King
King returns as one of the most experienced quarterbacks in the entire country. The Manvel, TX native is entering his sixth season at the collegiate level. Over the course of his career, King has amassed over 7,600 passing yards and nearly 2,000 rushing yards.
King’s ability to create both inside and outside of the pocket with his feet could cause problems for this Alabama defense. King is the true definition of a dual-threat quarterback and he wouldn’t be the first player with that type of skill set to provide trouble for Tide defense.
Alabama’s “work in progress” offensive line
Alabama is replacing a great deal of talent and experience along the offensive line this season. Alex Leatherwood, Deonte Brown, and Landon Dickerson have all moved on to the NFL. With that being said, there is also a handful of players returning that have some experience. Evan Neal is entering his third season as a starter as he moves from right tackle to left tackle. Right guard Emil Ekiyor is also returning, and Chris Owens who is expected to get the start at center has also played a ton of football.
Alabama will also be starting a couple of players that are not that experienced in left guard Javion Cohen and right tackle Kendall Randolph. Randolph has played a lot of football at Alabama in a backup role, but now he is in the starting lineup and that is an entirely different challenge.
This is not to say that Alabama doesn’t have plenty of talent to get the job done, but this is the first game of the season and Miami returns a lot of experience in their front seven.
Maybe the most important ingredient for a good offensive line is continuity. If Alabama does not have that in this game, with Miami’s experience on defense, it could cause some problems for Bryce Young and the Alabama offense.
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