When you’ve signed 21 ESPN 300 players, including three five-star talents, you’ve got the kind of class that can make a difference right away. The only question is what needs you have on your roster and how fast players can develop and mature.
In that respect, offensive tackle Alex Leatherwood seems to be the safest bet to play significant reps right away.
Granted, there’s nothing guaranteed and playing early on the offensive line isn’t easy. But the five-star recruit from Pensacola, Florida, is already enrolled in class and has the benefit of a starting tackle spot vacated by Cam Robinson, who left early for the NFL. Like Robinson three years ago, Leatherwood arrives at Alabama with the size to play in the SEC right away: 6-foot-6 and 327 pounds.
It’s probably too much to expect from Leatherwood to step in for Robinson at left tackle, protecting quarterback Jalen Hurts' blind side, but he doesn’t have to. Former Freshman All-America right tackle Jonah Williams, who also started from day one, could slide over from right tackle to left. And if Leatherwood is a better fit at guard early on, coach Nick Saban isn’t averse to putting the best five players on the field regardless of their so-called natural positions.
With that said, winning a starting job won’t be easy. Elliot Baker, ESPN’s No. 1-rated junior college offensive tackle, came to Alabama to play. And Lester Cotton, a former top-100 prospect, is now a junior and will get a long look at a number of positions.
"I really like the guys that we got," said Saban of the offensive linemen he signed. "We took a junior college guy at both line positions [O- and D-line], which gives you a little older, more mature guys. The guys that we recruited as freshmen have size and athleticism to play the position. Alex Leatherwood has a lot of potential. He’s big. We’ve had him in camp. We’ve worked with him in the past. Jedrick Wills, who we thought was one of the best guys at his position in the entire country, at least in our evaluation. We like the potential of both of the other players we have as offensive linemen. We feel good about it.
"I think offensive line is a developmental position. So how these guys develop at that position is critical to how much they can contribute early on and how good they can be long term. I think both of those things are very, very important. [Kendall] Randolph is a guy that has a lot of athleticism, great size and I think we’re hoping that he can develop into something special."
