While we’ve seen a couple of jersey # updates to the Rolltide.com roster over the offseason, there’s been no updates to the heights and weights of the Alabama players since the season ended. But with fall camp kicking off and the talk of Keon Keeley looking majorly beefed up among the practice observers, we finally got that update, and now there’s a whole slew of changes.
I won’t list off every single player as a lot of guys only moved a couple of pounds one way or another, but we will go through each position group to note any meaningful individual changes or a trend that could point towards a coaching philosophy.
QBs
Jalen Milroe added a little more size, up from 220 to 225. Austin Mack and Ty Simpson also both added over 10 pounds. I think DeBoer/Sheridan want their QBs a little thicker.
RBs
Richard Young has gone from 200 pounds to 216. And as muscled up as he looked during the spring, I believe it. Justice Haynes and Jam Miller also both added a little under 10 pounds to prepare for handling the bulk of the workload in 2024.
WRs
Kendrick Law added 8 pounds and is up to 209. Caleb Odom is also up 12 pounds, to an intimidating 227, and Bubba Hampton added nearly 20 pounds since the spring.
Not everyone got bigger, though, Jaren Hamilton and Cole Adams both lost a few pounds.
TEs
Resident boulder Robbie Ouzts added another 12 pounds and is up to 270. He’s essentially an OL at this point. Josh Cuevas is about 12 pounds heavier than he was at Washington, and is up to a respectable 251. C.J. Dippre also added 5 pounds, up to 262.
In other words, I think coach Nick Sheridan wants his TEs big.
OL
- Tyler Booker has dropped from 352 to 325, which seems like it could be a huge deal for him to get away from that failed experiment last year.
- Parker Brailsford has made a jump from 275 to 290, which is a big deal and puts him at a perfectly normal playing weight for the SEC.
- Kadyn Proctor was last seen listed at 350, and is now listed at 369. Of course, I think he was bigger than that last year, so who knows if he’s actually gained or lost weight since we last saw him.
- Elijah Pritchett has added 15 pounds, up to 327.
- Naquil Bertrand has dropped 12 pounds and is down to 328.
- Casey Poe added 32 pounds, up to 322.
- Freshman Joseph Ionata added 13 pounds in just a few months and is up to 307.
- Similarly, freshman William Sanders added 19 pounds, up to 309.
Overall, it seems like the staff is targeting a range of about 310-330 for most of the OL.
DL
- LT Overton is officially going to focus on being on the DL, as he’s jumped from 265 up to 283.
- Freshmen Hunter Osborne, Jeremiah Beaman and Isaia fa*ga have all added nearly 25 pounds and are pushing 300.
- Damon Payne and Tim Smith both added about 10 pounds and are playing at 313 and 314.
- Tim Keenan also added over 10 pounds, and is up to 326.
In other words, I think Kane Wommack wants his defensive line bigger across the board.
LB
- Deontae Lawson added 9 pounds, up to 239.
- Jihaad Campbell added 14 pounds, up to 244.
- Que Robinson added 10 pounds, up to 241.
- Keanu Koht added 10 pounds, up to 242.
- Jeremiah Alexander continues his transition from the edge to an inside linebacker, and has lost 17 pounds, now playing at 232.
- Keon Keeley is still listed at linebacker, but he’s added 30 pounds and is now at 277, so I expect he’s actually going to be a full-time DL now.
- Noah Carter came in 22 pounds above his high school weight, up to 242
- Cayden Jones added 22 pounds, up to 232.
- Justin Okoronkwo added 13 pounds since the spring, up to 228.
- Yhonzae Pierre added 16 pounds, up to 239.
- Jayshawn Ross added 19 pounds, up to 239.
All in all, Alabama’s linebackers beefed up quite a bit from where they were, and it looks like Kane Wommack may be wanting the whole group to play a little bigger than where we’ve seen them the last few seasons under Saban.
DB
- Zabien Brown added 16 pounds and is up to 196. Reflecting the recent sentiments, it sounds like the freshman is doing everything possible to be ready to be an SEC starter day 1.
- Transfer King Mack is 16 pounds heavier than he was at Penn State, up to 206.
- DeVonta Smith added 11 pounds, up to 205 and is really looking like a true safety now.
- Freshman Jaylen Mbakwe added 22 pounds, up to 192.
- Freshman Zavier Mincey added 24 pounds, up to 204. Is he looking to be a safety instead of a corner?
- Dre Kirkpatrick Jr. added 18 pounds, and is up to 210.
- Jahlil Hurley added 15 pounds, up to 185.
Like the linebackers and DL, there seemed to be a focus on beefing up in the defensive backfield. This was somewhat expected with so many freshmen coming in, but even the returning players were adding weight across the board.
Specialists
James Burnip added 16 more pounds, and is now at 236. Hope it helps him punt even further!
