A trio of Alabama football players, as well as head coach Kalen DeBoer, fielded questions at SEC Media Days on Wednesday morning.
Two topics surrounding the season opener were repeatedly asked of the attendees: the quarterback battle and FSU quarterback Thomas Castellanos’ offseason comments about the Crimson Tide no longer having Nick Saban at the helm.
Nothing new was discovered as far as who will be the starting quarterback for the opener, but the Crimson Tide players got a chance to finally address the disrespectful comments that Castellanos made in the offseason.
Offensive tackle Kadyn Proctor brushed the comments to the side, claiming that the team wasn’t really focused on the FSU quarterback’s statement.
"We really don’t really focus on that too much, Proctor said. “I mean, it’s all going to come down to the preparation. We’re going to see on August 30th who the winner is. That’s not the focus right now. We haven’t made it to fall camp yet. Still have a couple weeks of summer work outside left. So that’s been the intent and focus now from our group. We’re not really giving into whatever anybody else is saying. It’s all internal. Keeping it in house.”
While Proctor is more focused on the preparation, the two defensive players who attended SEC Media Days took Castellanos' comments more personally.
Senior leaders linebacker Deontae Lawson and defensive lineman Tim Keenan III both had similar responses, claiming that the disrespect would be addressed on the field.
During an interview on the SEC Network with “SEC This Morning,” Lawson talked about the Crimson Tide players not completely ignoring the comments but also not making a big deal out of them either.
"It definitely ignites us a little bit," Lawson told "SEC This Morning." "We can't really think too much on that. It's gonna come down to what we do and how we prepare that week. I think all disrespect will be addressed accordingly."
Keenan kept his similar response short and to the point, stating, “Disrespect will be addressed."
This year’s team has the feel of one of former Alabama head coach Nick Saban’s championship teams. Blocking out the external factors while sticking to the business at hand, where all the trash talk will be answered by the play on the field.
We won’t have to wait long for the trash talk to be settled as the Crimson Tide open the season on August 30 against FSU at Doak Campbell Stadium in Tallahassee.
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