Alabama’s A-Day game will happen on Saturday, but it will not be the end of spring practice for the Crimson Tide.
A Morgan Wallen concert is scheduled for Bryant Denny Stadium next Saturday, April 18, pushing the A-Day game a week earlier and leaving two remaining spring practices scheduled for the week after the spring game.
Alabama head coach Kalen DeBoer appeared on “The Next Round” on Wednesday and discussed the unusual spring schedule and the state of the Crimson Tide football program.
"We still have four practices left, so just a little over two-thirds done, so to me there's still a lot of work that needs to be done between now ,and we finish next Thursday," DeBoer said. "I know a lot of times the spring game and the A-Day is the end. Just with the way the schedule worked and being in the stadium and things like that on the 11th, there's a lot of things we have accomplished.”
"I think we've been consistent, and it's a trend going upwards. I really don't feel, especially in the last five or six practices, I think it's been elevated. I was going to say not a drop off, but it's been elevated as far as what you want to feel from an expectation when guys take the field, you know, kind of what you're going to get. That's key. It's easier said than done. Of course, that's the goal, but it still has to happen."
Between transfer portal players and incoming freshmen, Alabama has many new faces experiencing their first spring practices under DeBoer. Many position groups may not have returning starters or veterans but DeBoer believes that it isn’t necessarily a bad thing and brings out more competition.
"Our guys, with so many faces, have come in. They were wide-eyed early on and really appreciative of what Alabama brings to them whether it's resources or staff that's all in on them," DeBoer said. "It's been an awesome spring that way. We've got a long ways to go. We probably had more, for sure, knowns with guys returning a year ago than we do this year. I can point to position groups that are pretty veteran, that got a lot of veterans, especially the defensive backfield.
"But there's some good in that, too, because there's a lot of competition that exists. There's a piece on the football field that guys are fighting not just for our team but their own positions and spots to get out there and make some plays."
With Ty Simpson moving on to the NFL, a quarterback battle is ongoing, and no starter has been named yet. After last week’s scrimmage DeBoer said it “wasn’t the sharpest day” for Austin Mack and Keelon Russell, the two leading contenders to get the starting quarterback position. On “The Next Round,” DeBoer went into more detail about what he meant with his comment.
"It's two guys that have high ceilings, and they've done a really good job for the most part all spring long," DeBoer outlined. "I know I referred to, I think, in the scrimmage, it was not as sharp as they've been. Well, it's because they've been very, very sharp all spring long. A little bit of a drop-off wasn't a bad thing for them to go through because what's their response gonna be? That's been positive here this week, seeing them come back and get back to that level and then some of what they've been through all spring."
Saturday’s A-Day game will not have the traditional look that Nick Saban used in splitting into two different teams. Instead it will have more of a live offense against defense look.
Alabama’s A-Day game is scheduled for Saturday at 1 p.m. The event is free to the public, with gates opening at noon.
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