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Alabama will begin its quest for an 18th national title on Aug. 31 when the Crimson Tide takes on Duke inside Atlanta’s Mercedes-Benz Stadium. To help pass the time until then, BamaInsider is answering 19 important questions concerning the 2019 season.
Today we conclude the series by taking a look at who will lead Alabama on and off the field this season.
Alabama’s leaders clung onto inner tubes as Nick Saban did his best to send them toppling into the water. The head coach took a collection of his players to his house near Lake Tuscaloosa over the weekend to participate in an annual team leadership event.
The day on the water was Alabama’s second leadership outing this offseason. In April, a select group of players traveled with head strength coach Scott Cochran on a leadership retreat to Escape Tuscaloosa where they solved puzzles to work their way out of a locked escape room.
Saban made leadership a major point of emphasis this offseason, stating he believes “it contributes to a large degree to the success and failure of the team.” The head coach even delayed appointing his leadership council, stating that spots were not going to be handed out but rather earned through everyday actions.
“You don't turn leadership on and off,” Saban said during the spring. “You don't do it during a scrimmage and not do it every day. You do it on the field, you do it off the field.’
“The first part of that is you have to set a good example. You have to be somebody that somebody wants to emulate…Being a good player is not going to do it. Being a good leader is going to do it, and we've had some guys step up and do that.”
Ultimately Saban decided on a group of roughly 20 players who he feels should steer the Crimson Tide in the right direction this season. Here’s a look at some of the most influential members of Alabama’s locker room.
Dylan Moses, junior, linebacker
Moses will switch over to the Mike linebacker position where he will take over Mack Wilson’s role as signal-caller for the defense. The junior also returns as the most experienced member of the inside linebacking unit and will be relied on to provide guidance to Alabama’s younger players.
“I definitely feel like a leader,” Moses said this spring. “There are a lot of guys who watch me, look up to me, and they’re trying to see what I’m doing like in adversity situations when those come into play. I take on the leadership role, the bull by the horns. I just do what I have to do. There’s no pressure.”
Xavier McKinney, junior, safety
Moses isn’t the only player on defense stepping into an on-field leadership role. With the departure of Deionte Thompson, Xavier McKinney will take over as the quarterback of Alabama’s secondary. While the junior safety shared Thompson’s role of calling out coverages to the rest of the defensive backs last year, he’s looking to become a more of a veteran presence in the unit this season.
“It’s different in a lot of different ways,” McKinney said this spring. “Of course, now I’m kind of like a vet. I’ve been here so I kind of know what goes on and a lot of the things that go on around the building. Just helping the younger guys get prepared, helping everybody stay focused, that’s kind of a big part of being here for my third year… I used to be a younger guy that looked up to the older guys and now I am that older guy.”
Raekwon Davis, senior, defensive lineman
Davis is taking his leadership role seriously this season. In fact, he claims it’s “the whole reason I came back.”
If not for a disappointing junior season, Davis might have joined former teammate Quinnen Williams as a first-round pick in this year’s NFL Draft. Instead, the 6-foot-7, 309-pound defensive lineman returns for his senior season, focused and developing his own potential while also providing guidance for Alabama’s future stars on the line.
“There’s going to be a younger guy who’s just not going to get it. It’s my job to get him to process it in his head,” Davis said. “There are rules around here and that’s how it goes. You’re going to see it every day in practice, a younger guy who is going to need your help, he’s going to need your guidance. Your job is to help him.”
Tua Tagovailoa, junior, quarterback
For the first time in his college career, Tua Tagovailoa is the most experienced member in Alabama’s quarterback room. The junior returns after as the face of the Crimson Tide’s program after winning both the Walter Camp and the Maxwell Awards and finishing runner-up for the Heisman Trophy.
This year, his leadership qualities will be vital as he figures to serve as the voice for one of the best offenses in Alabama history.
“He’s stepped up really, really good,” receiver Jerry Jeudy said. “Tua is a great competitor, great player, great person, so I feel like he challenges himself to be the best player he can be… Everybody asks him a lot of questions. I see him help the younger guys get better. Younger guys ask him questions — how do you do this, what’s your read on this? I see a lot of development and leadership in Tua.”
