After beginning preparations for its Rose Bowl matchup against Notre Dame earlier this week, Alabama will now take some time off for the holidays as players will return home for a three-day Christmas break.
No. 1 Alabama (10-0) will take on No. 4 Notre Dame in the Rose Bowl on Jan. 1 at 3 p.m. CT inside AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. This year’s Rose Bowl was moved from Pasadena, Calif. due to COVID-19 complications.
Today we will examine where Alabama stands heading into the holidays by providing three observations, two questions and one prediction.
THREE OBSERVATIONS
A look at Alabama’s unconventional return man
Securing a kickoff 3 yards deep into the end zone, Jahleel Billingsley took off. The 6-foot-4, 230-pound tight end lowered his shoulder to slip past a defender at the 13-yard line before juking past another. He eventually crashed into another tackler before finally being pushed out of bounds at the 27-yard line.
Making his debut as a returner during the SEC Championship Game over the weekend, Billingsley averaged 22 yards on three attempts, including the aforementioned 27-yarder.
“I think he did good,” receiver DeVonta Smith said. “He came to practice every day, he been working at it. That’s something that he’s been wanting to do and I think he did a great job.”
Billingsly broke onto the scene last month as his play-making ability added a new wrinkle to Alabama’s offense. In three consecutive games against Kentucky, Auburn and LSU, the redshirt sophomore tallied a combined nine receptions for 179 yards and two touchdowns. Billingsley tallied just two catches for 29 yards against Florida but once again proved to be a valuable weapon for the Tide.
“I love Jahleel,” quarterback Mac Jones said. “He works hard. I mean, at first, he struggled a little bit with not playing, but he just kept working really hard and we found roles for him in our offense and special teams. I think it just goes to show that he’s just a great talent and he’s learned from his mistakes and learned the playbook really well, and I can trust him.
“Now it’s like, boom. He knows where to line up, knows exactly what he’s going to do, and he’s out there just playing football and having fun. So I’m glad that Jahleel is where he is right now, and he’s just going to keep getting better and working really hard."
Wil Anderson earning nicknames, accolades in freshman season
With seven sacks over his last four games, Will Anderson Jr. is beginning to make a name for himself. In fact, the freshman outside linebacker is earning several.
Monday, Alabama director of sports science Matt Rhea posted a photo of Anderson lifting weights, commenting on the defender’s “superhero” strength. While divvying out some praise, the strength coach also took a shot at developing a new nickname.
