The college football season is underway and here are five things BamaInsider.com Managing Editor Kyle Henderson is watching on Saturday as the Alabama Crimson Tide take on the Duke Blue Devils.
Five Things I'm Watching SaturdayÂ
1. Inside linebacker play from the freshmen
By now, the entire country knows that Alabama defensive coordinator Pete Golding will start not one, but two true freshmen to open the season at the inside linebacker positions. All eyes will be on the freshmen duo, especially on 6-foot-0, 246 pound Shane Lee who will take over at the MIKE position for injured Dylan Moses.
Moses suffered a season-ending knee injury earlier this week, which bumped Lee to the starting role. The MIKE position calls the entire defense for Alabama, which is obviously a tall order for someone who was playing high school football at this time just one season ago. Christian Harris will start at the WILL position after senior Joshua McMillon suffered a season-ending knee injury during Alabama’s first scrimmage. Nick Saban has had high praise for Harris all fall camp, saying that he plays fast and makes plays.
2. Steve Sarkisian’s red-zone approach
The Crimson Tide finished the season with major read-zone woes and it will be interesting to see how the Crimson Tide executes in the red-zone during Saturday’s game against Duke. While the likelihood of big-time plays is tremendously high with the number of explosive players the Crimson Tide has, red-zone execution will play a pivotal factor in this team’s season success.
How will Sarkisian use tight end Miller Forristall, will Jaylen Waddle’s name be called on, how about Tyrell Shavers? Will Sarkisian grind it out with his imposing backs or will a play-action or a zone read with Tua Tagovailoa be the call? For reference, the Crimson Tide had a red-zone scoring percentage of just 82.28, which was 78th in the entire country last season.
3. Alabama's offensive line
The Alabama offensive line has looked exceptional during fall camp and straight up, their starting five are massive: At left tackle is 6-foot-6, 310 pound Alex Leatherwood, at left guard is 6-foot-7, 360 pound true freshman Evan Neal, at center is 6-foot-3, 315 pound Chris Owens, at right guard is Florida State grad transfer Landon Dickerson at 6-foot-6, 308 pounds, and at right tackle is...
Game DetailsÂ
No. 2 Alabama (0-0) vs. Duke (0-0)
Saturday, August 31, 2:30 p.m. CT
TV: ABC
Line: -34 Alabama
Play by Play: Seve Levy, Analysts: Brian Griese and Todd McShay, Sideline: Molly McGrath
Game Headlines
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