Alabama has been without veteran linebackers Deontae Lawson and Justin Jefferson for its spring practice. While the pair recover from injuries ahead of the coming season, several of Alabama’s new additions at the inside linebacker position have had the chance to step up.

The Crimson Tide brought in a trio of elite linebackers in the Class of 2025. Four-star products Luke Metz, Duke Johnson and Abduall Sanders Jr. all ranked inside the top 250 prospects last cycle. Coincidentally, the trio were also the three longest-tenued Alabama commitments in the class. They all initially pledged in March 2024.

That faith in coach Kalen DeBoer’s development track was reciprocated with praise from DeBoer after the Tide’s second spring scrimmage, which took place Friday inside Bryant-Denny Stadium.

“Abduall, Luke and Duke, all three of them have been making plays out there, running sideline-to-sideline,” DeBoer said. “That’s one thing they do best.”

DeBoer has also been impressed with redshirt freshman linebacker QB Reese, who joined the Tide as a four-star prospect in the Class of 2024. In a crowded room last season, Reese played 31 snaps, all on special teams, but has also made the most of extended first-team reps at linebacker this spring.

“QB is a guy that’s out there directing traffic,” DeBoer said. “He had a really good spring as well. I’m proud of the way those guys have just taken the bull by the horns and rolled with it.”

Alabama’s young linebacking corps still has a long way to go in its development but early returns show that DeBoer and company made some strong investments on the recruiting trail. He’s been especially impressed with the group’s grasp of one of the most important positions for the success of Alabama’s defense.

Last season, Lawson wore the green dot and served as the primary communicator for Alabama’s defense. The Tide’s retention of the talented linebacker means it won’t have to fill that void this season, but that hasn’t stopped the younger linebackers from embracing the leadership qualities that are vital for team success. Their eagerness to learn extra play-calling responsibilities also gives DeBoer and defensive coordinator Kane Wommack the ability to add even more wrinkles to the defense ahead of their second season.

“We ask a lot out of that position,” DeBoer said. “They’re the ones that wear the earpieces, make the calls. Now going into Year 2, we’re even more diverse than what we were and putting a little bit more on their shoulders. Kind of taking those next steps as a defense with the concepts we’re putting in, refining some of the things we did last year, adding to some of those things as well.”

The strong play from Alabama’s young linebackers this spring has the chance to raise the ceiling of the room as a whole. Replicating the output of Jihaad Campbell won’t be an easy feat. Along with its group of promising prospects, Alabama also added Colorado transfer Nikhai Hill-Green to try and fill the void. Entering his fifth season, he should be able to provide another veteran presence along with plenty of on-field production, which earned him second-team All-Big 12 honors with the Buffalos last season.

As Alabama’s younger linebackers continue to take strides this spring, the veteran guard has remained alongside them, guiding them from afar through their first spring season at the college level. The Tide will depend heavily on the likes of Lawson and Jefferson this year, but until the duo gets healthy, they have played the vital role of mentor for a young crop of linebackers that DeBoer is expecting will push the room to new heights.

“Their leadership and their engagement with these guys has been something I just got to make a note of because they remember being that age, the ups and downs that you can go through, and they are right in there every single play,” DeBoer said. “If a big play happens, Justin in particular — because he can go run out there — he’s got as much excitement as anyone when those linebackers, in particular, make a big play.”