Alabama's greatest under Saban: The McCarron bracket round of 64, part 1
Bummed out about the NCAA Tournament being canceled? We are too. That’s why BamaInsider created its own version of March Madness to determine who is the Crimson Tide’s greatest player in the Nick Saban era.
We have compiled a 64-player field with seed rankings of No. 1 through No. 16. The tournament will be played out throughout the month and will be determined by fan voting. Fans can vote either through BamaInsider’s Twitter account (@bamainsider) or on the Talk of Champions message board. Players will be matched up against each other with the one receiving the most total votes between both mediums advancing to the next round.
Today we continue with the first half of the AJ McCarron bracket.
No. 1 seed AJ McCarron vs No. 16 seed Cyrus Jones
AJ McCarron: McCarron led the Crimson Tide to back-to-back national titles in his first two years (2011and 2012) as the starting quarterback. Then he won the Maxwell Award, given to college football’s most outstanding player, and was named the first runner-up for the Heisman Trophy in 2013. McCarron finished his career with a program-record 9,019 passing yards. Even when you combine passing and rushing stats, McCarron remains ahead of all other Crimson Tide quarterbacks. He’s also second all-time concerning both total touchdowns (80) and career completion percentage (66.9 percent). McCarron also boasts the lowest career interception percentage (1.46 percent). Under his guidance, Alabama won 36 of 40 games. The only Alabama quarterback with a higher winning percentage while starting at least 30 games was Jay Barker.
Cyrus Jones: Jones earned Defensive MVP honors after Alabama’s 38-0 victory over Michigan State when the teams met in the semifinals at the conclusion of the 2015 season. Jones recorded an interception on Alabama’s two-yard line that day, and he returned a punt 57 yards for a touchdown. Making big plays on special teams was nothing new for Jones. He returned 42 punts for 530 yards and a program-record four touchdowns in a single season. On Alabama’s all-time list, only Javier Arenas (seven) and David Palmer (five) have scored more punt return touchdowns in their entire careers. Arenas also happens to be the only player with more punt return yards in a single season than Jones. The defensive back also broke up a team-high 13 passes as a junior in 2014.
No. 8 seed Reggie Ragland vs No. 9 seed A'Shawn Robinson
Reggie Ragland: Ragland was named a team captain and a unanimous first-team All-American after he recorded a team-high 102 tackles in 2015. He was on a similar pace as a junior when he recorded 95 tackles. He led the team in tackles with seven total, five solo, in the Cotton Bowl matchup against No. 3 Michigan State in the 2015 College Football Playoff semifinals. In his other two CFP games, Ragland recorded 12 tackles, six solo.
A’Shawn Robinson: Robinson proved to be a dominant defensive force for the Crimson Tide. This was especially true during the defensive lineman's junior season in 2015 when he was named a consensus All-American after he recorded 46 total tackles, 7.5 for loss, and 3.5 sacks. He also recorded a team-high 10 quarterback hurries. His most memorable play from that season is probably the time the 312-pounder leaped over the line and blocked an LSU extra point attempt.
No. 5 seed Jerry Jeudy vs No. 12 seed Rashaan Evans
Jerry Jeudy: Winner of the Biletnikoff Award (given to the nation’s top receiver) in 2018 when he caught 68 passes for 1,315 yards and 14 touchdowns. He’s second all-time concerning touchdown receptions (26) and yards per catch (17.25) with at least 100-career catches. Jeudy’s average yards per catch in 2018 and 2019 (19.3 and 18.5, respectively) top Alabama’s single season list. He’s third all-time concerning receptions (159) and receiving yards (2,742). More recently, Jeudy put an exclamation point on his career when he earned MVP honors in Alabama’s 35-16 victory over Michigan earlier this year after he hauled in six passes for 204 yards and a touchdown.
Rashaan Evans: Evans recorded a team-high 13 tackles for loss in 2017. He also tied for the team lead in tackles that same year with 74 total. Evans was named a permanent captain for his efforts in 2017. He recorded a team-high nine tackles, five solo, and one sack against Clemson in the Sugar Bowl semifinal game against No. 1 Clemson at the end of the 2017 season. In four playoff games, Evans recorded 35 total tackles, 19 solo. He also recorded 2.5 total sacks and an additional 1.5 tackles for loss.
No. 4 seed Reuben Foster vs No. 13 seed Najee Harris
Reuben Foster: Winner of the Dick Butkus Award given to the nation’s top linebacker in 2016 after he recorded a team-high 115 total tackles, 60 solo. Only seven Alabama players have ever recorded more tackles in a single season, and none of those efforts came since 2003. Under Foster’s leadership, Alabama’s defense allowed fewer points and yards per game than any other team in the nation. He was named both a unanimous All-American and a permanent captain following the conclusion of the season.
Najee Harris: If Harris stays healthy, he’s almost a lock to find his way near the top of Alabama’s all-time rushing list (2,377 yards and 20 rushing touchdowns and counting). In 2019, he averaged 5.86 yards per carry while carrying the ball 209 times. Only six Alabama backs have finished with a higher average while toting the ball at least 200 times in a single season. He’s had bigger games, but his most significant performance came in the national championship game against Georgia at the end of the 2017 season. Harris didn’t touch the ball until the fourth quarter, but he still finished with a team-high 64 rushing yards on six carries (three of which were good enough for first downs).
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