Anthony Averett claims starting job after long wait

Anthony Averett was comfortable after the second game, but once the University of Alabama defensive back got Ole Miss out of the way, he was more than settled into his role at cornerback.

The redshirt junior waited three seasons to claim a starting job.

“I’m very humble, I’m very blessed,” Averett said. “I feel great about it. This is what I’ve been wanting to do since I’ve been here.”

This past weekend, Mississippi State took many shots at Averett, but the 6-foot, 183-pound pass-swatter did his job, notching two pass-breakups and enjoying every minute of it.

There has been only one notable moment where Averett botched a play and had to pay for it. During Alabama’s season opener against Southern Cal, the Trojans took an early 36-yard strike down the field that Averett missed. It ultimately led to a field goal.

It was an eye-opener, and since then, Averett hasn’t given up many – if any – big plays.

“(He) plays smart, keeps people cut off, kind of goes about his business and does a really good job for us,” coach Nick Saban said last week.

It’s Averett’s pick-up speed that makes him such a threat in the secondary.

Wide receiver ArDarius Stewart knows why his defensive counterpart is hard to go up against: It’s not only a challenge to get past Averett in the first place, but another to stay away from him after the fact.

“I know I can always make a mistake on the line, miss a jam, but I can always recover,” Averett said.

A product of Woodbury High School in New Jersey, Averett was a seven-time state champion in track and field over the course of just three years. His speed has always been a threat.

Through 10 games, Averett has made 23 solo tackles and broken up seven passes. He has also forced a fumbled and made a tackle for a loss of 5 yards.

“The guys have been coming at him, trying him, thinking he’s the weakest link,” Stewart said. “I guess he showed them that if you come over there, he’s going to lock it down.”

Although Averett is at home in Alabama’s defense, he graduated high school as a dual-threat quarterback. As a senior, he passed for 836 yards and 14 touchdowns. He also ran for 1,278 yards and 15 more scores. Yet, he was dubbed as a three-star cornerback during his recruiting process.

Once he joined the Crimson Tide in 2013, Averett redshirted his first season. He played in one game the following year, six last year. Any form of consistent playing time was crushed due to a series of injuries.

Even without the physical setback, Averett was stuck behind former Crimson Tide member Cyrus Jones, who went on to be a second-round 2016 NFL draft pick. Instead of trying to beat out his old teammate, Averett learned from and copied what Jones did.

“It was a lot of adversity I took on,” Averett said, “but I still worked hard and look, I’m here now.”