Five-star edge rusher Jeremiah Alexander finding a new home on defense

While starting inside linebacker Deontae Lawson is still down with an ankle injury, Alabama's defense has seen some recent movement in its depth chart.

Redshirt freshman edge rusher Jeremiah Alexander got some pregame reps with the inside linebackers before the Mississippi State game on Saturday. While Alexander didn't take part in a defensive snap against the Bulldogs, Lawson's injury could be the start of a new role for him in Alabama's defense.

Alexander was the crown jewel of Alabama's 2022 recruiting class, signing with the Tide as the No. 1 weakside defensive end and No. 6 overall player in the nation. While the plan at the moment is to shift him from edge rusher to inside linebacker to provide depth while Lawson is out, the move was already being thought of as a permanent switch before the injury.

“I think it’s something we’ve been considering,” Saban said. “Jeremiah was developing nicely as an outside backer, wasn’t getting to play much. The injury kind of enhanced that this is the right time to do this.”

This season, Alexander's primary role has been on the kickoff return team. Now, with a higher chance of seeing defensive action, teammate Dallas Turner is ready to see the redshirt freshman's progression.

“He’s a very smart football player, he invests his time into being here at the facility and understanding the playbook,” Turner said. “He’s starting to have to change to playing inside linebacker now with Deontae out…I feel like it will be a good fit for us.”

A potential move to inside linebacker might help speed up Alexander's path to playing time at Alabama. While the Crimson Tide has one of the nation's deepest edge-rushing units, and brought in a pair of five-star freshmen to the unit this offseason in Keon Keeley and Yhonzae Pierre. There appears to be more opportunity for playing time down the road at inside linebacker behind draft-eligible starters Lawson and Trezmen Marshall.

It's worth noting that Alabama saw former Rivals100 outside linebacker recruit Drew Sanders transfer to Arkansas last year. After failing to develop a starting role in Alabama's edge rushing unit, Sanders switched to inside linebacker for the Razorbacks en route to leading the Hogs in tackles (103), tackles for a loss (13.5) and sacks (9.5).

Alabama started Marshall and sophomore Jihaad Campbell at inside linebacker during last week's win over Mississippi State. However, having a five-star talent such as Alexander will be key to the Tide's depth at the position.

While Lawson continues to be evaluated and recovered from injury for the next few weeks, Jeremiah Alexander will be a player to keep an eye out for on the defense against Texas A&M this weekend.