The acclimation period is over, and now things are starting to heat up in Alabama’s fall camp. After practicing in full pads for the first time Thursday, the Crimson Tide will hold its first of two fall scrimmages Saturday inside of Bryant-Denny Stadium.

Earlier this week, Nick Saban said he wasn’t sure how he plans to approach the scrimmage. Regardless, the first game-like scenario of the fall should provide more insight into where the Tide stands with three weeks remaining until its season opener against Miami on Sept. 4.

“That first scrimmage is pretty important, especially with the game being right around the corner,” offensive lineman Chris Owens said. “They want to see if you can help add value to the team, so we want to approach that just like we would approach a game and I think that’s what we’ll do this Saturday.”

With that in mind, here are five things we’ll be looking to learn from the workout.

One of the biggest questions heading into camp was who would take over Alabama’s right tackle position after Evan Neal flipped over to the left side. So far, that answer appears to be Kendall Randolph.

The redshirt senior has worked with the first unit during media availabilities at practice. Randolph saw action in all 13 games last season, making six starts as an in-line tight end while also serving as Alex Leatherwood’s backup at left tackle.

“He definitely brings a lot of experience and he’s a very intelligent player,” Neal said. “He plays a really good technique. I’m excited for him this year.”

Randolph will need to perform well to maintain his first-team status as freshman J.C. Latham has also shown plenty of promise this offseason. The five-star offensive lineman is currently working at right tackle with the second unit but is still very much in the mix for the starting spot.

“Something I’ve been sharing with J.C. is just to not be so hard on himself right now and be patient because things are going to come,” Neal said. “Just focus every day on getting better, focusing and fine-tuning his technique, you know, the minute things in his game that he needs to get better and I tell him to take it one day at a time.”

There’s also a heated battle at the cornerback position as Alabama looks to replace Patrick Surtain II. The All-American is the only departing member from last season’s starting secondary but leaves a sizable void in the backend of the Tide’s defense.

At the moment, Jalyn Armour-Davis appears to be the favorite to fill the opening. The redshirt junior served as a first-team cornerback in the spring and has maintained that role so far this fall. Armour-Davis recorded just two tackles over nine appearances last season but has a good grasp of the defense and performed well so far this offseason.

“I’m really excited for him,” linebacker Christian Harris said. “And like I said, he's been coming in each and every day working, especially in camp.”

Five-star freshman Kool-Aid McKinstry is arguably Armour-Davis’ biggest challenger for the role. Earlier in camp, defensive coordinator Pete Golding praised the 6-foot-1, 190-pound defensive back for his physicality at the line of scrimmage.

“Kool-Aid is a great player,” safety Jordan Battle said. “He’s very smart in the field. He’s very disciplined. He wants to learn, and he's a great player. He’s going to be a great player for us in the future, and I only see him getting better.”

Alabama has perhaps the nation’s best pass-rushing duo in Chris Allen and Will Anderson Jr. However, the Tide’s edge-rushing options hardly stop there.

Alabama’s eight-man outside linebacker unit features three former five-star recruits and five former four-star recruits. While Allen and Anderson are safe bets to retain their starting roles this season, the Tide will also look to get the rest of its talented pass-rushers onto the field. That could start with junior King Mwikuta and sophomore Drew Sanders who have been the second-team duo so far this fall.

“I think those guys have grown a lot,” Anderson said. “They’re taking coaching, they’re taking that next step forward, which I would think adds great depth at our position. So I think they are coming along great.”

It’s also worth keeping an eye on the two Rivals100 pass-rushers Alabama added this offseason. Five-star talent Dallas Turner joined the team this summer as the No. 1 outside linebacker in this year’s class. Meanwhile, fellow freshman Keanu Koht was ranked as the nation’s No. 2 weakside defensive end.

“They are very great players,” Anderson said. “They are taking coaching. They have been very optimistic. I think they love football a lot, they really do. They are hungry, really learning to play, and staying humble.”

Speaking of pass rush, Alabama is also looking to add a bit more push up front as it loses its sack leader from last season in Christian Barmore. While the defensive lineman’s inside presence will be hard to replicate, sophomore Tim Smith seems to be cut out of a similar mold.

Earlier this week, Smith was seen working alongside D.J. Dale, and Justin Ebogibe in the first group of defensive linemen during practice. Could that mean the 6-foot-4, 308-pounder is in contention for a starting role this fall?

“I hope we can expect a lot from Tim,” defensive lineman Phidarian Mathis said. “He’s stepped up a lot. He’s grown as a player on and off the field. Really mature. Can’t wait to see as he continues to grow through fall camp."

You didn’t think we would exclude the quarterbacks from this list, did you? While this fall might not offer the drama of a quarterback competition, there’s still plenty of intrigue surrounding the position.

The scrimmage should be a nice early indicator of whether or not Bryce Young was able to carry over his momentum from the spring. It could also be influential in determining the Tide’s plans at the backup spot as freshman Jalen Milroe looks to push redshirt sophomore Paul Tyson for the role.

“When you talk about the whole room — Paul Tyson, Jalen Milroe, Braxton Barker and Stone Hollenbach — it’s a really good room,” offensive coordinator Bill O’Brien said. “They care about the team and they all understand their roles on the team and what they have to do individually to get better to help the team get better. It’s been fun to coach that room.”