re: *** Official FOOTBALL IS KINDA BACK Practice Thread ***

al.com practice report:

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Alabama held its seventh practice of the spring Wednesday, working on one of the Tide's outdoor fields in 85 degree heat.

What we saw:

Safety Geno Smith was not present during the portion of practice open to the media. Smith was arrested and charged with driving under the influence Saturday, his second DUI arrest in the last two years. While coach Nick Saban said he never considered dismissing Smith from the team, Saban said the safety will have a series of tasks to complete behind the scenes before he is allowed to return to the team.

Senior Jabriel Washington and freshman Ronnie Harrison were the two safeties working with the first-team defense during the early part of drills. Sophomore Hootie Jones was at the Star position. Sophomore Tony Brown and junior Eddie Jackson were the two cornerbacks.

The first-team offensive line during drills consisted of Cam Robinson at left tackle, redshirt freshman Ross Pierschbacher at left guard, senior Ryan Kelly at center, sophomore Bradley Bozeman at right guard and senior Dominick Jackson at right tackle.

Sophomore quarterback Cooper Bateman briefly warmed up with the quarterbacks before shifting over to work with the wide receivers for the second straight practice.

Sophomore Shaun Dion Hamilton continues to work next to Reggie Ragland as part of the first pairing at inside linebacker during drills.

Ragland and senior Dillon Lee spent part of the early part of practice working on pass rushing drills with the outside linebackers.

Former Alabama and current San Diego Chargers offensive lineman D.J. Fluker was at the Tide's team headquarters Wednesday, pulling up shortly before the start of practice in a white Range Rover.

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gotta wonder what is going on at QB if Bateman is moving to receiver

BOL practice report:

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Alabama was back out on the practice field Wednesday, April 1, for its seventh spring practice session. The Crimson Tide players practiced outdoors and in helmets, shoulder pads and shorts on a sunny, 81-degree afternoon in Tuscaloosa.


Here are several tidbits from Alabama's seventh spring practice:

- Rising redshirt sophomore quarterback Cooper Bateman wore a white No. 18 jersey Wednesday during the two media viewing periods and did not appear to attempt a pass. He was running routes and catches passes with the wide receivers, instead of throwing them.

- Left guard Alphonse Taylor appeared to be limited for the second consecutive practice. His right knee was heavily wrapped. In his place with what seemed to be the first group was Ross Pierschbacher.

- The defensive backs lined up in a dime formation during the second of two media viewing periods. Eddie Jackson and Tony Brown were the corners, Jabriel Washington and early enrollee Ronnie Harrison were the safeties, Maurice Smith was the Star and Laurence Jones was the Money. Inside linebacker Reuben Foster was also out there with the secondary during the dime drill.

- Rising sophomore Shaun Hamilton was once again working at the Mike linebacker position alongside Reggie Ragland during individual drills. In the second viewing period, Ragland moved over to join the outside linebackers, while Dillon Lee came over to work with the inside 'backers and defensive coordinator Kirby Smart.

- Safety Geno Smith was not present on the practice field again Wednesday. The rising senior defensive back was arrested and charged with driving under the influence early Saturday morning in Tuscaloosa.

- Offensive lineman Grant Hill (sickness) was not spotted on the field and has now missed seven consecutive practices.

- Cornerback Cyrus Jones (hip) and outside linebacker Denzel Devall (foot) did not participate in any individual drills during the two media viewing periods. Both players again wore black, no-contact jerseys and worked with strength and conditioning coach Scott Cochran on the sideline. Devall wore a boot on his left foot.

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LINK

Anniston Star practice report: (Can you tell I am trying to get my mind off of the basketball search?)

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Alabama practice report: Tide secondary shuffling as Smith remains absent

TUSCALOOSA -- Alabama was back on the field for its seventh practice of spring workouts. The Crimson Tide is at the half way point with its first scrimmage scheduled for Friday.

Here are some takeaways:
--As expected, there was no sign of defensive back Geno Smith. Tide coach Nick Saban didn't set a timetable on when Smith would return to the field coming off his arrest for driving under the influence this weekend.

--With Smith out, there are more opportunities for senior Jabriel Washington and true freshman Ronnie Harrison. Those two were the safeties when the Tide worked on its dime packages. The rest of the group had Tony Brown and Eddie Jackson in the cornerback spots, Maurice Smith at star and Laurence "Hootie" Jones at money. Reuben Foster was the lone linebacker.

--Offensive lineman Alphonse Taylor was spotted walking around with head athletic trainer Jeff Allen. Taylor has been limited for a few practices now. With Taylor out, Ross Pierschbacher continues to work at left guard with the first offensive line group. The rest of the unit had Cam Robinson at left tackle, Ryan Kelly at center, Bradley Bozeman at right guard and Dominick Jackson at right tackle.

--Quarterback Cooper Bateman is still working with the wide receivers. Bateman wore a white jersey as opposed to the black ones quarterbacks wear. He also didn't throw any passes during the media's viewing period.
--With Tyren Jones being dismissed on Tuesday, Alabama appears to be really thin at running back. Derrick Henry is leading the group followed by Kenyan Drake. Behind those two are all freshman: Bo Scarbrough, DeSherrius Flowers and Ronnie Clark.

--There was still no sign of offensive lineman Grant Hill (medical leave).

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freaking Alabama basketball.

I'm concerned about Grant Hill. I've heard different rumors about what his problem is and I just wonder if it might be better for him to go ahead and decide to take a redshirt. I know alot can happen before fall, but it just seems like he needs to be able to focus on getting things right with himself and not worry about football for a year.

I didn't realize Jabriel Washington was a senior, damn.

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With Tyren Jones being dismissed on Tuesday, Alabama appears to be really thin at running back. Derrick Henry is leading the group followed by Kenyan Drake. Behind those two are all freshman: Bo Scarbrough, DeSherrius Flowers and Ronnie Clark.

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how are we thin, we have 5 backs and another one (best rb in the country) coming in the fall? think on experience, but we have plenty of talented players

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* Starting to think we might see UA's outside linebackers stand up more in obvious passing situations. In the past, they've typically played with their hands on the ground in the four-down rabbits package. It looks like Lupoi has them doing some things from a standup position this spring.

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Does this excited anyone else? I feel like our blitz/coverages are a little bit more unpredictable when our LBs are standing.

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I didn't realize Jabriel Washington was a senior, damn

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Seems like he's been there forever though

TiF on the HZT was saying that Morris looked really good in practice. Would be interesting for him to win the job. If he does, I hope it's this year and not next. If he wins it next year that would be five quarterbacks in five years. Not a fan of that.