re: 2020 FB Recruiting & Roster

quote:

---

Crimson Tide works in game-like conditions for nearly two hours on Saturday
Story Links

Photo Gallery
Coach Saban Press Conference

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – The Alabama Crimson Tide held its second scrimmage of the fall on Saturday afternoon at Bryant-Denny Stadium. The workout lasted roughly 140 plays and just under two hours on a hot, sunny Saturday afternoon in Tuscaloosa.

The scrimmage was Alabama's second and final of the fall in preparation for its season-opening contest with Duke in the Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Ga., on Saturday, Aug. 31. The matchup between the Crimson Tide and Blue Devils is scheduled for 2:30 p.m. CT on ABC.

The team will be off this Sunday before getting back to work on Monday.

Nick Saban Post-Scrimmage

Opening Statement:

"The thing I asked the players after the last scrimmage and challenged them to do was, 'How much will you improve from the last scrimmage to this scrimmage?' That's going to happen by what you invest and what you commit to doing every day in practice, so you're focused on what's happening right now so that you can make that improvement. I would say we had a significant amount of guys that made strides and were better in this game, a lot less anxiety, especially for the young players, but not where we want to be.

"I think we're still not tackling well on defense. We had too many missed tackles, too many guys breaking down. (We were) not aggressive enough. Not enough cleanup. We gave up a few too many big plays on offense. Last week, we were really good in terms of turnovers and taking care of the ball. Today, we had the ball on the ground more than we'd like, threw a couple picks – which we've got to not do – so we've got to do a better job of taking care of the ball. When you're playing against each other, if this guy is doing good, and that guy playing against him, who is still on your team, may not be doing so good, so it really is hard to evaluate the overall consistency of performance until you watch the film."

---

quote:

---

Alabama made the second top schools cut for five-star outside linebacker Sav'ell Smalls on Sunday, the Burien (Wash.) Kennedy Catholic product announced on Twitter.

Joining the Crimson Tide are Florida State, Oregon, Tennessee, Washington, and Washington State. Another interesting note: Smalls actually dropped the Huskies from contention earlier this year. It appears as though UW stayed in the mix, however, making the cut on Sunday.

Smalls hasn't visited Tuscaloosa since June of 2018 for the Champions Cookout. He told BamaOnLine earlier this spring he wanted to get on campus in June, but was never able to make it out. When he did travel to the Southeast at the end of July, the five-star 'backer only visited Florida State and Tennessee.

For a recruit like Smalls, in-person relationship building is a critical factor in his decision-making process. “Next time I visit, how everything goes and how comfortable I feel is really going to be big for me with my recruitment with them,” he told BOL earlier this spring. Former defensive coordinator Tosh Lupoi recruited Smalls for the Tide. In the wake of Lupoi's departure, new OC Steve Sarkisian took over.

---