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The A.K. Dear rumor mill.

Posted on 11/13/25 at 8:37 pm
Posted by RiverCityTider
Jacksonville, Florida
Member since Oct 2008
6514 posts
Posted on 11/13/25 at 8:37 pm
Is it just fan based silliness or is there something real to it?

Its been apparent that he looks more like an explosive type back. I'm not really happy with the other options ...including Hill, who I think is a step slow given the narrow running lanes this oline produces.

But obviously he can 't block. If he could he would already be playing.

So what is it all about? Is this all just bs. If he was actually ready , would he not already be getting a few snaps?
Posted by Sandkhan
Hells and Wilderness, Northeast MS
Member since Jun 2009
6567 posts
Posted on 11/13/25 at 8:41 pm to
None of our Rbs have been super amazing at pass blocking, so it’s all just rumor. No one knows what staff is thinking

But my best guess is we are playing upper classmen beyond what we should like last year.
This post was edited on 11/13/25 at 8:42 pm
Posted by Funky Tide 8
Bayou Chico
Member since Feb 2009
55792 posts
Posted on 11/13/25 at 8:42 pm to
We'll probably find out at 2:30 on Saturday.
Posted by RollTide33
Member since Sep 2019
4231 posts
Posted on 11/13/25 at 8:51 pm to
quote:

But my best guess is we are playing upper classmen beyond what we should like last year.


Then how do you explain Lee and Brooks? Staff had no hesitation benching Jackson for Lee. And Brooks plays a ton too. Carroll is also getting a fair amount of PT.
Posted by Rip N Lip
Zambodia
Member since Jul 2019
6943 posts
Posted on 11/13/25 at 8:53 pm to
Have you seen some of the plays we run? They would be an absolute disaster with just one guy reading off a different sheet than the other 10.

The staff has rotated a ton of players this year at both offense and defense. Which either points to AKD either not understanding the playbook or he’s dinged up a bit. Maybe both?
Posted by UhOhOreo
Los Angeles
Member since Jul 2014
3170 posts
Posted on 11/13/25 at 9:05 pm to
Im not sure why everyone is extrapolating a single run
Posted by CrimsonBoz
Member since Sep 2014
19518 posts
Posted on 11/13/25 at 9:05 pm to
I’m not trying to be obtuse but what is the obsession with AK? He had 1 run against an inferior opponent who was already beat down. Pump the brakes.
Posted by Syd
Member since Sep 2012
4538 posts
Posted on 11/13/25 at 9:07 pm to
He tweeted something with a pic of himself on the field and people run with it. Deboer was asked about him by the media and he said he was blah blah progressing well and doing all the right things, coach speak.

This is what your rumor mill was built on and some Facebook experts say he'll be the starter by the Auburn game.
Posted by Sandkhan
Hells and Wilderness, Northeast MS
Member since Jun 2009
6567 posts
Posted on 11/13/25 at 9:09 pm to
quote:

I’m not trying to be obtuse but what is the obsession with AK? He had 1 run against an inferior opponent who was already beat down. Pump the brakes.


As with all things, it’s the obsession with the unknown. “The most popular player on a bad football team is the back up qb”.

Because the running game has been so bad, fans gravitate toward anything that could change it.
Posted by Sandkhan
Hells and Wilderness, Northeast MS
Member since Jun 2009
6567 posts
Posted on 11/13/25 at 9:14 pm to
My two cents as someone who is pretty versed in O line play…most of our running woes are O line related. And part of that is honestly scheme/coaching.

In my honest assessment, Geno VanDemark isn’t someone who should see meaningful snaps at Alabama. But he does things the staff wants him to do schematically even if he just isn’t very good at football.

So it’s a trade off. Do you want guys who aren’t great at football but are doing things right every play? Or do you want guys who are mashers but don’t totally get it right on our line?
This post was edited on 11/13/25 at 9:18 pm
Posted by SECSolomonGrundy
Slaughter Swamp
Member since Jun 2012
17983 posts
Posted on 11/13/25 at 9:16 pm to
Jam is not playing well.

But some of the problems are the OL just blowing their assignments.

I do not have any problem giving Dear a couple looks. Set him up to succeed though. If we put him in the game, OU will be looking for a run.
Posted by CrimsonBoz
Member since Sep 2014
19518 posts
Posted on 11/13/25 at 9:22 pm to
Can we have both lol.

JK

I think Jam is still hurt.

Hill and Riley should have the snaps maybe try AK but honestly Hill hits the hole with force. 3-4 yards is fine. We just can’t take the negative stuff. Pass on 1st run on 2nd mix it up.
Posted by East Coast Band
Member since Nov 2010
66899 posts
Posted on 11/13/25 at 9:23 pm to
What's the rumor?
Posted by Sandkhan
Hells and Wilderness, Northeast MS
Member since Jun 2009
6567 posts
Posted on 11/13/25 at 9:41 pm to
quote:

Can we have both lol.


I think we can. But I think that means we need to lean fully into playing Roberts at guard. He can do all the things right. We play GVD to a fault.

And I’m with you on the rb rotation except I legit don’t think Riley brings anything to the table. He isn’t more physical, better vision, better pass catcher, or more talented than any of the other guys we have. I appreciate him because he’s a local kid, but we gave him a really solid shot at it and it looked very pedestrian
Posted by tattoo
Fantasy Island
Member since Oct 2017
1960 posts
Posted on 11/13/25 at 10:07 pm to
quote:

I think we can. But I think that means we need to lean fully into playing Roberts at guard. He can do all the things right. We play GVD to a fault.
As I'm sure you know, Roberts was injured earlier and had been slowly worked back into the rotation. He is now a fixture at RG since he has taken 100% of the snaps there over the last 2 games. All of the OL shuffling now is at LG and RT.

Proctor, despite the criticisms of many Alabama fans, is having a very good year. He has played every snap at LT this season. PFF this week honored him as having the highest success rate of any LT in the nation.

Brailsford has played every snap at center this season. He was just honored as SEC Offensive Player of the week.

The OL has done a decent->good job in pass protection this year. RT is the weakest point, followed by LG. Dewberry has been nicked up of late and missed many snaps. Formby just has problems and Carroll is not quite ready in terms of understanding what to do - he's a true Fr, as most know..
Posted by Sandkhan
Hells and Wilderness, Northeast MS
Member since Jun 2009
6567 posts
Posted on 11/13/25 at 10:58 pm to
Yup. All great points. We haven’t had a lot of solidarity and consistency along the line. I’m hoping we can work on that when it matters most. I’ve seen us randomly plug in GVD in a lot of spots and him get absolutely blown up. Staff gives him a shot because he knows everything to do in most situations.

He’s a good puller from a technique standpoint and he’s often in the right spot…but then just gets his shite pushed in when he gets there.


This is all not to say there haven’t been opportunities for the rbs to make plays too. It’s been a team effort to be this bad. Only room to get better from here though. Our best linemen are all healthy now and eventually they should have some cohesiveness
Posted by Amarillo Tide
Amarillo, TX
Member since Aug 2023
1464 posts
Posted on 11/14/25 at 7:28 am to
Agree with this completely. Formby is flat out terrible and the play of the guards has been erratic at best. Brailsford has been outstanding. Proctor has been decent to pretty good.

To make matters worse, the coaching/development just isn’t good enough.
Posted by SECSolomonGrundy
Slaughter Swamp
Member since Jun 2012
17983 posts
Posted on 11/14/25 at 7:49 am to
quote:

Formby just has problems


Yes, mostly not getting out of his stance before a DL runs by him.
Posted by Roll Tide Ravens
Birmingham, AL
Member since Nov 2015
50575 posts
Posted on 11/14/25 at 8:12 am to
quote:

Formby is flat out terrible

I just don’t get why we continue to put him out there. Same with Vandemark (though his playing time has been going down). They simply aren’t good.
Posted by Diego Ricardo
Alabama
Member since Dec 2020
11024 posts
Posted on 11/14/25 at 9:36 am to
Carroll probably not quite executing at a level where they can put him out there every down. Frankly, I have not been impressed with Roberts since the regime change. He seemed lost at times in the LSU game.
This post was edited on 11/14/25 at 9:37 am
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