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Does Alabama Football have an offensive line problem before the 2025 season?

Ryan Grubb knows exactly how he wants the Alabama football game look next autumn.

The crimson tide offensive coordinator wants physicality. He wants technical runners who seamlessly switch between the inner and outer zone, meters, pin pulls, forces and sweeps: none of which is new to Alabama.

But for Grubb it is a mentality, Alabama has to be able to operate football whenever and wherever.

“I think the boys know that to win the late games and playoffs and things like that,” said Grubb.

For Alabama, this way of thinking is not just about running backs like Jam Miller, Richard Young or Louisiana Transfer Dre'lyn Washington. It's about the offensive at the front, a line that is apparently in the river at the beginning of spring practice.

Certain parts are defined: Parker Brailsford is back in the middle, Jaeden Roberts is back in the right guard and Kadyn Proctor is back on the left tackle. Wilkin Formby is apparently classified as the right Tackle of the Crimson Tide after Elijah Pritchett moved to Nebraska. And the right guard still seems to be won when the Texas A&M transfer came Dewberry, the newcomer Michael Carroll and the returnees like Olaus Alinen fight for snapshots.

But that's not the problem for the crimson tide in front. It is the lack of depth in the room, the lack of options between the starters at the front and the four-man HERMERST-Semester class of Carroll, Jackson Lloyd, Micah Debose and Mal Waldrep Jr., highlighted by a number of spring injuries, including Proctor.

For Grubb, a former offensive line trainer in the Fresno State, Eastern Michigan and Sioux Falls, this depth problem is what the spring practice is for.

“Yes, we came out of a few boys, which is only more repetitions and opportunity for young boys,” said Grubb. “People like Jackson Lloyd – people like that who come in there and take repetitions there is that it is really important. So we look at it more from a point of view than all these people who need to be developed have absolutely chance.”

Development is of crucial importance. And Alabama apparently trusts this development before the 2025 season.

The Crimson Tide added Dewberry, a former all-American newcomer from Aggie, whose role in 2024 with 261 snaps in 11 games per football focus in 2024 decreased significantly. Offensive Tackle Arkel Angom also changed with a career as a left and 100 career snapshots from his career at Ball State.

Miller is not worried.

When he was asked about Alabama's offensive line, he said that he saw a “large, physical” unity “just grind” and work on improving.

It is the type of line that Miller and Alabama have to meet on the expectation that Grubb organizes the Crimson Tide Run game.

“At the moment all of our boys are training and are physically,” said Miller. “Whoever is in the game whoever is in practice, of course they will go out and do their thing.”

Alabama will end his spring training plan on April 12 with his annual A Day Spring Game at the Bryant-Denny Stadium.

Colin Gay covers Alabama Football for the Tuscaloosa News, part of the USA Today Network. Reach him cgay@gannett.com Or follow him @_Colingay On X, formerly known as Twitter.