By Matt Smith
SouthernPigskin.com

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Matt Smith previews the 2022 Alabama Crimson Tide.

2022 SEC Season Preview: Alabama
ALABAMA CRIMSON TIDE
Head Coach: Nick Saban 3 16th season at Alabama; 30th season overall (131-28 SEC, 274-67-1 overall)
Offensive Coordinator: Bill OBrien (second season)
Defensive Coordinator: Pete Golding (fourth season)
2021 Recap: 13-2 (7-1 SEC); defeated Cincinnati in Cotton Bowl, lost to Georgia in CFP National Championship Game
Many will consider the 2021 Alabama team coming a half-quarter away from a national title to be Nick Sabans best coaching job. Thats not because they didnt have a roster worthy of being in that situation, but because they overcame injuries all over the offense and had to survive three down-to-the-wire games in November just to remain in the national title picture. A remarkable 17-point thrashing of No. 1 Georgia in the SEC Championship Game ensured a successful season, even if the Bulldogs got the last laugh five weeks later in Indianapolis. Quarterback Bryce Young became Alabamas fourth Heisman Trophy winner overall and second in as many seasons.

2022 Schedule
Sept. 3 3 UTAH STATE (7:30 p.m. ET, SEC Network)
Sept. 10 3 at Texas (Noon ET, FOX)
Sept. 17 3 LOUISIANA-MONROE (4 p.m. ET, SEC Network)
Sept. 24 3 VANDERBILT
Oct. 1 3 at Arkansas
Oct. 8 3 TEXAS A&M (8 p.m. ET, CBS)
Oct. 15 3 at Tennessee
Oct. 22 3 MISSISSIPPI STATE
Nov. 5 3 at LSU
Nov. 12 3 at Ole Miss
Nov. 19 3 AUSTIN PEAY
Nov. 26 3 AUBURN

Under Center
Young entered the 2021 season with extensive hype as a prized recruit from California and with a seven-figure cNILd deal, as reported by his head coach at SEC Media Days. Many similar quarterbacks have faded under the bright lights of SEC football, but Young surpassed even the highest of expectations, delivering three consecutive memorable performances in wins over Arkansas, Auburn and Georgia to lead a vulnerable Crimson Tide team to the College Football Playoff for the seventh time in eight seasons and win the Heisman Trophy in landslide vote. With Young bound for the NFL in January, he enters his final college season with even greater expectations 3 win a national title and become the first player in almost 50 years to win two Heismans. Previous winners are always graded on a curve, but Young has the benefit of playing in so many spotlight games, and groupthink has overtaken the Heisman voting process.

To nitpick a bit, his 66.9 completion percentage was only No. 20 in the country, but he faced perhaps the two best secondaries in the country in his final three games against Georgia twice and Cincinnati. Hell be breaking in a new, but experienced, receiving corps that is replacing its top three targets from 2021, but a seamless transition is the standard at Alabama.

In The Trenches
Saban and since-departed position coach Doug Marrone fought all year to get the offensive line right in 2021, but it never put all the pieces together. Evan Neal was a stalwart left tackle, but injuries caused some deck-chair shuffling, and LSUs, Auburns and Georgias fronts were all able to make life very hard on Young. The Tide will lean on senior guard Emil Ekiyor Jr. this season, and they added a much-needed edge protector in Vanderbilts Tyler Steen, easily the Commodores best offensive player (low bar, I know). At least early on, this unit may be asked to maul for Georgia Tech transfer Jahmyr Gibbs and the running game as Young and the new receivers develop a rapport.

You can say Alabama or Clemson has the best front seven in college football, and in neither case would you be wrong. The Tigers may have the edge inside, but Will Anderson and Dallas Turner are about a once-a-decade edge rusher pairing, with the former being unfairly denied a rightful trip to New York last December after having 15.5 sacks in 13 games. Phidarian Mathis is finally gone at defensive tackle, but D.J. Dale is a veteran plugger and Henry Too Too has played three SEC seasons at inside linebacker.

On The Perimeter
The transfer portal has been most beneficial to the elite programs, allowing those teams to avoid having a tragic flaw. Alabama had it last year at receiver in the spring, but landing Jameson Williams from Ohio State allowed them to repeat as SEC champions. Its a similar story this year, with the Crimson Tide bringing in Jermaine Burton from Georgia after a 497-yard season in Athens, and Tyler Harrell from Louisville, who put up similar numbers to Burton. Theyll be the veteran of a younger group that will need one or both of sophomore JoJo Earle and JaCorey Brooks, the hero of the Iron Bowl a year ago, to become a player who can catch 30-40 passes. Tight end Cameron Latu is back as a critical red-zone weapon.

Burton wasnt even the biggest transfer acquisition from an SEC rival for Alabama. That would be cornerback Eli Ricks, who started for two seasons at LSU. Injuries limited Ricks to just six games in 2021, and he opted for a fresh start in Tuscaloosa after the coaching change in Baton Rouge. The position, by Crimson Tide standards, is a bit thin, with sophomore Kool-Aid McKinstry looking to break out after a promising freshman season. Jordan Battle may be the next All-American safety in Tuscaloosa, joining the likes of Mark Barron, Ha Ha Clinton-Dix and Minkah Fitzpatrick. This unit needs to be a bit tighter in the red zone, as 55 percent of opponent drives ended in touchdowns, only sixth-best in the SEC.

Ranking The Units
1. Linebackers
2. Quarterbacks
3. Defensive Backs
4. Defensive Line
5. Running Backs
6. Receivers
7. Offensive Line

Schedule Analysis
Alabama will play its first non-conference road game since 2011 when it visits in Texas in Week 2. The Longhorns are on the rise (seriously, I think), but the two rosters are still worlds apart at the moment, so the trip to Austin shouldnt be a problem. Vanderbilt is the rotating opponent, giving the Tide a breezy SEC opener before a tough three-game stretch with road trips to Arkansas and Tennessee sandwiching an emotional home date with Texas A&M. The normal Halloween-weekend rest is followed by another pair of tough road trips at LSU and at Ole Miss. The Iron Bowl is rarely competitive in Tuscaloosa, so having Auburn come to Bryant-Denny Stadium is a huge plus.

Season Prediction
Theres potential for everyone else to be playing for second place this season. Alabama, if it stays healthy, is that good. The Crimson Tide possess the best defensive player in the country and arguably the best offensive player in the country. The five big transfer portal additions have shored up the holes caused by attrition, injuries and some misevaluations.

Saban will remain dominant in Atlanta, winning a tenth SEC Championship Game in 11 trips, before making a return trip east four weeks later for the Peach Bowl and another chance at a national title. Im not certain even an injury to Young would derail this teams national title chances. Conventional wisdom says to pick Alabama to win it all in a season after it failed to do so. Since 2009, that strategy has worked four out of six times. Make it five out of seven, as the Crimson Tide hoist the trophy in Los Angeles on Jan. 9.

Record: 13-0 (8-0 SEC); SEC champions
CFP Ranking: 1
Bowl: Peach Bowl (CFP semifinal) vs. Oklahoma State