Prior to the start of his press conference a few minutes ago, Alabama head coach Nick Saban released the much-anticipated depth chart. Some things were as expected, but there were some legitimately surprises as well. As an initial primer, the high points:
- DeQuan Menzie is listed as the starting cornerback opposite Dre Kirkpatrick, while B.J. Scott is in a back-up role. This has to be the surprise of camp to date, no doubt about it. Most expected Menzie to have to redshirt after his Achilles injury, and with him being able to not only come in and play immediately but to beat out Scott as the starting cornerback is hard to believe. Scott and Milliner are listed as the back-ups to Menzie, while Phelon Jones and John Fulton are listed as the back-ups to Kirkpatrick. In reality, though, I imagine that Scott and Milliner are the third and fourth cornerbacks in the rotation.
- Menzie will also be the first choice at the star position, according to Saban. That is big news if Menzie can stay healthy because that will allow Barron to remain at safety — which helps quality depth there — and it likely opens a path for either Scott or Milliner to come in on nickel packages and play outside at corner, much like Marquis Johnson did a year ago. Given the prevalence of the nickel package in Saban’s defense, while not listed as a starter, the third corner will nevertheless play a lot of snaps.
- Chavis Williams is listed as the starting linebacker at Sam, while Jerrell Harris is listed as the starting linebacker at Will. Surprisingly enough, Chris Jordan was not listed as a starter. For what it’s worth, Saban said in his press conference a few minutes ago that Williams’ progress at Sam allowed the coaching staff to move Harris inside, so at least it seems like a move that was made from a position of strength.
- C.J. Mosley is listed as the back-up to Jerrell Harris at Will, and Saban explicitly referred to him as someone who “gets it.” Obviously you can forget about him getting a redshirt, and that likely means that Chris Jordan has been moved full-time to Mike, which is a nice move for him because that will effectively allow him on the field every time we move Hightower to the edge to use him as a pass rusher.
- Josh Chapman is listed as the starter at nose guard over Kerry Murphy, but based on Saban’s comments I don’t think it means anything. He said they had been back and forth all Fall, and that Chapman’s experience is giving him the edge at the moment.
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