{"id":101691,"date":"2025-02-21T15:14:11","date_gmt":"2025-02-21T15:14:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/peraltafinancing.com\/alabama\/meet-alabama-footballs-2025-new-recruits-offensive-line\/"},"modified":"2025-02-21T15:14:11","modified_gmt":"2025-02-21T15:14:11","slug":"meet-alabama-footballs-2025-new-recruits-offensive-line","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=101691","title":{"rendered":"Meet Alabama Football\u2019s 2025 new recruits: Offensive Line"},"content":{"rendered":"


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As goes an offensive line, so goes a team\u2019s success. A weak blocking unit will doom even the best QB and WR pairings and make the best RBs look mortal. For Alabama, the Tide has struggled since 2020 to field a line to play with the same prowess that many of the teams before them. <\/p>\n

They cycled through OL coaches Doug Marrone and Eric Wolford before settling on Chris Kapilovic last season. The Wolford years saw Alabama look to beef up and roll with 350-lb zone blockers, whereas Kapilovic wanted to do more gap scheme blocking with leads and pulls to get linemen downfield and into space. It was an adjustment for the first year, but Alabama should be looking to match player types to scheme more in 2025. <\/p>\n

With guard Tyler Booker off to the NFL, Alabama has only one spot up for grabs in 2025. However, RT Wilkin Formby is far from a lock, and RGs Jaeden Roberts and Geno VanDeMark never truly won full spots last year either, and Coach Kapilovic seemed content to rotate linemen in more than some other coaches. <\/p>\n

So while it may be a little of a long shot that we see any true freshmen in big roles this year, it\u2019s definitely within a realm of possibility. And Coach Kalen DeBoer definitely put a big focus on the position in his first recruiting class – this is likely the best position group, and hopefully the backbone of his team for years to come. <\/p>\n

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Micah DeBose<\/h3>\n

As a hulking interior player out of Mobile, many fans will likely be hoping for DeBose to be the next Alphonse Taylor for Alabama. He was a UGA commit all the way back as a sophomore, but wound up jumping on the DeBoer train and stayed in-state. ESPN is a bit higher on him than the other three services, ranking him at #118 overall and the #3 interior lineman in the country. Listed at 315, he weighed in at 335 for the AL-MS All-Star game in December. <\/p>\n

Playstyle<\/h4>\n

He\u2019s huge. <\/p>\n

And more than that, he doesn\u2019t just push on defenders and fall on them – he strikes them. The main thing here is that he plays mean, and he has the size to back it up. He played left tackle in high school (like most everyone Alabama recruits, really), but is absolutely suited to be a guard at the college level. Line someone up in front of him, and he\u2019ll put them in his warpath as he explodes forward. <\/p>\n

For the most part, DeBose tends to win with his initial contact, rather than having to continue to work and adjust for positioning. It\u2019s an impressive trait… But one that he won\u2019t be able to rely on every snap at the college level. So being able to develop his technique and balance to hold his ground while keeping leverage will be important for him. <\/p>\n

He\u2019s likely not going to be the best blocker in space, and while he had a few nice reps pass blocking, his foot speed will likely be an issue there. <\/p>\n

Scheme Fit and Prediction<\/h4>\n

DeBose would have been a perfect fit for Eric Wolford. I do worry that he may not have the nimbleness to run the pulls and counters that DeBoer\/Grubb\/Kapilovic seem to prefer in a run game. Still, having him for short yardage and inside zone plays would be a big boon, and that may outweigh his limitations in space. <\/p>\n

I don\u2019t believe we\u2019ll see DeBose on the field in 2025. He\u2019ll need at least a season in Alabaama\u2019s S&C program to get to where he needs to be athletically, but I think he\u2019ll be in the mix of things in 2026 to compete for a guard job. <\/p>\n

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Michael Carroll<\/p>\n

Originally a Pennsylvania native with parents who were collegiate athletes at Penn State and Michigan State, Carroll shot up the recruiting rankings as a junior before transferring to IMG Academy in Florida as a senior, where he jumped from a \u201chigh potential\u201d prospect to a sure-fire 5-star and the top interior lineman in the country after dominating the best competition in the country. <\/p>\n

Playstyle<\/h4>\n

It\u2019s hard to find anything not<\/em> to like about Carroll. He\u2019s 6\u20196\u201d 315, but moves like a defensive end, not a massive OL. He\u2019s so fast it looks out out of place watching OL tape, and he combines that with exceptional balance and an aggressiveness on every play that is going to make him a coach\u2019s dream. Get him pulling in space, and he\u2019ll keep pace with a running back before twisting to make a downfield block on the fly. <\/p>\n

He\u2019s a former wrestler, too, so his ability to get leverage, despite his height, and continue to push and drive blocks in a small area is impressive. <\/p>\n

The biggest unknown for him will be pass blocking, as his team barely passed the ball in PA, and while he did show some good reps in pass blocking at IMG, he was also surrounded by other great blockers. Again, it may be just as much of a strength for him, but to this point, we haven\u2019t seen enough. <\/p>\n

Scheme Fit and Prediction<\/h4>\n

Carroll is the best pulling lead blocker in the entire class, and that\u2019s going to be right up Ryan Grubb\u2019s alley as an OC that absolutely loves counter run plays. Don\u2019t be surprised if we hear Carroll talked about quite a bit this spring and summer, and if he doesn\u2019t outright win the left guard starting job, I think he\u2019ll rotate in and eventually take it over full-time during the season. <\/p>\n

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Mal Waldrep<\/h3>\n

Waldep is something of a swing player, with 247 and ESPN listing him as a tackle, while On3 and Rivals view him as a guard. On3 and ESPN both have him as a 3 star prospect, while Rivals is the highest on him, ranking him at #199 overall. <\/p>\n

He hails from Central High School in Phenix City, long a pipeline to the SEC as a 7A powerhouse. Waldrep\u2019s dad, also Mal Waldrep, was a center for the Crimson Tide back in 1998-2002, so who knows, maybe there\u2019s a little bit of residual from rubbing elbows with Chris Samuels. <\/p>\n

Though he played left tackle at Central, there\u2019s plenty of talk that he may be a guard, or even a big center at the next level. <\/p>\n

Playstyle<\/h4>\n

Waldrep is one of the more polished players you\u2019ll see at the high school level. His footwork is astoundingly consistent on every snap, and that helps him to be able to backpedal and mirror in pass blocking while always staying a step ahead and never having to reach to make a block. He stays balanced and in control, whether he\u2019s dropping back to pass block or moving up field to seal off defenders in the run game. <\/p>\n

He doesn\u2019t play with a lot of ferocity like DeBose and Carroll, but is much more of a technician that just does a great job of always staying in between the ball and the defender, even if he\u2019s not getting the juicy pancake blocks. <\/p>\n

Scheme Fit and Prediction<\/h4>\n

I actually do think there\u2019s something to the prediction that he could wind up at center. His ability make decisions on helping his line mates, picking up blitzes, and keeping his feet moving around could make him a great center, even if he\u2019s built more like a tackle. <\/p>\n

I think he\u2019ll be a guy who is a multi-position backup for a couple of seasons, and we likely won\u2019t see him much as a freshman. However, he\u2019s the kind of guy that could slip into a game after a starter gets hurt in 2026, and by 2027 he\u2019s the entrenched starting center. <\/p>\n

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Jackson Lloyd<\/h3>\n

While 247, ESPN, and Rivals all view Lloyd as a high-end 4-star player, On3 has been adamant since last spring that Lloyd is one of the best overall players in the country, ranking him #16 overall and a 5-star prospect. <\/p>\n

He\u2019s a fairly dominant defensive tackle, a big-time basketball player, and a baseball player to boot, so Lloyd has generally kept his weight trimmed back for the other sports, and many view him as the kind of guy that could really explode once he focuses fully on playing offensive line<\/p>\n

At 6\u20197\u201d, he\u2019s a towering, athletic prospect who\u2019s got all the upside of a first-round NFL left tackle, but will have a ways to go as he steps up from the competition level in Carmel. <\/p>\n

Playstyle<\/h4>\n

Lloyd is probably the least polished of the quartet of freshmen coming in, but he\u2019s built like a wall with the nimbleness of a cat – which is fascinating to watch. Most of his blocks are really just him running into someone and continuing to push forward until they fall down, but the speed at which he gets into his blocks catches defenders by surprise, and then they have 6\u20197\u201d vulture arms locking them up and driving them away. <\/p>\n

In pass blocking, he does a great job mirroring his defender and making sure he\u2019s in a good position before uncoiling into a two-armed punch that stuns them in the middle of their pass rush. <\/p>\n

Scheme Fit and Prediction<\/h4>\n

Lloyd is definitely going to be a tackle at the college level, and while he likely needs to add some size to become an SEC run blocker, he has the potential to be an elite pass blocker there. I think he\u2019ll have a bit of a longer road to adjust to the game, though, so I think 2025 will be a redshirt year for him, and he\u2019ll start looking to compete to replace Kadyn Proctor at left tackle in a season or two. <\/p>\n

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Kam Dewberry<\/p>\n

Once a top-100 recruit, Dewberry made it onto the field as a true freshman for Texas A&M, stating 5 games and getting named a freshman All-American. In 2023, he played almost full-time for the Aggies, but then in 2024, his playing time got cut back down quite a bit. He still played, but was a rotational left guard, rather than a full-time starter. <\/p>\n

Dewberry will be in his final season of eligibility this year, so he transferred with the expectation to win the starting job.<\/p>\n

Playstyle<\/h4>\n

Dewberry is a big<\/em> guy. At 330 pounds, he\u2019s a nasty run blocker on the inside zone runs, and he excels at spinning his DT around just a little to make a big gap for running backs coming behind him. With that size, though, comes limitations on his ability to get into space. Once he tries to get downfield to the second level, he\u2019s often a step slow and winds up getting left blocking nobody past the line of scrimmage. <\/p>\n

As a pass blocker, he shows a good awareness for picking up stunts and prioritizing when to double team, but again, his lack of foot speed often leaves him twisting and letting speedier rushers get inside of him. <\/p>\n

Scheme Fit and Prediction<\/h4>\n

Dewberry brings nearly 1000 snaps of SEC experience to Alabama, and that kind of veteran experience is nothing to sneeze at. He\u2019ll likely have the first crack at the starting job at left guard, and I think he\u2019ll enter the season there. I also think he\u2019ll rotate with the freshman, Michael Carroll, there throughout much of the season. <\/p>\n

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Arkel Anugwom<\/h3>\n

Arkel Anugwom moved to Tennessee from Nigeria as a high school junior, and only picked up the sport of football for the last half of his senior season after playing all basketball and soccer in high school. He never had any recruiting rankings, and wound up joining Ball State in 2023, where he redshirted as a freshman. He then played 100 snaps for the Cardinals in 2024, and is now transferring to Alabama. <\/p>\n

Former RBR staffer, DrWhosOnFirst, actually had an email exchange with his high school coach, and I definitely recommend giving it a read on some of Anugwom\u2019s background. <\/p>\n