Alabama Crimson Tide College Football Preview 2023: Offense

Alabama Crimson Tide Preview: Offense

2023 Alabama Preview: Defense
Season Prediction, Win Total, What Will Happen
- Alabama 2023 Football Schedule

The offense didn’t have its normal array of sure-thing superstar wide receivers, the ground game was fine but not special, and that 10-2 regular season might have been flirting with 8-4 if Bryce Young wasn’t under center. It was a good attack, but it missed the steady power running game, wasn’t amazing on third downs, allowed a few too many plays behind the line, wasn’t always as sharp as normal and … whatever. 2022 didn’t represent the Alabama offense’s best work and it still averaged 477 yards and 41 points per game. But …

The starting quarterback is one big question mark. Julian Sayin appears to be the next Alabama superstar up, but he’s not arriving until next year. For now, Jalen Milroe is maybe/sort of/possibly the odds-on favorite - he was great in place of an injured Young with 91 rushing yards in the 49-26 win over Arkansas that was WAY tighter than that until late - but the passing accuracy is questionable. Ty Simpson has the bigger upside. The 5-star get from last season and has every shot at the gig, but he’s a wee step behind Milroe and suffered a slight elbow injury this offseason. And then there’s the wild-card - Notre Dame transfer Tyler Buchner is a good runner and an okay passer. More on this in the Key Player section.

Jameson, Metchie, DeVonta, Waddle, Jeudy, Ruggs, Ridley, Amari, Julio … Alabama’s wide receiver talent run was legendary, and last year it dropped off - maybe. Bryce Young spread the ball around, and RB Jahmyr Gibbs was the most reliable target, but the wide receivers - while dangerous - weren't quite at the same level of past units.

That’s probably going to change with the top two receivers - Jermaine Burton and JaCorey Brooks - returning. They’re both dangerous deep threats, Isaiah Bond is a good looking young option, and coming in from the JUCO ranks is Malik Benson, a potentially devastating playmaker who can do a little of everything. Also added to the mix is Maryland transfer CJ Dippre, an NFL-sized pass catcher - 30 grabs for 314 yards and three scores - who should thrive with more work.

It’s Alabama, so the line should be okay. It’s not a talent issue, but there are a whole lot of moving parts around future NFL tackle JC Latham. The depth is young, losing Amir Kight (UCF), Javion Cohen (Miami), and Damien George (Florida) didn’t help, and it might take a little bit to come together. Last year’s line was okay in pass protection, and …

We’re dealing with a whole other set of unreasonable standards when it comes to this team's offense. The ground game was fine - it averaged 5.6 yards per pop - but a minor power outage in the middle of the SEC season proved costly. There should be more running out of the quarterbacks - 9 wasn’t built to do a whole lot of scrambling - and the combination of Jase McClellan and Roydell Williams should be okay until superstar freshman Justice Haynes gets up to speed.

2023 Alabama Preview: Defense
Season Prediction, Win Total, What Will Happen
- Alabama 2023 Football Schedule