Kalen DeBoer Likes the Mindset in his Wide Receiver Room

Alabama's quarterback competition is still ongoing, although offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb gave his thoughts on a frontrunner after spring football.

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Regardless of who the starting quarterback is, they'll have plenty of help at wide receiver this season. Alabama is returning Ryan Williams and Germie Bernard (who accounted for 1,659 receiving yards and 10 receiving touchdowns last season) while also returning Jalen Hale and Cole Adams from injury, retaining Rico Scott, and converting Jaylen Mbakwe to receiver. Alabama also added three new bodies to that room in Mimai transfer Isaiah Horton and freshmen Lotzeir Brooks and Derek Meadows. It's safe to say Alabama has plenty of talent in that room, and I would venture to say it is the most talent in the room since 2019.

Alabama head coach Kalen DeBoer may not go as far as to call this receiver group the second coming of the Rydeouts (Jerry Jeudy, DeVonta Smith, Henry Ruggs III, Jaylen Waddle), but he is happy to see the progress and development from his receiving group this spring.

"You've got some experienced guys coming back. You've got Isaiah in. I thought Rico Scott had a really nice spring. We expected that. Internally, we expected, and we could see that happening throughout the fall and in December. You could go on and on," DeBoer said on Monday.

DeBoer was also really pleased with the freshmen Brooks and Meadows through spring practice.

"I really like our freshmen that came in as well. Derek and Lotzeir. Really think we nailed it with incoming freshmen that way. They're freshmen. That's what we've got to remember. So there's some growth that they've got to experience, much like we're talking about at quarterback and these tackles and so forth."

"Go on down the line," DeBoer went more in-depth on his receiving room. "They all are just out there competing. I like the mindset that is developing. I say developing because I think it's something I think we're capable of, but we're far from there yet is to be the best receiving corps in the country. That's not just one or two guys or three. That's the whole unit. Whoever goes out there, we're developing more confidence they can get the job done."

The benefit of a receiver room like Alabama has is versatility, and that was one of the biggest things the 2019 receiving room had.

"I like the versatility a lot of these guys have, inside to outside. We can move guys around. Much like we've been accustomed to over many years. You don't know where so and so is going to line up. That might not just be the receivers. That might be the tight ends, running backs, they can line up in empty. They can get out in flex. They can be in tight to the box. If you're a tight end, you can put your hand in the ground. We've got a lot of position flexibility, a lot of versatility. The guys are understanding the system. Not just the what and how of what they're supposed to do and their execution, but also the why."

DeBoer was asked specifically about two receivers - Miami transfer Isaiah Horton and sophomore Ryan Williams.

DeBoer said he had 'high expectations' for Horton, who came in with over 600 receiving yards and five touchdowns last season at Miami.

"he has definitely not let us down or me down for sure. He's come in. The thing I love about Isaiah is the way he handled it. He's a guy you want to ingrain; get yourself in there. He went about his work. Guys I see here that come in and just do the work, they develop a respect among the team quicker than not, because that's what our guys care about. Who's going to come in? Who really wants to be part of this culture? Who's willing to work? He has done that, and now all of a sudden you see him, because he is a productive guy, he does have that ability. It's well-rounded. It's not just a red-zone thing. That presence about him is something I really think is something we recognize, his teammates recognize, and have really grown a high level of respect. He's got that body type. He caught some balls for Jalen at Pro Day. He was showing out in a lot of different ways for some of us who had seen him in a couple of practices. Guys who can catch inbreaking routes coming in full speed and not break stride, that's something that I'm thinking is just one indicator of how smooth and talented you are. He's really fit in well. He's got a great personality. Great teammate."

Last season, Alabama's leading receiver was freshman Ryan Williams. Williams caught six of his eight touchdowns last season in the first five games of the year, and seven of his eight touchdowns came when he was lined up on the outside of the formation. One of his receiving touchdowns came after he shifted into the slot and caught a short pass from Milroe on a play-action pass.

Williams' versatility makes him a weapon that can be used out of the slot, out wide, and on run plays. How will DeBoer plan to use the Saraland native next season?

"There's a lot of things you can do with Ryan. We never want to take away what he can do when he's out there isolated. But the ability for him to get inside and get matchups, and he can get matchups against guys, pretty much against anyone .. But I also think we don't want to just put him in a spot that has seen slot guys get bracketed and so forth. We need to make sure our system allows guys to get to all areas of the field. Because of Germ and because of these other guys, we talked about Isaiah, You can go on and on and on about our roster right now, that can go inside or outside, that will allow Ryan to be able to do that. You want the greatness of others to help you become great. That's something that's really big, and it's going to help Ryan have an even bigger season because of the others around him."

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Wyatt Fulton is the Tide 100.9 DME and Brand Manager, primarily covering Alabama Crimson Tide football and men's basketball. For more Crimson Tide coverage, follow Wyatt on X (Formerly known as Twitter) at @FultonW_.