Theodore head football coach Eric Collier pulled up to a vacant C.A. Douglas Field last week to find one person working out by himself at the Bobcats’ Stadium.

That person? Alabama freshman linebacker Demouy Kennedy.

“When I got to the school, I found Demouy out there in the middle of the field going through drills,” Collier said. “Alabama gave him a workout plan of some kind, and he was out there by himself grinding his butt off. That’s Demouy Kennedy.”

Kennedy, the state of Alabama’s No. 1 recruit in the Class of 2020, signed with the Crimson Tide in December. The 6-foot-3, 215-pound linebacker had surgery in January to repair a torn labrum. Collier said Kennedy was not expected to be involved in contact drills during spring practice, which has been suspended indefinitely due to the coronavirus.

Collier, for one, is not surprised by Kennedy’s work ethic.

“He’s not going to change,” he said. “It wouldn’t matter if he was at Alabama, Auburn, LSU, wherever. Demouy is going to work his butt off every day. He is going to do whatever needs to be done to be successful.”

That could be an especially significant character trait this spring as athletes on every level are away from their coaches due to the unprecedented pandemic.

“The kids who handle this situation the best are the ones who will be successful,” Collier said. “The kids who let time go by and don’t do much, don’t stay active, will suffer.”

Despite playing through the labrum injury for most of his senior season, Kennedy was named the Class 7A Lineman of the Year by the Alabama Sports Writers Association. He finished the season with 73 tackles, including six for a loss, to go with two sacks and a pair of interceptions.

Collier has consistently called him the most athletic player he’s ever coached – a list that includes former Alabama star and NFL linebacker C.J. Mosley.

“He has some growing to do scheme wise and understanding certain concepts and things like that,” Collier said. “He was a receiver up to three or four years ago before we moved him to the other side of the football. He’s got some growing to do there, and he’ll do it.”

Exactly what went into the Theodore staff decision to move Kennedy to defense early in his career?

“It was one of those things where Demouy was a freshman on the scout team,” Collier said. “We moved him over to linebacker and he makes about four or five tackles and we look at each other like, ‘We are idiots. We’ve had him on the wrong side of the ball.’”

Kennedy did return to the offensive side of the ball for spot duty during his senior year. He rushed 18 times – mostly out of the Wildcat formation – for 273 yards and five touchdowns. His first two carries came against rival Murphy and went for 35 and 55 yards – both touchdowns.

“He couldn’t catch the ball real well when he was a wide receiver,” Collier said. “This year we decided, ‘Heck, let’s just hand it to him and see what he can do.’”

Collier said he expects Kennedy to see playing time on Alabama’s kickoff and punt teams this fall even if he doesn’t crack the lineup on defense.

The SEC announced on Tuesday that it has canceled its spring meetings that were scheduled for the last week of May in Destin, Florida. https://t.co/MP8dmisVGz — Alabama Crimson Tide | AL.com (@aldotcomTide) April 1, 2020