ALABAMA FOOTBALL

Alabama defensive backs Phelon Jones (9) and Dre Kirkpatrick (21) watch action during the first practice of the season in Tuscaloosa, Ala., Thur., Aug. 5, 2010. (The Birmingham News / Mark Almond)

It was the spring of 2009 and Phelon Jones was in the process of being phased out at LSU. He didn't know why it was happening. It just was.

He had his suspicions. Maybe it was because the new group of defensive coaches Les Miles hired -- most notably coordinator John Chavis -- didn't have a place for him. Perhaps they were testing him by dropping him to the third team after he had been featured in sub packages during the nine games he played in 2008.

Whatever. All Jones knew was he wanted to leave and return home to Alabama -- the state he moved away from in 2007 to join the Tigers as they were on the verge of winning their last national championship.

"I didn't come over here to sit on the bench," Jones thought to himself.

The Mobile native eyed Auburn. But he got the impression he would be used as a receiver there. That was a deal-breaker. He also looked at Troy. Yet Jones still dreamed of the NFL and knew he could compete in the SEC.

He eventually settled on Alabama as his next destination. The Crimson Tide needed a player like Jones. Javier Arenas, Marquis Johnson and three other defensive backs were scheduled to graduate by the time Jones would be eligible the following year. There was a dearth of experience at a position Nick Saban supervised at a program he was charged with returning to glory.

In his pitch to Jones, Saban told the redshirt sophomore he would have a good opportunity to come in and play. Jones was persuaded. The Crimson Tide had just lost to Utah in the Sugar Bowl and the previous fall barely beat the 8-5 LSU squad he was leaving. Jones figured Alabama really did need the help.

"I didn't think they were nothing special," Jones said. "But with any SEC school they have talent. So, I just figured as long as I could get into a good program and help out as best I could that would benefit me and them. To say I knew they were going to be one of the best schools in history and have this run of national championships, no, I never saw that coming."

After Miles initially blocked Jones from going to Alabama, the LSU coach quickly reversed course by relenting and allowing the defensive back free passage to a rival program. For a semester, Jones paid his own way and in January 2010 he received a scholarship. According to the university's sports information department, it would be the last time an undergraduate transfer would go to school for free under Saban.

Eight years and four national championships later, Jones works as a foreman. Unwittingly, he has become the last vestige and emblem of Alabama as it existed before it became the preeminent program in college football and Saban was crowned the sport's king.

In this day and age, it would be hard to imagine Jones making the move to Alabama that he did back in 2009 -- mere months before a dynasty would start. The Tide no longer has open spots for players who would have to sit out a year before paying dividends.

Alabama defensive back Phelon Jones (9) breaks up a pass meant for Duke tight end Cooper Helfet (81) at Wallace Wade Stadium in Durham, N.C., Sat., Sept. 18, 2010. (The Birmingham News / Mark Almond)

"You know we usually don't have any room," Saban said. "If you have 85 guys on scholarship, that's all you can have. Last year was actually the first year for a long time - I'd have to look at the record book - that we did not have 85 guys on scholarship because of the attrition that we had with some of the guys who left."

Saban was referring to -- among others -- defensive backs Maurice Smith and Kendall Sheffield, who went elsewhere in search of better opportunities and were part of an unusual exodus of top talent that included quarterback Blake Barnett. Ranked the best player at his position in his class by 247Sports, Sheffield was fighting for playing time -- a fascinating development that offered proof of the kind of depth the Tide had created. This past February, Alabama landed the top recruiting class for the seventh straight year and its roster is loaded with future stars at every position.

When there has been a hole, it's been filled instantly.

"They want an immediate answer and that's why it has always been [junior college] and graduate transfers," said Phil Savage, the former NFL general manager who serves as Alabama's radio analyst.

Jake Coker, Richard Mullaney and Gehrig Dieter are examples. They were all players who came from four-year schools and could be deployed as soon as they arrived in Tuscaloosa because they had already earned their degrees. Due to their eligibility and availability, Alabama pursued them.

"The one difference between an undergraduate transfer and high school athletes, graduate transfers and JUCO transfers is they've got to sit out," said Barton Simmons, the director of football scouting for 247Sports. "So I think if you're Alabama, why go the transfer route and have a wasted spot on your roster when you can go out and get another five-star who can either contribute right away, or can grow and develop on your scout team and on special teams? When you're recruiting at the level Alabama is, there just is not much upside to going and filling a roster spot with an undergraduate transfer."

Given its stature, Alabama can be more selective. Other teams-- even prominent ones in its own conference -- either don't have that luxury or aren't on as solid footing.

Quarterbacks Luke Del Rio of Florida and Danny Etling of LSU switched schools mid-career and started games for their new teams last season. From 2012 to 2016, six undergrads listed on Athlon's annual "Transfers to Watch" list resettled at Auburn after moving directly from other FBS programs.

"It's a much narrower fit at Alabama than everywhere else because of the reasons they are successful and all the talent on the roster," Simmons said. "A program has to have a need and an opening. But the kid has to feel like he's stepping into a situation where he can succeed, and I think that's where it's got to be a unique situation for there to be an opportunity at Alabama. If you're going to sit there and age on the bench for a year, that's a year of someone else -- another five-star and four-star -- coming of age and getting better and the competition is increasing and so it's tough."

There is a good chance, Savage said, that an undergrad transfer from another FBS team is "going to be left behind" at the Capstone.

Even Jones found that out the hard way back at the turn of this decade. He played sparingly with the Tide, making only four tackles and an interception in his last season in 2011. In what was a quintessential example of irony at his expense, Jones never got on the field in his final game, which just so happened to be against LSU in the BCS championship and ended with Saban's second national title at Alabama.

Phelon Jones works out during pro day at the University of Alabama Wed., Mar. 07, 2012 in Tuscaloosa, Ala. (The Birmingham News/Bernard Troncale)

Looking back, Jones has mixed feelings about his decision to leave the Tigers and move to the Tide. He had to switch his major from kinesiology to human environmental science to avoid losing a year of credits. And his NFL dream never really materialized save for a tryout with the Washington Redskins during a rookie minicamp.

"If I could go back and maybe do it again, there might be a time I might stay," Jones said.

Of course, things were different back then. Alabama was in the nascent stages of becoming the dominant program and recruiting powerhouse it is now. If Jones had tried to make the same move in the present day he's pretty certain it would never come to pass.

"Probably not," Jones said, "just because of how good they are now. I had no idea that they were going to be as good as they were."