TUSCALOOSA, Ala. -- The only player absent from Alabama’s first two postseason practices was safety Hootie Jones, who Nick Saban said is out for the season with a knee injury.

When the secondary and inside linebackers worked on the Crimson Tide’s nickel package at Saturday’s indoor practice, it was redshirt sophomore Deionte Thompson in place of Jones at safety with the first-team defense alongside junior Ronnie Harrison.

Whether or not that is the exact plan for Jan. 1’s playoff game against No. 1 Clemson remains to be seen, but Thompson is certainly a leading candidate to make his first career start.

“I don’t know what we are going to do. I have been all over the place in practice since Hootie has been out,” junior safety Minkah Fitzpatrick said. “But we got a couple of guys stepping up, Deionte Thompson, Xavier McKinney and Daniel Wright -- they’ve all been doing their job and doing it well.

“I think it’s going to be something we probably decide next week so we can have more practice reps with it. That decision is going to be up to coach.”

If Thompson is the fifth defensive back, it won’t be his first time filling that role this season.

Alabama S Deionte Thompson

When Fitzpatrick did not play against Mercer in Week 12 due to a nagging hamstring injury, the third-year safety helped fill the void left by the unanimous All-American. In that game Thompson registered a career-high five tackles and the first interception of his career.

That’s not quite the same level of competition he will face in the Allstate Sugar Bowl semifinal, but his teammates have confidence in the former 4-star recruit’s capabilities at safety.

“I think he’s going to do a good job,” Fitzpatrick said at the College Football Hall of Fame in Atlanta. “He’s going to step into the role wherever they have him at, whether it’s strong or free safety. He’s going to do a job. I’m going to help him out, Ronnie’s going to help him out, the other guys are going to go around him and make sure he’s doing what he’s supposed to be doing, which he will be doing on his own.

“But we’re just going to push him to be that much better, and he’ll come in there and do his job.”

Alabama has the SEC’s third-best passing defense entering the College Football Playoff, as it has allowed an average of 163.7 yards per game to opposing offenses. Its counterpart, the Tigers, have the ACC’s No. 7-ranked passing offense after 13 games (244.1).

On New Year’s Day in New Orleans, the Crimson Tide hopes Clemson’s passing numbers are closer to Alabama’s average than the latter. But one amount that won’t be in question is the amount of passion Thompson will bring to the field if he is, indeed, the starter.

According to senior cornerback Levi Wallace, he “plays with a different passion.”

“He’s definitely more confident out there,” Wallace said. “You see him every time he makes a play he’s excited about it. He knows his job a little bit better this year. I think it’s more of a team effort of everyone just knowing their assignments this year.

“He plays with a different passion. We make fun of him because of how hard he goes in practice. We say, like, he’s playing like he has kids to feed at home. Especially in practice he’s just all go for it. So it’s good to have a guy like that out there with us.”

Contact Charlie Potter by 247Sports' personal messaging or on Twitter (@Charlie_Potter).