“Brandon, really, last year couldn’t hardly focus,” Saban said. “We had him playing tackle, we had him playing tight end – so it was tough for him to focus. This year, this spring, this fall camp, this summer, we said ‘Hey, look, you're going to be a tight end.’

“I think to have a guy like that at that position certainly creates a lot of problems because he’s a mismatch player in the C-area. I know he gives us some problems in practice when he’s in there and he’s blocking outside backers.”

Greene has the body and the experience to be one of the Tide’s “thumpers,” as Saban calls them, at a wider point of attack. But the coach also pointed out his progress beyond his physical run-blocking.

“The guy is very athletic,” Saban said. “Even though he’s not real fast, he’s got really good hands. He’s somebody you can throw the ball to and he can be hard to tackle. I think he’s lost a little bit of weight, not a whole lot.”

Green was listed last season at 307 pounds.

Two true freshmen have been turning heads in camp. Miller Forristall (6-5, 220) had an outstanding spring. He caught eight passes in the A-Day Game. Irv Smith Jr. (6-4, 235) didn’t go through spring drills but had a solid workout in the Tide’s Fan Day open practice on Sunday.