TUSCALOOSA, Ala. -- Through five preseason practices, what has appeared to be Alabama’s first-team offensive line has not changed.

During media viewing periods and in Saturday’ open practice, we’ve routinely seen Jonah Williams at left tackle, Ross Pierschbacher at left guard, Bradley Bozeman at center, Lester Cotton at right guard and Matt Womack at right tackle. They’re also the same five that ended the spring up front.

But while Williams, Pierschbacher and Bozeman are each returning starters, the other two spots remain up for grabs. And that will likely be the case for several more practices, as the Crimson Tide only donned full pads yesterday, and the position is hard to evaluate in jerseys and shorts, Nick Saban said.

“What gives us the best opportunity to get the best five guys on the field so we have the best opportunity to be successful up front? That’s way (too) early to be determined” Saban said. “We’re going to be evaluating those guys every day. It’s a work in progress, and it’s way too early to really tell.”

Although we have consistently seen the same five offensive linemen, Saban and company have shown they’re not afraid to make a sudden change, if necessary. Last season, Pierschbacher was practicing at center up until Week 1, and five different players started at right guard during the 2016 campaign.

Alabama OT Jonah Williams

This spring, Cotton and Deonte Brown spent time at right guard with the first team, and Brown has been behind Cotton to begin camp. Cotton will likely play at either right guard or tackle so, really, only one spot is available despite what we’ve seen at practice.

At SEC Media Days, Saban said four player exited spring ball who “really demonstrated that they could play winning football.” But as he said, time will tell who is that fifth player.



“You might not always like it, but it’s always fair,” Williams said. “I’m not sure how it’s all going to sort out in the end, but there’s a lot of guys that are working hard and a lot of guys that are showing good things in practice. I’m just excited about gelling as a unit. I definitely think we have all the ability in the world.”

It remains to be seen if Womack will be among the five against Florida State on Sept. 2, but the 6-foot-7, 324-pound redshirt sophomore has held firm while receiving first-team reps.

“The five best guys are going to play, so if he’s one of the five best he’s going to play. That’s the way we do it around here,” Williams said. “He’s been working hard. He’s obviously been here since before I got here, but since I’ve been here he’s been working hard and I think he’s got his opportunity now.

“He’s been doing good things, and I think the coaches are happy with him. We’ll see how it plays out.”

Challenging Womack and Cotton are several talented young players, including freshmen Alex Leatherwood and Jedrick Wills. Leatherwood, a former five-star prospect, enrolled early before the national title game and has worked behind Womack in camp.

“The younger guys have done a really nice job,” Pierschbacher said. “They’ve been coming in and getting extra and coaches have really pushed older guys, trying to teach them and take them under their wing a little bit and just showing them how things are done.

“… Everyone’s going to kind of have things to work on, but I think, from what I saw, I was pretty pleased with the young guys.”

Despite competition, this year’s offensive line appears to be a close-knit group off the field.

Prior to preseason camp, the group gathered, along with offensive line coach Brent Key, for an afternoon out on the lake -- although they made sure they all didn’t ride in the same boat. And making Williams -- a noted film junkie -- happy, the offensive linemen paid more attention to details this offseason.

“That’s one of the things we’ve been working on this offseason is having a better understanding schematically, understanding how defenses work better, their structure, the schemes of our plays. … We meet as an O-line a little bit extra sometimes just to watch (film), either help out the younger guys or smooth things out with the older guys.”

Alabama’s offensive line and other position groups will practice tonight at 7:30 p.m. CT.

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