Da'Shawn Hand was at the gym simply to watch, a means to catching up with friends during a trip home to Virginia following Alabama's season.

Hand did not intend to work out, plans that changed after some banter and playful challenges for Hand to show what he could do on the bench press.

The 6-foot-4, 273-pound defensive lineman warmed up briefly before loading up the bench press with 225 pounds and lying down to perform a set with his friends and mentor, John Harris, standing around watching.

Hand, a rising sophomore, did 42 reps, five more than any player got at the NFL scouting combine in February.

The reaction in the gym, Harris said, was reminiscent of crowds during old NBA dunk contests. "If you've ever seen an old dunk contest when Jordan jumps from the free-throw line and everyone goes crazy, it was that kind of atmosphere," Harris said.

"If I didn't see him do it, I wouldn't believe it myself," Harris said.

Hand would likely already be a starter and key contributor at most schools around the country, a "beast" as described by high school coach and former Auburn player Karibi Dede whom Rivals rated as the top overall prospect in last year's recruiting class.

At Alabama, Hand has had to be patient as part of a defensive line with three players -- A'Shawn Robinson, Jonathan Allen and Jarran Reed -- who could all be early picks in next year's NFL draft.

Bigger, stronger and faster with a better grasp of his responsibilities within the Tide's defense, Hand is in line for more playing time as a sophomore this season while again serving as a rotational player behind Allen and Reed at defensive end and defensive tackle.

"I think with these young guys, there's physical maturity that he's certainly made improvement in," coach Nick Saban said last week, later adding, "You're trying to learn everything when you're a freshman. People have high expectations for you. He's a lot more confident in what he's supposed to do. He's playing a lot faster, reacting a lot better.

"And we have every confidence that he'll be a very good player for us next year, God willing he can stay healthy and continue to practice. But he's been very good in the three days that we've had so far. We're excited about his future."

Hand was a four-year starter at Woodbridge High School in Virginia, finishing his high school career with 56 sacks and as a two-time USA Today first-team All-American.

A physical presence who was also a state champion wrestler at Woodbridge, Hand had 16 sacks as a senior in 2013, 40 tackles for a loss and 16 sacks as a junior, and 35 tackles for a loss and 21 sacks as a sophomore.

A tackle Hand made as a senior was selected as one of Sportscenter's Top 10 plays of the day.

As an opposing running back attempted to burst through the middle of Woodbridge's defense, Hand pushed through two blocks, grabbed the running back around the waist, picked him up off the ground and threw him backwards for what looked like a wrestling suplex.

Hand had more than 90 scholarship offers before choosing to play for Alabama despite the understanding that he would likely be nothing more than a rotational player early in his career.

"There's a lot of competition, but it's good competition," Hand said in December. "I already knew that coming in. I knew I was going to have to grow up fast. My time is going to come, and I'll be ready."

Hand played in nine games last season, making seven tackles and recording sacks against Texas A&M and Tennessee.

"Da'Shawn is coming along," linebacker Reggie Ragland said. "I know Coach has got him working with us. He's very smart. He's very physical, and I know he's going to be a big-time player."

The bench press numbers show Hand's rare physical prowess and help to confirm how much the Virginia native has matured physically since he first arrived at Alabama.

"His freshman year of high school, when I first started working with him in the weight room, I saw him do power cleans," Harris said. "He was doing them totally wrong, but he was doing an unbelievable amount of weight, and he was just throwing it up and cleaning it. I was like, 'Man, put this down before you hurt yourself.' He's always had that natural strength. But once he learned the technique of everything, his scores just jumped up so much in everything -- not just power cleans, but bench, squat, and you start seeing a power lunge with an unbelievable amount of weight.

"I just knew that once he got down there that he was going to be a freak of nature by the time he graduates."

Hand was already getting 23 reps of 225 pounds on the bench press as a senior at Woodbridge. The number grew to 38 as a freshman at Alabama last season. Months later, Hand is consistently doing 40 or more reps when tested using 225 pounds, Harris said.

Hand arrived at Alabama weighing around 260 pounds. He enters his sophomore season at an "unbelievable 270."

"He's a lot stronger," Harris said. "He's very lean at 270 pounds. He's a lot faster, and I think the big part of it is that he's going to adjust to the speed of the game a lot better this season. ...

"Da'Shawn wants to be put in a position where he knows what he's doing. If you're going to put him a position where he can be the best at what he's doing, if he has to wait a year to do it, then so be it. It's not an ego thing where he had to go out there the first day and be the man. But his mindset is that when he does get the opportunity, he's going to be the best."