Aside from two spots, the rest of Alabama's starting jobs in the secondary are apparently still up for grabs.

Sophomore safety Xavier McKinney and junior cornerback Trevon Diggs are the two definite starters, the two out of the Crimson Tide's defensive backs that Nick Saban said have "played with the most consistency" throughout fall camp. Nothing else is set in stone with the secondary yet, though, according to Saban.

"Everybody else has been a little up and down," Saban said. "And, to me, everybody else's positions is still, there's competition at all the rest of the positions. How we fit the guys around those two guys remains to be determined."

To Saban, this secondary -- which lost its top six guys from last year -- remains a "real work in progress."

Like Diggs and McKinney, redshirt junior safety Deionte Thompson and junior college cornerback Saivion Smith -- who had an interception during Alabama's scrimmage last weekend -- have consistently worked with the first-team defense since the spring.

There was a change at that Star spot on Thursday, though.

Five-star freshman Patrick Surtain, who had a couple nice pass breakups during the scrimmage, was at Star with the first-team defense during the media viewing period on Thursday instead of Shyheim Carter.

"We have a lot of work to do (in the secondary)," Saban said. "We have to continue to work. And there's a lot of plays on defense where 10 guys are doing what they're supposed to do and one guy doesn't and that creates a break down. That's not just in the secondary but all away around the town."

Others have sounded more optimistic about the secondary, however, including a former Alabama defensive back who was at that scrimmage last weekend.

"The 1 secondary looked great," Will Lowery tweeted after the scrimmage. "Deionte Thompson and McKinney looked more like vets than guys working towards their first starts. Diggs and Saivion solid as well. The throws they did get beat on were mostly just Tua putting it right on the money."