TUSCALOOSA, Ala. -- The five players that started along Alabama’s offensive line in its 2018 season opener have played in a combined 120 games, including 62 starts, as members of the Crimson Tide. But there was still plenty of newness for the first-team unit Saturday.

Redshirt senior Ross Pierschbacher made his first start at center after three years as a starting guard, Lester Cotton moved back to left guard after spending all of last year at right guard, Alex Leatherwood made his first career start at right guard after filling in for Jonah Williams in the national championship game and Jedrick Wills made his second career start at right tackle.

So, it took some time for those five players to gel during the Camping World Kickoff.

“I just thought early in the game we were a little tentative in the way we weren’t playing aggressively up front,” head coach Nick Saban said Wednesday. “I think that first game, new team, new coordinator, guys just… a lot of movements, a lot of stunts up front. Once we got into the flow of the game, I thought we controlled the line of scrimmage much better, so it was just the way we started, I think. Hopefully, we’ll be able to improve.”

The Crimson Tide linemen helped block for an offense that amassed 519 yards and 51 points against Louisville, including 222 yards on the ground. Outside of a sack on the game’s very first series, the big uglies up front kept all three Alabama quarterbacks clean Saturday.

The O-line was led by another strong performance up front from Williams, who started his 15th game in a row at left tackle. The junior preseason All-American graded out at a team-high 92 percent and missed only one assignment on 59 snaps with six knockdown blocks. He did not commit a penalty or allow any pressure on the Tide quarterbacks against the Cardinals.

So, how would a film junkie like Williams assess how Alabama’s entire line played in Orlando?

“I think it’s the first game, so there’s a reason it’s the first game,” Williams said.

Alabama left tackle Jonah Williams bursts out of his stance against Louisville.

“We have a lot of practice ahead of us and a lot of games ahead of us, so I think there’s a lot of things we can clean up as far as assignments go. And credit to their defense, their defensive coordinator. They’re kind of known for running kind of exotic blitzes. There’s one blitz they have 41 ways to run the same blitz. So, some things I think, especially if you’re inexperienced, are going to be tough to pick up. But I think that, overall, we played well. We all know we have a lot to improve on, and that’s what our focus is going forward.”

How exactly does a team run a single blitz 41 different ways?

“I mean, different fronts, different coverages, secondary shells, that type of things,” Williams said. “Multiple different blitzes, I mean, it’s little nuances that you don’t go out there and think, ‘Which of the 41?’ Like, we have rules that pick things up. But that’s shown over time. We were watching film of (Brian VanGorder) at Notre Dame because that was really his last defensive coordinator gig, so that’s over the course of a couple years at Notre Dame.”

Alabama will face a new challenge this week when it hosts Arkansas State for its home opener Saturday, Sept. 8, at 2:35 p.m. CT at Bryant-Denny Stadium. The Red Wolves rank in the top four in scoring (21), rushing (122), passing (163) and total (285) defense in the Sun Belt and are tied for the league lead in sacks (4) after their 48-21 win over Southeast Missouri this past Saturday.

Overall, though, following the first game, Saban and Williams are pleased with the progress.

“I do think there’s things that we need to clean up in protection and, you know, maybe work on being a little bit more physical in the running game,” Saban said Wednesday on the SEC head coaches teleconference. “But again, I was pleased with the performance, not satisfied, and I would think that most of those guys would tell you the same thing.”

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

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