Since the last time the Alabama offense took the field in a game, in last year’s national championship game loss to Clemson, the offensive line has undergone quite a change. Only Jedrick Wills, Jr., remains in the position he started in that game and every other game in the 2018 season, right tackle.

Alex Leatherwood also started in every game on the offensive line last year, but Leatherwood had moved from left tackle backup in 2017 to starting right guard last season. He is now back as No. 1 at left tackle.

But the middle of the offensive line has been undergoing a shuffle as the Crimson Tide transitions from preseason camp to preparation for the Aug. 31 season opener against Duke in Atlanta.

Among those who have been involved in those guard and center positions are Chris Owens, Emil Ekiyor, Evan Neal, Landon Dickerson, Matt Womack (who has missed some work with an injury), and Deonte Brown (who will miss the first four games with an NCAA-mandated four-game suspension).

Wills, a 6-5, 320-pound junior from Lexington, Ky., has no reason to contradict his head coach regarding the rebuild of the offensive front. Regarding the rotation of men in and out of the guard and center positions, Wills said, “It’s been smooth. You don’t even know different guys are in there from time-to-time. Everyone’s working to get better, and it will be a coaches’ decision on who plays there.”

As for the man right next to him at guard, taking over where Leatherwood played last year, Wills said, “The plus is everyone knows the playbook. So it’s been easy with communication and things like that. I feel it’s more, kind of like, I guess you don’t have the same bond as everybody else. You have to trust the guy on the left of you, to the right of you.

“But whoever they hop in there, it goes smooth and easy. It’s all been pretty good.”

Jedrick Wills, Jr., returns as starter at right tackle

Prior to Alabama’s second and final preseason scrimmage Saturday at Bryant-Denny Stadium, Saban said, “I like the offensive line.

“I think we’ve got some pretty good experience there. I like the two tackles that we have. I think they’ve both had really good camps.

“We have four or five guys that can play inside that have done really well. Without naming specific players, I think we can have a really good offensive line. We’ve had players sort of nicked up, missing a practice here, missing a practice there. Like to get them all out there so we can try to put our best group together and try to get our best five out there, which I don’t know that we’ve ever had the chance to do to this point.

“But I feel better about the number of players that we have at that position now than I’ve had most of the time in the past, so I feel pretty good about it.”

It pleased Wills to hear that from his head coach.

“It means a lot,” he said. “We’ve been working really hard throughout camp just to develop as a unit. Under Coach Flood things are going real smooth. So it’s really good to hear that.”

Kyle Flood is Alabama’s new offensive line coach this year. He came to Bama from the Atlanta Falcons, where he had worked with new Offensive Coordinator Steve Sarkisian.

Wills said Flood “has really good knowledge coming from the NFL. Some different things he teaches like coverages and things to look out for that you don’t really see beyond the offensive line. Those things help a whole bunch.”

Wills said the Sarkisian-Flood influences have “spread a whole bunch of knowledge throughout the offensive line room and the offense in general. I feel it definitely helps when it comes down to making decisions, calling plays, and coming up with different schemes and game plans.”

He said Alabama schemes and protections “kind of match up with what [the Falcons] do. So when we go to install something new or they show us something we can do, [Coach Flood] can pull up film from the Falcons and compare the two.”

He said he thinks it’s helpful to see how the pros do it.

Wills was willing to mention a couple of newcomers in the offensive line. He said redshirt freshman Emil Ekiyor, Jr., “has played all three interior positions. Especially when he hops in at center he knows what’s he talking about and he knows what he’s doing. It’s really good to have him be able to play anywhere for us.”

And true freshman Evan Neal, who came in at 6-7, 360 (now reported as down to a mere 340) and has moved from tackle to guard. “Still learning,” Wills said, “but he’s been doing well. He’s a big guy. But from when he first went in there, he was real smooth and real easy. Big, physical player. Smart guy. He’s got all the intangibles.”