Alabama wide receiver DeAndrew White warming up for the second scrimmage after being one of the high performers in the first one. (Copyright photo by Brett Hudson)
Starting line in drills before #Tide scrimmage: Kouandjio, Kouandjio, Kelly, Steen, Shepherd
— Mark Edwards (@MarkSportsStar) April 13, 2013
Here is some video from the scrimmage, with photos, stats and full coverage coming to the blog soon.
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Posted in football, practice, scrimmage, spring practice
Tagged Alabama Crimson Tide, Alabama football, Anthony Steen, Arie Kouandjio, Austin Shepherd, Brett Hudson, Cyrus Kouandjio, football practice, football scrimmage, photos, practice video, Ryan Kelly, scrimmage video, spring football, spring football practice, spring football scrimmage, spring scrimmage, Spring Scrimmage Two
Amongst the hordes of statewide media and NFL scouts, a certain crowd of VIPs was almost lost: the current members of the Alabama football team, those that are not en route to a National Football League city after April’s draft.
Players made their excitement to attend clear.
Omw to check out this proday
— cyrus kouandjio (@ck_allday71) March 13, 2013
Pro Day
— Geno Smith ™ (@_ALLWORLD24) March 13, 2013
S/O to all the Bama Players doing Pro Day today!! Time for ya’ll to go show out!! #NFL #BuiltbyBama
— Corey McCarron (@CoreyMcCarron47) March 13, 2013
..pro day got me all excited for this upcoming season and my journey to the nfl
— Kenny bell (@TheKennyBell7) March 13, 2013
Former Alabama defensive end Damion Square remembers being in their shoes and is openly bitter than an injury took away his turn to perform in the spectacle.
“It kind of hurts me to watch and I can’t perform,” Sqaure said. “I want to put my best foot forward out here. I want to coach my guys up and watch their mistakes and hopefully take it in and get better from it.”
Square still hopes to use his experience on-the-field for Pro Day to help the upcoming NFL talent.
“I’m a team guy. I support my guys,” he said. “We grinded hard over the last five years that I’ve been here. I want these guys to get the results that they want. Me, myself, too.”
Alabama head coach Nick Saban could not help but to look ahead at the future, as well.
“I think all of our guys would like to have the opportunity some day to develop a career as a football player, which means can they play at the next level,” Saban said. “I don’t think that’s a bad motivator as long as you keep the priorities of being a good person, doing what you need to do to develop a career off the field by graduating from school and being motivated to develop a career as a football player. I don’t think that’s a bad thing.
“To see guys before you and know how hard they’ve worked, the kind of success they had individually and team success, which all contributes to guys getting opportunities, I think is a good thing.”
To see what the players in the event did, click here to see the players run the 40-yard dash, click here to see video of other drills and click here to see some video of Jesse Williams’ activity.
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Tagged Alabama 2013 Pro Day, Alabama Crimson Tide, Alabama football, Corey McCarron, Cyrus Kouandjio, Damion Square, Geno Smith, Kenny Bell, Nick Saban, pro day
Barrett Jones has moved on from the Crimson Tide to pursue an NFL career, seen here at the NFL Scouting Combine. (AP photo)
This may be the hot-button issue of spring training: the boys in the trenches that so ritually decide the outcome of games. The drama surrounding this group are the three starters from the prevous two national championship teams that must be replaced before the journey for a three-peat can begin.
It all starts at the anchor, where Barrett Jones leaves a large void in both talent, football IQ and leadership. Alabama seems to favor Ryan Kelly to replace him. Kelly, from West Chester, Ohio, will enter the 2013 season as a redshirt sophomore after playing off the bench in nine games in 2012 and being named to the SEC-All Freshman Team.
At guard, Anthony Steen is sure to keep his spot as a starter, and Alabama has options to replace Warmack. Chad Lindsey and Leon Brown could both step in guards, plus guard Arie Kouandjio. If the name Kouandjio looks familiar, that’s because his younger brother, Cyrus, has quite the lock on his starting tackle position from last season.
Just like the guard position that needs to be filled, Alabama has options to replace D.J. Fluker. Both Brown and Lindsey could fit in as a tackle, as could Brandon Green, Brandon Hill, Alphonse Taylor and incoming freshman Grant Hill.
Breakdown: One senior (Steen), five juniors (Brown, C. Kouandjio, A. Kouandjio, Lindsey, Shepherd), two sophomores (Kelly, Hill), two redshirt freshmen (Taylor, Greene), one freshman (Hill).
Prediction: The obvious starters will hold their spots, being Kouandjio and Steen, and Kelly should establish a firm hold on the center spot. But the others need to buckle up: they’re in a battle that could easily last throughout the spring up until the first week of the regular season.
TUSCALOOSA, Alabama — One of the biggest responsibilities Saturday when Alabama faces LSU will fall upon offensive tackles D.J. Fluker and Cyrus Kouandjio.
The Bengal Tigers have a quality defensive line, especially with ends Barkevious Mingo and Sam Montgomery. They’ve helped LSU rank second nationally in pass efficiency defense and fifth in tackles for loss.
Fluker, a junior, and Kouandjio, a sophomore, often will draw the chore of trying to hold back Mingo and Montgomery.
“I think overall they’ve done a pretty good job all year,” Alabama coach Nick Saban said. “You can’t expect guys to block every guy, every time, every play. And we certainly know that they’ve been beaten a few times. But at the same time, when you look at their whole body of work this year, both guys have done a really good job of blocking the edges.”
Montgomery, a junior, will line up often against Kouandjio. Montgomery leads LSU in sacks (four) and tackles for loss (nine). Mingo, who is a senior, will draw Fluker often. Mingo is tops in quarterback hurries (nine).
But Saban said stopping the push rush relies on more than Fluker and Kouandjio.
“They are one of the pass-rushing teams in the league,” Saban said. “They’ve got two really good edge rushers. They have really good team speed. Their inside guys can rush as well. Even though they’re bigger, more physical guys, they do have quickness and they can push the pocket.
“When you have edge rushers and you push the pocket in the middle, the quarterback has a hard time stepping up away from that rush. The combination of those things make them a very effective team.”
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Saturday won’t be easy for Alabama offensive tackle Cyrus Kouandjio.
The Crimson Tide is facing Tennessee, and the Vols’ defensive coordinator, Sal Sunseri, not only is a former Bama assistant coach but is the father of Kouandjio’s roommate, Vinnie Sunseri. In addition, Sal Sunseri recruited Kouandjio to Tuscaloosa out of Hyattsville, Md.
“I love Coach Sal,” Kouandjio said. “After the game, we’re going to hug. We’re going to shake hands. But during the game, it’s ‘I don’t love Coach Sal.’ My roommate, Vinnie Sunseri — it’s his father. I love the guy to death, actually. I can’t wait to see him again. I’ll hold that off until after the game.”
This also is a meaningful game because Kouandjio got hurt last year against Tennessee. He tore the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee, which required reconstructive surgery.
“To rehab every day — I didn’t know it was going to be as hard, actually,” he said. “When you get hurt, it’s not a joke, because it’s tough to get back. I’m still kind of hurting a little bit. But I’m just ready to go out there and play, you know?
“I’m actually pretty excited. It’s been a year, and this is the same team that I tore my ACL against. I’m ready to go out there and have fun.”
Just a couple of years ago, the Alabama-Tennessee rivalry meant nothing special to Kouandjio. He didn’t learn about it until after he arrived on campus.
“I noticed a change in tempo and a change in everybody’s mindset,” he said. “Everybody’s more into it, you know? Everybody’s more focused. This is a big game, especially Coach (Nick) Saban. He feels this is a huge game because we have a rivalry against Tennessee, and it’s an important game to do our best and execute.”
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Tagged Cyrus Kouandjio, Nick Saban, Sal Sunseri, Vinnie Sunseri
Alabama sophomore backup offensive lineman Arie Kouandjio has a big fan in his younger brother, Cyrus, who is the starting left tackle for the Tide.
Cyrus can’t help but marvel at how Arie has come back from multiple knee injuries, including one that limited him to two games last season and forced him to miss spring training.
“I’m proud of him,” Cyrus said Wednesday after practice. “A lot of the athletic trainers talk about him a lot. They call him Jason, out of Freddy vs. Jason, because he just keeps on coming.”
Jason? Really? Jason?
The guy from Friday the 13th and its 10 sequels?
Cyrus said it’s the perfect nickname.
“They cut up both his knees,” he said. “They chop them up real good and he just keeps on coming. You know he’s out there, he’s playing and he’s doing good, and he’s getting pancakes and big blocks. I love his attitude because he can’t be stopped with such a good attitude.”
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The morning practice of the first two-a-day is underway. Duron Carter still wasn’t on the practice field, but Cyrus Kouandjio was. The former No. 1 high school offensive lineman was working with the second team at left tackle again today. Here’s a quick look at his morning before my camera took a union break.
More video to come.
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Here’s another view of a big-name freshman. See Cyrus Kouandjio, wearing No. 71, at his first Tide practice Friday evening.
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Taking a moment to editorialize, this is really getting pathetic.
Fans from both sides of the Auburn/Alabama rivalry have taken over the Facebook page of recruit Cyrus Kouandjio. In what amounts to secondary violations of NCAA rules, fans have taken the liberty to recruit the undecided offensive lineman while bashing the other side.
There are questions as to who this page really belongs to, but that is immaterial. I know the media has given life to the recruiting phenomenon, but this is getting way out of hand. Here are a few examples of the ridiculousness:
Said Tyler Andrews (grammatical and spelling errors untouched)
“just look at Brent Calloway…long time Bama commit. then auburn came along and told him some stuff (probably the same that they told you) He commited to auburn on live tv without telling his parents and the bama coaching staff. He had the same exact face look that you had on NSD. He said he visited Bama one more time and realized why he commited to Bama and now that he has signed with Bama he his HOME…..Both situations are soooo familiar it is crazy. Forget about what they told you, or just call Brent I’m sure he can help you….RTR”
Lucas Cooke offered this:
Cyrus,
Good luck with your decision. Whatever choice you make, make sure it is the right choice for you! I sure hope that choice is to join the Auburn Family!! As a past CADC graduate, I can attest that our architecture, design and construction program is second to none! Regardless, both schools are great choices! Good luck my friend. …WDE!”
Iowa, one of Kouandjio’s other finalists, has fans making the same pitch.
Shawn McKenna says …
“thank you for accepting my friend request…as you might imagine, I’m here just to say…COME TO IOWA! the coaches are great, and the fans are the BEST..(if I say so myself) YOU WILL FEEL LIKE FAMILY….and we know that’s important to you.. there is no better place to play on saturdays, Kinnick is ELECTRIC…and there’s no better plac……e to develop your skills and prepare for the NFL…just look at all the former Hawkeye lineman in the NFL, Bulaga (in the Super Bowl) Yanda (Ravens), Gallery (#2 overall draft pick) I could go on..talk to Cooper, talk to Lomax…shock the world, and come help us win Big 10 titles and Natl championships…in exchange you will go to the NFL and make $$$ -”
It doesn’t matter how friendly the correspondences sound, this is silly. Leave the kid alone. This outrageous attention created the indecision to start with.
Get a life, people.
Update: I didn’t make the connection on this before, by SI.com’s Andy Staples points out Pay Dye’s daughter Missy Dye McDonald was among those who posted on Kouandjio’s Facebook wall. Here’s the screen grab.
Update II: And yet another daughter of a coach appears to have taken to Kouandjio’s Facebook page. Click here for the screen grab of an account belonging to “Kristin Saban” and the quick message left for the recruit.
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